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mysterioustransmissions · 6 years ago

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My favorite comics of 2017

Keeping with my new tradition of posting this list super late, here, on the last day of 2018, is my best comics of 2017 list. I can offer excuses -- my wife and I remodeled our house and welcomed our first child into the world this year, and I’m also unfailingly lazy -- but 2017 was also a killer year for comics, making this a bit larger of an undertaking than usual. Both Koyama Press and co-publishers Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics had absolutely stacked lineups. You’ll see them listed as publisher for many entries below.

I always struggle with how to order this list. I got serious about organizing my comics collection in 2018, and am running into the same problem. There, I’m thinking of dividing it into two -- a single-author section organized by author name (which ends up being mostly minicomics and graphic novels), and a multiple-author section organized by title (which ends up being mostly traditional-sized comics). Here, I’m essentially doing that same thing, but mixing them together; some entries are by title, and some author name.

Comics I especially enjoyed are marked with an *.

Allison, Matthew; Cankor: Calamity of Challenge #2 and #3 (self-published).

Berserker 1, edited by edited by Tom Oldham and Jamie Sutcliffe (Breakdown Press). There was a lot of anticipation and very specific expectations placed on this book ahead of its release, but no one seemed to walk away from the finished product satisfied. But it’s got a killer cover, great production design, and strips by some of the best cartoonists going. I hope Breakdown does another one.

* Booth, Tara; How to be Alive (Retrofit Comics & Big Planet Comics). One of the funniest books I’ve ever read. Booth’s drawings are a riot to look at, that the gags are also great is pure gravy. About as big as crossover hits get in my house. (I.e., my wife also loved it.)

Cardini, William; Tales From the Hyperverse (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics). Cardini’s sci-fi world is made bigger and more engaging by the rapid-fire pace of this short story collection. His wild experimentation with color is always an inspiration.

Corben, Richard; Shadows on the Grave #1 - #8 (Dark Horse Comics). Not my favorite of Corben’s late-period Dark Horse horror books, but there’s plenty to enjoy. I was stunned by the sheer efficiency of the storytelling -- there are entire stories told with a single image and a few word balloons. A lot of these books sport great covers, issue #1 here, seen at the link for this entry, is one of the best.

Darrow, Geoff; The Shaolin Cowboy: Who’ll Stop the Reign? #1 - #4 with Dave Stewart (Dark Horse Comics). I was so bowled over by the experience of buying Shemp Buffet monthly that I initially scoffed at Cowboy’s return to more traditional narrative, but it turned out to be no less wild and no loss at all.

Davis, Eleanor; Libby’s Dad (Retrofit Comics & Big Planet Comics) and You & a Bike & a Road (Koyama Press). You & a Bike & a Road does something that’s often attempted and rarely successful -- it beats the audience down so it can then lift them up higher. Its success is due in no small part from its origin as a real-life journal. The visceral and emotional pain Davis feels on her journey is sincerely felt, and the lack of cynicism the storytelling choices are made with allow the reader to feel it whole cloth. And listen; it certainly doesn’t hurt that Davis is an amazing narrative storyteller besides -- Libby’s Dad is no less affecting.

DeForge, Michael; mini kuš! #43 'Meat Locker' (kuš!). I sleep on DeForge. I take him for granted. I feel like I’m not the only one? I see some excitement when his books come out, but no discussion. Blame it on the high volume and opaque nature of his work, the dearth of comics reviewers, and me, obviously. Also obviously, whenever something of his does find its way to my hands, I’m never sorry.

Estrada, Inés; Alienation #3 - #6 (self-published). The bundled version of this series, seen at the link for this entry, has the coolest book packaging I’ve ever seen in my life.

Expansion by Matt Sheean and Malachi Ward (AdHouse Books). I didn’t like this nearly as much as this same team’s previous Ancestor (due no doubt to its earlier and improvised creation), but damn, what a cover.

* Forsman, Chuck; Slasher #1 - #4 (Floating World Comics). I’d say the majority of my interest in Forsman’s work is in seeing how he presents his it and steers his career -- he’s among the best there is at that. Slasher is his first work I strongly connected with. It digs deep and gets wilder and wilder.

Ferrick, Margot; Yours (2dcloud). I’m a simpleton, so I was surprised at how deeply I was able to be moved by something this abstract. As always, grabbing 2dcloud’s whole line on Kickstarter expands my horizons and makes me a better reader.

Foster-Dimino, Sophia; Sex Fantasy (Koyama Press). I’ve actually only read the minis of this. This collection has the one I’m missing, plus some new material, but I love Sex Fantasy. It’s like a perpetual motion machine for thought -- you can just think about it forever.

Fricas, Katie; Art Fan (self-published). One of those things you dream of happening at a show -- picked this up at MICE not knowing anything about it, and was delighted by the artwork and knocked out by the “reviews of trippy art events”; particularly the first, about Duke Riley’s Fly by Night.

* Friebert, Noel; WEIRD6 (self-published), SPINE: I’ll Still Watch (Bred Press), Old Ground (Koyama Press). Sometimes when I have a fever, I can’t break loose of a single, circular thought -- I have the same thought over and over, only to realize once the fever’s broken that it was barely coherent. Friebert’s newer, decompressed work is like that. You turn page after page, and nothing happens. It’s the same characters still doing and saying the same things, again and again. You turn the pages faster and faster, almost in a panic, hoping to break the cycle and resolve the unease before you. But it’s no use.

* gg; I’m Not Here (Koyama Press), Valley (kuš!). I’m Not Here is one of a few books I recommended to people who were enjoying season 3 of Twin Peaks at the time. It doesn’t convey information so much as emotion, and rewards as much thought as you want to put into it.

* Hankiewicz, John; Education (Fantagraphics Books). I loved this so much I only read a few pages a night to make it last. Michael DeForge once called Noel Freibert an “astronaut” -- that applies to Hankiewicz also. No one’s ever done anything like this before, and if we didn’t have Hankiewicz I don’t think anyone ever would. Bringing poetry and modern dance (!!) into the language of comics, this was another book I recommended to watchers of season 3 of Twin Peaks -- you don’t understand the story by connecting facts, you understand it by connecting emotions.

