Misty mountains on Lantau Island

Lantau (爛頭 Làntóu, also 大嶼山 Dàyǔ shān) is the largest island in Hong Kong.

Understand

The opening of the Lantau Link in 1997 has seen the largest islands in the Hong Kong territory now firmly connected to the mainland, with Hong Kong's new airport, a MTR line and a city of 50,000 popping up overnight in Tung Chung, and with Disneyland opened in 2005 the island seems poised for certain growth.

Get in

Map of Lantau

Ferries to the island, as well as buses, impose a peculiar 50% surcharge for travel on Sundays and public holidays (with the exception of services to/from/within Discovery Bay, Disneyland and the airport). It's cheaper, and less crowded, to visit during the week or on Saturdays.

By train

The Tung Chung MTR line is the fastest way to get to Lantau. The trip takes around 25 minutes all the way from Hong Kong station and costs $23. Children enjoy a 50% discount.

By boat

The obvious way of getting to the island is to take a ferry. Ferries depart from the Outlying Islands pier in Central, to the west of the Star Ferry terminal. The largest operator is New World First Ferry.

• Discovery Bay: Pier 3, $27 (fast only), every 10-30 minutes
• Mui Wo: Pier 6, $10.50 (slow) / $21 (fast), every 30 minutes

By bus

Since the opening of the Lantau Link a number of buses also cross over to Lantau, although they are considerably slower than the MTR and less scenic than the ferries. The local bus timetable in Lantau island is http://www.newlantaobus.com/nlb-map.htm

By car

Much of Lantau is zoned as a national park and is off limits to vehicles without a permit.

Get around

By road

On Lantau you can travel by bus and taxi; note that seemingly short distances on a map (eg. Tung Chung to Ngong Ping, less than 6 km by cable car) can take a while (in this case over 40 min!) due to the twisty mountain roads and their circuitous routes.

By cable car

Ngong Ping Skyrail is a spectacular 5.7km cable car journey between Tung Chung town centre and Ngong Ping on Lantau Island, which can be accessed from the Tung Chung MTR station. More information in the Ngong Ping 360 section below.

See

• Hong Kong Disneyland, tel. +852-1-830-830, [1]. China's first Disneyland opened in September 2005 and features all the Disney favorites, if slightly tweaked for local tastes. The park is accessible via the Sunny Bay station on the Tung Chung MTR line. This is the smallest of all the Disneylands. It has four zones: Main Street USA, Adventureland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. On weekdays tickets are HK$295 for Adults and HK$210 for children. On weekends and holidays the tickets are HK$350 for adults and $250 for children. Children under 3 are free. If your schedule allows, visit on a weekday to avoid the crowds.

• Ngong Ping 360, The Journey of Enlightenment, Hong Kong's newest tourism experience and combines a spectacular 5.7km cable car journey with an impressive cultural themed village and easy access to the Po Lin Monastery. The cabins glide over the South China Sea and the verdant mountainous terrain of the North Lantau Country Park for 20-25 minutes and provide some of the best panoramic views in Hong Kong, including the Hong Kong International Airport and the Tian Tan Buddha Statue. A single trip costs $55 ($88 round trip).

• Po Lin Monastery, Ngong Ping. Famed for the Tien Tan Buddha, which at over 250 tonnes and 34 metres in height is the largest, seated, outdoor bronze Big Buddha statue in the world (note the careful series of qualifications). Open 10AM to 6PM, access to the Buddha itself is free, but entering the somewhat underwhelming museum inside requires a meal ticket for the vegetarian restaurant; a "snack" costs $23 while full meals are $60 (normal) or $100 (deluxe). To get to the monastery, take bus #2 from Mui Wo ferry pier or bus #23 from Tung Chung (both $16/25 on weekdays/Sundays) or go by cable car (see "Ngong Ping 360", above).

• Tai O fishing village. A traditional fishing village with stilt houses above the sea. Take the bus from Mui Wo ferry pier.

Do

• Hikers may wish to try the 70-km Lantau Trail, which does a loop around Lantau Island. The full route will require several days but is divided into a dozen stages, some of which can be covered in as little as 45 minutes.

Eat

• The Po Lim Monastery's vegetarian restaurant is well worth of visit for a taste Chinese vegetarian food, an artform devoted to turning soybean products into very passable imitations of meat and fish. Meals at set times only ($60/100), enquire at the Big Buddha's ticket booth.

• The Stoep, 32 Lower Cheung Sha Village. 2980 2699 Beachside restaurant serving South African dishes.

Sleep

There are some guesthouses (a few of which call themselves hotels) and two hostels on Lantau. Lantau also has 10 campsites. When you get off the ferry pier in Mui Wo, there are some booths were you can rent apartments for the weekend. There are two hotels along the beach, the silvermine beach hotel and another one further up on the beach

Stay at the SG Davis Hostel 2985 5610 at the Po Lin Monastery.