Hong Kong Island Promenade is Complete

Visitors can wear shoe covers on the glass walkway

During the Covid-19 pandemic, after dinner during the week I walked along the Hong Kong waterfront from Kennedy Town to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and back, a good 10K.

I enjoyed being among people, in the fresh air and getting exercise.

The last 1.1K section was unveiled to the public

Then on the weekends my friend and I would walk further to Sai Wan Ho, but when we got to Tin Hau and Fortress Hill, there were breaks in the path and we had to walk inland a few blocks before getting back on the harbourfront path.

But yesterday the last section, about 1.1K long was finally completed, from the North Point Promenade to Hoi Yu Street in Quarry Bay. Now people can literally go from Kennedy Town to Shau Kei Wan in 13K.

Part of the North Point section features a glass walkway, where visitors need to wear shoe covers... seems a bit over the top for a path that's mainly for looking at the scenery above than below the water.

Nevertheless this project of designing and constructing a 13k promenade is 16 years in the making and it's great to see it's finally finished.

The path is a great way to see the city

It's a fantastic way not only for locals to enjoy their city, but also for visitors to see how accessible Hong Kong is and to appreciate the views from the waterfront. 

When I recently visited Hong Kong I was staying in North Point and walked along the waterfront towards Causeway Bay a few times. 

Can't wait to go back and walk the whole 13K!

An Enjoyable Walking Route at North Point

Under the highway overpass is a place for people to exercise

In the last few years I lived in Hong Kong, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic, my friend and I did a lot of walking along the harbour. It was a way of decompressing and also feeling like we accomplished something, counting the number of kilometres with some sweat. I also wore down a few pairs of runners.

Towards the end we could walk from Kennedy Town to Sai Wan Ho on a path hugging the shoreline, though there were some sections where we had no choice but to walk inland before the path continued again along the harbour front.

A colourful path directing cyclists and pedestrians

Recently another section opened up -- right by my hotel in North Point. Called the East Coast Park Precinct, the path going west is under the highway overpass which is interesting. It's jazzed up with bright colours, some exercise machines, motorbike hills for kids and a really tame climbing hill.

There are two paths that periodically converge or separate; one of which juts out periodically so people can take pictures of the harbour or stand or walk and enjoy the view.

This morning I checked out the path and saw a number of seniors taking advantage of the path, some young professionals using the route to walk to work in the car-free zone, some squeezing in a run before work, or walking their dogs.

I walked to Fortress Hill, the next district west of North Point and did a loop around the giant vent shaft which is part of the Central-Wan Chai Bypass, before turning back.

In the end I walked about 4km and broke in a bit of a sweat even though it was a chilly 15 degrees.

A mini hill to climb on the left for kids

What a great way to start off the day, seeing this development continue to piece together the shoreline so that people will eventually be able to walk all the way around Hong Kong Island -- if they so wish!