* Hanselmann, Simon; Portrait, XMP-165 (self-published). XMP-165 was the first big payoff of the longform nature of Megg and Mogg, and it destroyed me. Also released this year was Doujinshi, Cold Cube Press’ gorgeous re-release of a Japanese Megg and Mogg fan comic.

Harkam, Sammy; Crickets #6 (The Commonwealth Comics Company). People talk about how good this book is, and I agree, but I’m not sure I could tell you why.

Haven, Eric; Vague Tales (Fantagraphics Books).

Hernandez, Gilbert and Jaime ; Love & Rockets Vol. IV #2, #3 (Fantagraphics). I made the terrible error after Love Bunglers to trade wait Locas, and for whatever reason they haven’t released one since. So I was way behind when this started coming out, but I bought and read it anyway. I initially found the story to be light, but I eventually realized I had a free ComiXology trial and caught up. It’s as great as ever.

Ito, Junji; Dissolving Classroom (Vertical, Inc.), Shiver: Junji Ito Selected Stories, and Tomie: Complete Deluxe Edition (Viz Media). Tomie may have come out in 2016 actually? I describe it to people as being about a beautiful woman who stands around until some total lech of a man inevitably murders her, then she comes back and annihilates him in the most unpleasant manner possible. Repeat ad infinitum. I don’t think the text 100% supports my reading, but that’s what it means to me.

Landry, Tyler; Shit and Piss (Retrofit Comics). The ephemeral, disjointed nature the single issue format served this story better, but it’s still extremely rad.

Loup, Celine; The Man Who Came Down the Attic Stairs (self-published).

Marcus, Ben; Crisis Zone 3rd Edition (Bred Press).

Mignolaverse and John Arcudi; Dead Inside #3 by Arcudi, Toni Fejzula, and Andre May, Lobster Johnson: The Pirate’s Ghost #1 - #3 by Arcudi and Tonci Zonjic, Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea by Gary Gianni, Mike Mignola, and Dave Stewart (Dark Horse Comics). Ignoring a few years in college when I was a lapsed comics reader, I’ve bought every Mignolaverse comic since I was about 13. That loyalty has slowly eroded over the last half decade about. I’m not alone in thinking the Arcudi-Davis run is one of the greatest of all time, and that the books started to go downhill after Guy Davis left. Beyond the departure of Davis, there are a few reasons for that, in my view.

First was the decision soon after to expand the line’s offerings. Doubling the line’s output and bringing in (inevitably) inferior creative teams was a no-win proposition for readers. Who wants more of something not as good?

Second, I think that Arcudi, a great writer, has shifted his focus from tightly-plotted five issue arcs to series-spanning character arcs. While I’m guessing this reads great in big chunks, it doesn’t spread out month to month, some months out of the year. I’m looking forward to a big re-read of everything after B.P.R.D. wraps in a few months, to see if this theory holds. Lobster Johnson: The Pirate’s Ghost came close to standing on its own, but was still rife with moments that I can only assume were big character payoffs because I didn’t remember enough to know. (Especially cool covers by Zonjic on these issues.) However, the non-Mignolaverse title Dead Inside offered the type of visceral, plot-based payoff his B.P.R.D. run with Davis hooked me with. I hadn’t been this thrilled by an Arcudi book since Killing Ground.

But third, and worst of all, has been the addition of writer Chris Roberson, whose books read like updates to the Mignolaverse Wiki. (The Visitor: How and Why He Stayed was okay, but pretty much solely due to Paul Grist’s fun art and layouts.)

I’m staying aboard the main B.P.R.D. book as it races to the finish line, and will continue to buy anything Arcudi writes, which seems to be mostly these Lobster Johnson comics. (Although even that’s looking increasingly, and sadly, unlikely to continue: https://twitter.com/ArcudiJohn/status/1075086925436874753) And I’ll certainly buy any more of these very sporadically-released Hellboy OGNs, like Into the Silent Sea, they decide to release -- the only real non-Mignola drawn Hellboy books anymore.

* Milburn, Lane; CORRIDORS (self-published). Sits comfortably next to Inflated Head Zone by Zach Hazard Vaupen, one of my favorite comics. They both forsake straightforward narrative in favor of theme-driven emotional impressionism, and do it with horror. This is catnip to me, and something I aspire to (although I’m far too boring to achieve it).

* Mirror Mirror II, edited by Sean T. Collins and Julia Gfrörer (2dcloud).

Now: The New Comics Anthology #1, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics Books).

* Providence #12 by Jacen Burrows, Juan Rodriguez, and Alan Moore (Avatar Press). It came out months after, but it’s a safe bet Moore wrote this before Trump got elected, right? A more accurate depiction of the shell-shock of being thrust into a post-facts world I haven’t seen.

Roberts, Keiler; Sunburning (Koyama Press). Another big crossover hit in my house.

* Shiga, Jason; Demon Volumes 2, 3, and 4 (First Second). Demon became a book I wouldn’t stop showing to anyone who would listen. Like Gina Wynbrandt’s Someone Please Have Sex With Me, its hook transcends the normal comics reading audience -- you can show it to anyone and they get it right away. Specifically I would show people this amazing video https://youtu.be/NRxCTeM5pyU, which would clue them into what Shiga does enough to get them to read Demon. Demon has a story, but it’s more about rules -- establishing them and playfully subverting them with a level of inventiveness that regularly leaves you in awe.

* Terrell, Jake; Extended Play (2dcloud). This delightful book took me completely by surprise, an experience made possible by 2dcloud’s subscription model.

Tomasso, Rich; She Wolf: Black Baptism #1 - #4, Spy Seal: The Corten-Steel Phoenix #1 - #4 (Image Comics). The end of this second series of She Wolf approached the same hostile disregard for what came before as the end of Tomasso’s previous series, Dark Corridor. But where Dark Corridor acted on that impulse by simply burning it all down, She Wolf has enough respect at least to replace what came before by pivoting into a completely different comic. The freedom this affords the plot to dart in unpredictable directions is exhilarating. And it’s fun and beautifully laid out and designed, as always with Tomasso.

Tran, Thu; Dust Pam (Peow). Gorgeous!

Vaupen, Zach Hazard; Combed Clap of Thunder (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics).

* Willumsen, Connor; Anti-Gone (Koyama Press). The part where the protagonists drive their boat past a window with a dog in it rewired my comics-making brain forever. This was another comic I only read a few pages of a night to make it last longer, and also recommended to friends of mine who were enjoying season three of Twin Peaks -- the plot is obfuscated in a similar way.

Yanow, Sophie; What is a Glacier? (Retrofit Comics and Big Planet Comics).

Yokoyama, Yuichi; Iceland (Retrofit Comics). Another comic I recommended to Twin Peaks season three fans. Similar to the residents of the Red Room, the characters seem truly of another world, their motivations and actions incomprehensible to us.

#best of the year

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pluckyredhead · 7 years ago

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I liked the post about a Daredevil reading list! I've read Waid's run and enjoyed it very much. I started on Bendis' run recently - loved the art on "Wake Up." What would be on your "Recommended" list?

So for those who missed the reading list when I reblogged it originally, it’s here. It’s incredibly comprehensive and I love that it lays out exactly which books you should buy for the stories in question, so definitely check that out.

Anyway here’s my (hopefully succinct?) recs and, uh, anti-recs. I’m designating everything by writing for convenience and not to insult the artists, who are brilliant and crucial. More specific thoughts on everything up to like 1998 is covered in my Daredevil 101 tag.

(ALSO please note that if you have Marvel Unlimited almost all of this stuff (plus tens of thousands of other comics) is available for like $10/month.)

Silver Age: This is pretty much skipped in the original recs list and I get why: Daredevil didn’t really become the character we know and shake our heads over until Miller in the 80s. I really love Silver Age comics, though, and Marvel’s recently put out a couple of omniboo so it’s easy (if not cheap) to find these early stories. They’re not the best Daredevil or the best Marvel Silver Age (for that I’d look at...oh, Fantastic Four and Spider-Man), but they’re fun, and beautifully drawn.

Bronze Age: This is, like, when Foggy was DA and Matt was dating Natasha and stuff. Gorgeous art, meh stories, hard to find. Might as well skip.

Frank Miller: Right, so Miller is controversial at best and these days is an angry old bigot, but when he was at his peak he was a legit virtuoso, and there’s no denying the impact he had on Daredevil. You will find sexism, racism, and homophobia in his work, but for me the storytelling, character work, and composition offer enough compensations for me to enjoy these stories. YMMV and that’s totally okay. Either way, don’t read anything he did after, like, 1990, it’s all downhill from there.

If you only read one Miller, I suggest “Born Again.” My second rec would be the numbered volumes the OP describes. I’m not a fan of “Man Without Fear” but it is considered a classic, so do with that what you will. DO NOT read the Elektra minis, they are misogynistic nonsense.

Denny O’Neil: Doesn’t seem to have been collected anywhere and for good reason - he did great work on other books, but his DD is hot (racist) garbage.

Ann Nocenti: Lately people have been calling her run an underrated gem but I disagree - I find it to be pretty sexist, and the dialogue is godawful.

Karl Kesel/Joe Kelly: These late 90s runs haven’t been collected, which is a shame because I love them.

Kevin Smith/Joe Quesada/“Guardian Devil”: This is next up on my DD101 schedule so I’ll be talking about it in more detail soon-ish, but UGH. Google the plot summary for the important character developments and skip the exploitative, sexist nonsense on the page.

David Mack/Joe Quesada/“Parts of a Hole”: I don’t actually like Quesada’s art but Mack’s is S T U N N I N G (he’s best known for his Jessica Jones/Alias covers, I think) and this arc introduces Maya Lopez, who is wonderful. Pick this up.

Brian Michael Bendis: YES. I have some issues with how Bendis writes women but this is unputdownable. Such compelling storytelling, great character work, gorgeous art by Alex Maleev, and Bendis writes probably the best Foggy out there.

Ed Brubaker: YES AGAIN, at least through Matt’s trip to Europe and his return, then it kind of falls apart a bit. But “Devil in Cell Block D” is one of the best Daredevil stories ever, it’s a must-read (and five years or whatever of Bendis leading up to it is necessary foreplay).

Andy Diggle/“Shadowland”: LOLOLOL Shadowland is a hot mess. I enjoy it for how comically terrible it is, but definitely don’t pay extra money for it, Marvel Unlimited that shit. (Also it takes place over like 8 different series so if you read it on MU the system will put them all in reading order for you, which is nice.)

Mark Waid: READ EVERY SINGLE ISSUE OF THIS IMMEDIATELY, THESE ARE SOME OF MY FAVORITE COMICS OF ALL TIME.

Charles Soule: I am super not enjoying this run but I buy it every month because I’m the worst. If you want to check it out the first trade is called “Back in Black: Chinatown.”

Miscellaneous: Here are some out-of-continuity minis and tangential books the OP mentioned, and my thoughts therein:

Daredevil: Yellow: Beautifully retro, gorgeous art, and Loeb doesn’t do that thing he usually does where his stories work right up until the last issue and then abruptly stop making sense.

Daredevil: End of Days: This comic makes literally zero sense and features a future!Matt with six illegitimate children with five different women. Do not buy (but do read it on MU to stare in bewilderment).

Daredevil: Father: More of that lumpy Quesada art, an unnecessarily complicated storyline, and the ending reveal kind of undercuts Matt’s entire origin and subsequent existence? No thanks.

Daredevil: Noir: Not mentioned in the OP’s post, but it’s a canon 1920s AU where Foggy’s a PI and Matt’s his assistant, and even though it does that annoying thing where Matt falls in love with a woman at first smell and acts like that’s not as cheap as just drawing a really hot chick, the art is gorgeous.

Alias: The original Jessica Jones comics. These were groundbreaking at the time but not all aspects of them have aged well (Jessica’s relationships with other women, some of the baggage around sex, some nice guy bullshit, and weird hairsplitting about sexual assault). But Jessica’s still the angry hot mess we know and love and I think they’re still worth a read.

Immortal Iron Fist: Man, you guys, I don’t know. Everyone says these are the only good solo Iron Fist comics, but...they’re not actually good. Like, it looks like a good comic, it seems like it should be a good comic (Brubaker! Fraction! Aja!), but it’s just boring stories about WWI OCs and sometimes Danny gets to talk. Read the David Walker Power Man and Iron Fist instead.

#daredevil #daredevil 101 #long post #Anonymous

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terribleco · 5 years ago

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Top Fives: Ade The Terrible’s Top 5 Skateboarding Video Games

With this Coranavirus shit kicking off, and the sensible advice being to STAY THE HELL INDOORS, it’s understandable that you might get bored and have that itch to skate. Unless you have your own private skatepark, you’re gonna have to get creative and dig out some video games so you can still shred. With almost 10 years of experience working in the games industry, and as someone who has held a BAFTA, I know what I’m talking about when it comes to all of this video game malarkey, so join me as I talk you through my top 5 skateboarding video games.

5. Thrasher: Skate And Destroy (PS1)

This game had literally everything going for it back in 1999. It had the Thrasher license. It had legit, authentic skate spots like the Brooklyn Banks and Southbank. It had gameplay based on getting kicked out of spots by security guards (#sorelatable). It had a realistic approach to skateboarding that made tricks difficult, yet satisfying. And it was published by (arguably) one of the best video game companies in the world - Rockstar Games. However, it near enough flopped, because a competing skateboarding game came out a month later and completely trounced it in sales and critical praise. That game was Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. For this reason, not as many people probably know about Thrasher as they should.

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The only thing Thrasher didn’t have was actual pro skateboarders. The game had a bunch of unlicensed generic skater characters who you could customise, so at the very least you could alter them and create someone who looked like you instead - something THPS wouldn’t get until the second game. It had an awesome hip hop soundtrack (which, to me, isn't really in keeping with Thrasher, but when the soundtrack is as good as Skate And Destroy’s, you could see it getting a thumbs up from the Phelper), and the gameplay was far more slow paced, methodical and grounded in reality than THPS. It doesn’t particularly hold up well today, but it’s well worth a look.

4. Session (PC)

Despite being in early access on Steam, Session is already a far more satisfying experience than half of the stuff that came out in the “extreme sports” boom of the early 2000’s. In many ways, despite people pinning their hopes of it being a spiritual successor to EA’s Skate, it has far more in common with the previously mentioned Thrasher: Skate and Destroy. It’s authentic, urban location gives me strong Thrasher vibes, and it’s slower, methodical gameplay, where combos and scores are non-existent, rewards practice and patience. It exhibits details that other games have largely ignored, like boards having different deck and wheel sizes, or stance literally mirroring your controls, or the ability to do pressure flips.

Recently they just added Update 0.0.0.3, which adds Skate-like controls and some new levels to play: whilst some (myself included) hoped this might improve the experience, it becomes painfully clear this game was never meant for Skate’s control scheme. To have the option, however, is a nice touch if you are itching for something like Skate. The new locations in the game add a “modified” version of the Brooklyn Banks designed by the developers, which adds a ton of stairsets, ledges and handrails. There’s a lot to skate here, and a lot of fun to be had. There’s also a mini ramp, but (and this is probably a symptom of the game still being in early access), the transition skating is extremely buggy and doesn’t work properly at all. This is a problem Session’s main competitor, SkaterXL, also suffers from. I worry these newer games are going to get transition skating all wrong, which would suck, but it’s still too early to judge either one.

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The game very obviously lacks the budget and scope of a AAA console game made by Activision or EA, but in many ways that gives the whole thing a scrappy, DIY feel. Comparing Skate to Session is like comparing Fully Flared to a local scene video - they are doing completely different things and going for completely different vibes, despite both being about skateboarding. One has a near infinite budget, and the pick of every pro on the planet, and the other scrapes by on what the people behind it can throw together within a limited budget and a small crew. I think the hope of Session being “Skate4” might have hurt its reputation slightly, but if you go in with fresh eyes and judge it on it’s own merits, you’ll have a lot of fun.

3. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 (PS2)

This game is on my list because it is, I feel, the culmination of the best features in extreme sports games at the time. I liked the THPS games that came after (OK, maybe not THPS5… or the ones where you stood on an actual skateboard), but the new ideas in THUG1 and 2 just felt like they started to veer away from authentic skateboarding and turned the game into “Jackass: The Video Game”. THPS4 felt like the last game truly grounded in skateboarding culture, with challenges that truly referenced stuff you had seen in skate videos, with little jokes for skateboarders, and a list of locations which had a few nods to Thrasher: Skate and Destroy’s level selection, but through the lense of Neversoft’s excellent level design.

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The game cribbed features from a competing game of the time - Aggressive Inline (developed by Z-Axis, who had been the team behind Thrasher), featuring no strict time limits, and treated each level as a mini open world, allowing players the freedom and time to just skate freely and pick up challenges at their leisure. This was the first THPS game to do this, and compared to the constrained time limits of past games, it felt like a true evolution for the series. The basic building blocks of the THPS controls were at their peak here as well, with spine transfers being a big edition which made you feel like you could flow skateparks like Grant Taylor at the push of a button (or, Rune Glifberg, to use a more era appropriate comparison).

2. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 (PS1)

Yeah, I know, this makes it look like I ran out of games to put on the list. But, this choice is intentional. There are so many other PS1 skateboarding games I could mention here (Grind Session immediately came to mind, if only because Ed Templeton was in it), but THPS2 has a special place in my heart. It is the reason I started skateboarding; without THPS2, this blog wouldn’t exist. I remember THPS1 being a fun game, and it definitely grabbed me, but THPS2 is where I remember the series really stretching its legs, and the authentic elements of skateboarding really expanding.

The weird downhill levels were gone, and the level selection was a combination of great real life parks (Marseille, Love Park and FDR in Philly), and references to skate videos (The Bullring from Tony Hawk’s part in The End was expanded into a full level!). Character creation, and park creation, were added, to give you infinite hours of fun building your dream skate session. The soundtrack is, still, I think, the best soundtrack to grace a skateboarding video game.

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Manuals were added, as the first step toward THPS giving you the tools to land never-ending combos. There are a lot of jokes about THPS feeling like a weird, unrealistic, arcade game - but at the time it was genuinely the closest thing you could get to playing a game that had the perfect cross-section between authenticity and playability. Even better, with the “sim physics” cheat, the game felt far more realistic, and skating the mini at Skatestreet Ventura felt like skating a real ramp. It is instant nostalgia for me, and I feel it is the most replayable of the THPS games.

1. Skate 3

EA’s foray into skateboarding seems like it was over within the blink of an eye, but they bashed out 3 games very quickly in that time. 2007’s Skate, 2009’s Skate 2, and 2010’s Skate 3 are perhaps the closest we have ever got to the “game-feel” we expect from AAA games perfectly aligning with the authenticity of skateboarding. Skate 3, for all of it’s unfortunate, weird glitches, is still the peak of the series, with a wealth of features that give players the tools to skate and create. Even 10 years after release, I play Skate 3 far more than any other skateboarding game I own (even newer games like Session and SkaterXL get ignored in favour of Skate 3), and having the game on the Xbox One’s list of backwards compatible games has been one of the best things to happen during this console generation.

Skating street in Skate has always felt natural and intuitive. You can literally frontside flip a 16 stair and feel like Andrew Reynolds from the comfort of your living room. The room for inventive street skating is limitless within the game’s main city, and the park creator gives you a palette of options to create even more insane spots to invent tricks on. Transition skating has always been a bit hit or miss in these games, with vert/mega ramp being the only thing which they nailed. In Skate 3, however, they got the closest they had ever got to making it fun and realistic. With small touches like characters “dropping in” from tail and nose stalls, footplants which behave (mostly) in a way you would expect and a good selection of pools and mid-sized transitions for realistic skate sessions; Skate 3 had just enough to it for anyone wanting to skate transitions properly. I’ve debated with people whether the transition skating was really that good in Skate 3, but Nollie BS Bigspin Tailstalls and Noseblunts look so, so good in it - so I think it gets a pass.

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Skate 3, for me, represents a gold standard for skateboarding games - perhaps even open world games in general. In many ways it pre-empted gaming trends that would come years later; an increased focus on user generated content, online connectivity (originally used to create a sense of community not unlike a local skate scene), and tutorialisation and a wiki for game mechanics to aid accessibility. The game was welcoming and intuitive for most players, and made bombing hills fun and rewarding. It’s deep selection of tricks was engaging, and it’s open world (although splintered into 3 hubs) was fun to explore and navigate. There was a real feeling of discovering new spots, and maybe being the first person to skate something. I can see in Skate 3, what I saw in THPS2 - an experience that sums up the raw, creative, positive energy of skateboarding, and a game which could inspire millions to get out and skate in real life. For these reasons, it is my favourite skateboarding game, and will take nothing short of something akin to “Skate 4” to top it.

#top fives

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smokeybrandreviews · 6 years ago

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Asterisk

It’s no secret that i love anime. I grew up on this sh*t. From Voltron to Robotech to Transformers, i was groomed up on a steady supply of that good, Nipon, cartoon sh*t! I’ve been watching anime for, like, 30 years. I knew what a Gundam was before i saw even a single episode of that show. My weeb card is punched and official. I love anime and my tastes vary from genre to genre. Like, take for instance the fact that my all-time favorite anime, the one i judge all others against, is Neon Genesis Evangelion. That being said, i f*cking LOVE Sailor Moon! I get down on Bio-Boosted Armor Guyver tough but i might just pop in some Chobits because i love that show, too. I’m just as likely to get down on a bit of School Days or Yosuga No Sora or When They Cry as i am to take in a little Digimon Adventure, Dragon Ball Anything, or Symphogear. I love anime and one of my favorites is BLEACH. I was just listening to Ichirin No Hana, the third opening i think, and it took me right back to those glory days of when Kubo was great and that show was as popular as Naruto or One Piece. It got me wondering, at what point did i stop caring? At what point did this show become so pedestrian. At what point did BLEACH get bad? So i figured i’d take this opportunity to run back through the series and kind of critique it as i go.

Substitute Shinigami Arc

The first few episodes of BLEACH are an interesting run. They introduce you to all of the characters and set up their specific powers. There’s a ton or world building and character development but you can kind of tell this is more of an official filler arc than anything. The meat of the series comes later but, as far as first impressions go, BLEACH made one of the best. These first few episodes got me hooked and i looked forward to what came next. and what came next was f*cking brilliant.

Soul Society Arc

This is easily the best and strongest arc of the entire show. There is plot. There is pathos. There are revelations. Sh*t got real and it got real fast. I loved everything about this arc. The introduction of the new characters ws outstanding and Yoruichi? Lord knows i love me some Yoruichi, man! And that end? Oh, sh*t! the way it ended! My goodness, was this great story telling. Thinking about how Aizen executed everything so flawlessly, i’m reminded of what the Penguin said in Batman Returns, “I played this stinkin’ city like a harp from hell!” The Soul Society arc was peak BLEACH because it was literally all downhill from here.

Bount Arc

The Bount arc is sh*t. All of it. The only redeeming quality was that opening. Tonight Tonight Tonight by Beat Crusaders is easily my favorite BLEACH track.

Arrancar Arc

The Arrancar arc is a mixed bag. I absolutely love the Vizoreds and the Arrancars as a concept and their designs are brilliant. They feel like a natural evolution of the established lore. That sh*t is dope. What’s not dope is the constant rehash of plot details. The Soul Society arc was all about saving Ruki. The Arrancar arc is all about saving Orihime. Both are decoy ploys by Aizen to distract from his real goal. It’s the same f*cking plot, just dressed differently. I mean, i liked all the stuff in Hueco Mundo but it’s literally filler. The entire arc is filler. None of that sh*t matters. At all. It was a stall by Aizen until the Hougyoku decided to cooperate. Sh*t was whack, son! Also, the entire show just devolved into a DBZ shout fest. Seriously, as the Arrancar arc progressed, plot and sh*t was straight up abandoned for power ups and fights. Makes for a pretty show to watch but not one to really engage with. That being said, episode 309 is peak BLEACH. This one episode is so good, it could fit right in with that Soul Society arc. I mean, the Mugetsu was glorious. And that Aizen meltdown? My man made all of the sense. It was wild why he did what he did AND it was set up real nice for the next arc to find out everything about “That thing.” Too bad Kubo stopped caring at this point.

Fullbring Arc

Fullbring arc is trash. It’s not even filler but it might as well be. Sh*t is whack and one hundred percent, inconsequential. Just a convoluted way to introduce new characters an OP Ichigo some more for an enemy that never comes. Whack.

There are what i guess can be considered mini filler arcs? These things were kind of just shoved into the main arcs i guess. Like, we’d get to a point where the anime caught up with the manga and some random sh*t would start for a twenty episodes or so and then back to the main plot. They’re different from the Bount situation which got a dedicated series of episodes and characters that stayed around. Still, these little gaiden tales are worth mentioning. There are a few that i actually really liked.

New Captain Arc

I don’t even remember this one. It must have been sh*t if it didn’t make an impression.

Turn Back The Pendulum Arc

This one was pretty good. It fleshed out why the Vizoreds are and filled in some key information regarding Aizen. This could have been it’s own arc but it felt too short and was kind of shoved in the middle of the Arrancar joint. Still, i was glad to see all of the behind the scenes stuff.

Zanpakuto Rebellion Arc

I also really liked this one, too. Seeing all of the sword spirits manifest was dope. I was little sad they didn’t get to stick around but seeing them while they were out was dope. Muramasa was an interesting villain but his motivation was terrible and the actual, ultimate,boss was just uninspired. still, it was worth to see Zabimaru f*ck around with Renji.

Reigai Uprising Arc

I don’t know what the f*ck this is. I’m pretty sure sure this is the one I skipped entirely because who cares?

The Verdict

I really like BLEACH. It’s a dope show but the quality was on a downgrade after The Soul Society Arc. I think it was around when Cirucci and Uryuu had their fight when i really understood there was no substance left. And the goddamn show went on for another hundred episodes or some sh*t after that! For a show that focused so much on souls, it kind of lost it’s own midway through and just zombied it’s way to the finish line. I think the audience could sense that because it’s popularity dropped considerably during those last few episodes. It's really sad when a creative person is forced to continue with something they have no passion for any longer. BLEACH is that cautionary tale, man, for sure.

#BLEACH #Tite Kubo

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krystangreen-blog · 6 years ago

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Beneath Hong Kong’s modern skyscrapers lies a surprisingly kid-friendly destination. The city holds tremendous sentimental value as our former home and my daughter’s birthplace. We return every year because the list of things to do in Hong Kong with kids is expansive — even if you don’t factor in Hong Kong Disneyland® (which is our family’s favorite Disney® park in the world).

The neat thing about Hong Kong is that you can experience something new every time you visit. For such a tiny destination, it really packs a punch. This list is focused on activities that one can practically experience on a typical Hong Kong family vacation.

Getting Discounted Tickets for Hong Kong Attractions

It’s become much easier to buy tickets for Hong Kong attractions in advance, which you absolutely should do. I’ve noted where this is possible, and in most cases, it’s via Klook, an enormous tour operator in Asia. You’ll usually save a little money and skip queues by entering with their mobile or printed tickets.

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

The Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

1. Hong Kong Disneyland

We’ve been to every Disneyland in the world, and Hong Kong Disneyland is by far our favorite. I’m a fan of experiencing Disney in other cultures because the food and other aspects are different. While there can be lines, they are typically shorter here than at any other Disney park we’ve been to.

Songs on rides like “it’s a small world” are sung in English, though instructions around the park are typically given in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Of the major roller coasters, Hyperspace Mountain (more or less Space Mountain for those familiar with Disneyland in Anaheim) is the only one represented here. Do not miss the Iron Man Experience, Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars, Mystic Manor, and the new Ant-Man and the Wasp: Nano Battle.

Definitely, buy your tickets in advance online and print them before you go so you can avoid the lines at the ticket booths. Options include:

Discounted Hong Kong Disneyland tickets on Klook (QR code mobile entry)

Hong Kong Disneyland hotel or other luxury hotel concierge

The Hong Kong Disneyland app

If you’re short on time, a half-day visit to Hong Kong Disneyland is still worth it. If you’re coming during the summer months and would like to skip the lines, think about booking a 3-hour Disneyland VIP Tour. The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique (there is one in the park now, too), Hong Kong Disneyland character dining, and Disney dim sum all take place at the Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel, which is a quick shuttle bus away from the theme park. However, know that you need to reserve these experiences in advance.

Though it’s the smaller relative to other Disney parks, Hong Kong Disneyland is one of the best things to do in Hong Kong with kids. Check out my tips for visiting Hong Kong Disneyland in the summer.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: There are local and cross-boundary buses that travel to and from the park, taxis regularly drop off and pick up visitors, and you can also reach the park via MTR by boarding the Disneyland Resort Line at Sunny Bay Station.

Activity: Theme Park

Cost: Standard park tickets start at HK$639. There are special packages available, and you can often get discounted tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland on Klook.

Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (verify on the day you plan to visit)

Ages: All Ages

2. Ocean Park Hong Kong

Sea-themed Ocean Park Hong Kong is on the south side of Hong Kong island. Some prefer this park to Hong Kong Disneyland because it’s unique with fewer crowds and more opportunities for animal encounters (check the schedule). We have participated in the Honorary Panda Keeper program twice and it’s a wonderful experience.

The park is divided into two parts — a lower level and upper level — connected by a sky tram that provides some of the best views of this part of Hong Kong Island. Note that the sky tram is a bit hairy on windy days. A submarine-themed train barrels through the mountain to the other side, too. The lines are usually shorter if you take the train up to the upper level and the cable car down.

The Waterfront (lower area) near the entrance has the pandas, a huge aquarium, and a playground for younger kids. The Summit (upper area) has rides for older kids, the sea lions (which you can toss fish to at designated times), the main show area, and other attractions.

Tip: Ocean Park is doable with just a half-day commitment if you’re short on time. Also, buy tickets in advance to avoid lines which have been long lately at the park. Klook has discounted Ocean Park tickets.

Neighborhood: Wong Chuk Hang

How to get there: Ocean Park is accessible by car, bus, taxi, and the MTR (it’s one stop on the South Island Line from the Admiralty station).

Activity: Theme Park and Aquarium

Cost: Checking Klook for discounted tickets, but on the Ocean Park website, basic adult admission starts at HK$480 and admission for kids 11 and under is HK$240. You can pay for Ocean FasTrack if you want priority accesses for designated rides and attractions.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

3. Ride the Star Ferry Hong Kong

Definitely take the 6-12 minute ride (length depends on the time of day) from Central to Kowloon on the historic Star Ferry when visiting Hong Kong with kids.

The Star Ferry Hong Kong is a historical American-football-shaped boat that journeys from Central to Kowloon or Wan Chai to Kowloon in just a few minutes. It also goes to the Hong Kong Disneyland hotel once per day.

Depending on how far you have to walk to the ferry terminals, it can be faster to take the Star Ferry Hong Kong to Kowloon than the MTR.

Try to sit on the upper deck to avoid inhaling coal fumes that trap themselves on the lower level. It costs a few extra cents, but I believe it’s worth it. There is no need to check the schedule (unless you need to ride it very early in the morning or late at night) because the ferries run frequently.

You can also book a short Star Ferry tour around Victoria Harbour during the day or at night. If you only plan to ride the ferry once, I recommend departing from the Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon side in the evening. You’ll get a beautiful view of the Hong Kong skyline and you’ll have a great view of the ICC and Symphony of Lights evening light shows.

Neighborhood: Central / Wan Chai / Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

How to get there: To get to the Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier, exit the MTR at the L6 exit. To get to the Central Pier, exit the MTR at the A2 exit or Exit A.

Activity: Scenic Boat Ride

Cost: Tickets start at HK$2.20 per adult per ride in the ferry’s lower deck or HK$2.70 to sit on the upper deck. Use an Octopus Card or purchase admission in the machines near the entrance gates.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

4. Shop the Toy Streets and Other Markets

Fuk Wing Street toy street in Sham Shui Po

Yes, there are streets in Hong Kong dedicated entirely to toys. Since we are always in Hong Kong near my daughter’s birthday, these streets are where we load up on party favors.

At Fuk Wing Street in Sham Shui Po, there are cheap dolls, balls, gadgets, and school supplies that you can buy individually or in bulk. It’s a nice stop if you’re shopping the other markets in Sham Shui Po anyway. Take Exit B2 at Sham Shui Po Station, walk two streets and turn right.

Another option is Tai Yuen Street in Wan Chai. This one has more variety and nostalgic toys. Take Exit A3 at Wan Chai station and walk just a few minutes. You’ll see it.

Some Hong Kong markets appeal to kids more than others. If in need of a costume for any reason, definitely go to Pottinger Street. This small market lines a staircase in Central with vendors selling loads of costumes, accessories, and holiday decor year-round. It’s also conveniently located next two other famous shopping streets called The Lanes (Li Yuen Street East and Li Yuen Street West) just off of Queens Road near the Mid Levels escalator. Visit both in the same outing. Take Exit C at Central Station and walk down Des Voeux road until you see the lanes full of shops. I also take Exit D and walk down Queen’s Road.

Kids who can stay up late will enjoy the festival atmosphere of the (somewhat touristy) Temple Street Night Market with its food, trinkets, and fortune tellers. Take Exit C at Yau Ma Tei Station or Exit A at Jordan Station.

I’ve written in detail about where to go shopping in Hong Kong.

Neighborhoods: Sham Shui Po / Wan Chai / Central / Mongkok

How to get there: MTR Exits listed next to each market above

Activity: Shopping

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: Varies

Ages: Kids who like to shop

5. Visit The Peak

Note: The Peak Tram will be closed for maintenance for up to three months starting on April 23, 2019. The Peak Galleria is also closed for renovation until late 2019. This is where a number of restaurants, shops, and the Trick Eye Museum are located.

Despite these closures, The Peak is still a worthwhile Hong Kong attraction to visit. Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options.

The observation deck is on the top of this building.

The Peak offers the most spectacular view of Hong Kong. The viewing deck on the top of The Peak Tower on the Sky Terrace 428 (admission required) is the perfect place to take that holiday card photo. Or opt for the free Lion’s Peak Pavilion to the right (if facing Victoria Harbour) of The Peak Tower. It’s a free viewing platform with more charm but be aware that it is usually crowded.

Go any time of the day, but I think it’s best to maximize your time up here by also dining at The Peak Lookout. There are also quick-service restaurants, some of which serve must-try Hong Kong food. Madame Tussaud’s is here as are many, many souvenir shops, so plan to spend a while here.

Stroll around the Peak Circle Walk for more scenic shots. As the name implies, you can walk an entire circle around The Peak. There’s a little kids’ playground around the middle if they need a break. It takes around 40 minutes to do the entire walk, so when we’re short on time we walk it for a bit and then reverse.

We usually like to take The Peak Tram up and walk or taxi back down. If we walk, we take the scenic Morning Trail from the Peak all the way back to Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong in Central which takes about an hour. That said, I know where I’m going… if you get lost, hail a taxi.

Likewise, many hike to Pok Fu Lam from The Peak and down a few other trails. If hiking or walking down from The Peak appeals to you, ask your hotel concierge for a map and make sure your mobile phone is charged.

Neighborhood: Victoria Peak

How to get there: Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options, or you can take the Peak Tram up and a taxi back down.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: A single ride on the Peak Tram costs HK$32 for adults and HK$12 for children 11 and under and senior citizens. Admission to Sky Terrace 428 costs HK$77 for adults and HK$35 for kids and seniors.

Hours: The Peak Tram runs from 7 a.m. to midnight. The Peak Galleria (closed through summer 2019) is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Peak Tower terminus opens at 8 a.m. on Sundays and holidays and at 10 a.m. on other days. It closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All ages

Tip: The queue for the Peak Tram on the way up has been really long lately. Get a skip-the-line ticket from Klook (you can bundle this with discounted admission to Madame Tussauds and the Sky Terrace) or the Hong Kong pass.

6. Hong Kong Science Museum/Hong Kong Museum of History

Here’s something to do on a rainy day in Hong Kong with kids (from late spring through early fall, there are plenty of hot or rainy days). The Hong Kong Science Museum is located in Kowloon and has over 500 exhibits on display including Cathay Pacific’s first DC3 airliner suspended from the ceiling.

Most of the exhibits are hands-on, including a car simulator that you “drive” to avoid accidents. Another highlight is the 22-meter Energy Machine (the largest of its kind in the world) with audio-visual effects simulating energy. Kids will love it.

The Hong Kong Museum of History is right next door and is my favorite Hong Kong museum. It does have some colorful hands-on exhibits for kids, but you will likely enjoy it more than they will. I say hit both on the same day.

Neighborhood: Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Take the West Rail Line, get off at East Tsim Sha Tsui Station Exit P2 and walk along Chatham Road south for about 10 minutes.

Activity: Museum

Cost: General admission to the Hong Kong Science Museum is HK$20. Children under 4 are free. The Hong Kong Museum of History is free for all visitors.

Hours: Both museums open daily at 10 a.m., but closing times vary.

Ages: Elementary school kids up to adults will appreciate the exhibits in the Hong Kong Museum of History most, but toddlers and above may like the Hong Kong Science Museum.

Tip: You can visit both in the same day as you’ll likely spend an hour or two at most at both.

7. Hong Kong Park

Kids (and adults) love looking at the turtles in the ponds.

This park is a little oasis off of the busy street. It isn’t huge but passing through here is a pleasant thing to do with kids, especially if you’re walking from Central to Admiralty (or vice versa) or need a break from shopping at Pacific Place (one of my favorite indoor malls). Turtles and koi fish can be seen swimming in little ponds along the walkway.

The park has a playground, a Tai Chi garden, a gym, and there’s even a small teaware museum worth a short visit. When it’s hot, it’s easy to duck back into Pacific Place mall for a drink or bite to eat. Do peek into the free Flagstaff House Teaware Museum quickly to learn more about the role that tea plays in Asian culture. The Peak Tram also departs from the Lower Terminus just outside of Hong Kong Park.

If families are considering the Admiralty hotels (Upper House, Conrad, JW Marriott, and Island Shangri-la), I always point out this park as a perk of the location.

Neighborhood: Central / Admiralty

How to get there: Take MTR Tsuen Wan Line, South Island Line, or Island Line to Admiralty Station, and use Exit C1. Walk through Pacific Place Mall (following the signs), and then take the escalator directly to the park.

Activity: Park

Cost: Free

Hours: The park opens at 6 a.m. daily and closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

8. The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery via Ngong Ping 360

Get your daily exercise by climbing the steps up to the Tian Tan Buddha.

Named for the stunning views seen during the ride, Ngong Ping 360 eliminates the need to endure a windy bus ride to the Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island. You can ride in a regular cable car, private cable car, or even a glass-bottom cable car.

I recommend you book the glass-bottom cable car at Ngong Ping 360. Kids love the glass-bottom cable car for obvious reasons and it usually has a shorter boarding queue.

The glass bottom cable car.

The cable car drops you at Ngong Ping Village where there is shopping, dining, and entertainment. It’s a bit touristy, though nature walks are accessible here, and the most famous sight is the Po Lin Monastery, where you can have a decent vegetarian lunch and see the Tian Tan Buddha, otherwise known as the Big Buddha.

The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery are very popular Hong Kong attractions for a good reason. People from all over Asia make the pilgrimage to see the stately Big Buddha, which was built in 1993. If your kids are good walkers, do take a quick detour to the Wisdom Path where a group of large wooden steles displays a prayer. It’s great for photos.

My daughter loves visiting the Big Buddha and asks to visit every time we go to Hong Kong now. You can read more about our tips for visiting the Big Buddha because there is a lot to know.

Some hotel concierge desks can purchase your Ngong Ping cable car tickets in advance. Otherwise, Klook has them and a dedicated expedited line at the entrance.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: Take the MTR to Tung Chung station and the cable car is just a few minutes away on foot.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies depending on which cable car you ride, though full-price single standard tickets start at HK$160 for adults and HK$75 for children 3-11. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends

Ages: Kids who won’t mind the walking (strollers are okay for younger kids)

9. Go Hong Kong Pink Dolphin Watching

Sadly, due to pollution, ferries, and harbour reclamation, the striking but endangered Hong Kong pink dolphins are becoming even rarer. They are gorgeous and if you can swing 3 hours on a boat, try to see them before they are gone. Through Klook, you can book a Hong Kong pink dolphin watching tour. Hong Kong’s pink dolphins are active year round and dolphin watching excursions book up quickly in peak travel season, so I recommend buying tickets in advance.

Neighborhood: Many tours depart in Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Varies

Activity: Wildlife Experience

Cost: Varies depending on which tour you take, but expect to spend about HK$470 for adult tickets

Hours: Varies, but expect to spend half a day on your tour

Ages: All ages, though older kids who can wait patiently for sightings will enjoy it most.

10. Explore the Geoparks

Sharp Island – Wikimedia Commons: kobe CHENG [CC BY-SA 2.0]

Exploring the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark with kids is the perfect outdoor activity for a family vacation.

Eight named sites at the UNESCO Global Geopark in Hong Kong highlight interesting rock formations created by the Earth’s movement. There are hexagonal volcanic columns, sea arches, a 400-year-old village, and other interesting things to see in two regions (Sai Kung and Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region), each with four geo-areas. Most families prefer to visit Sai Kung. Sharp Island, especially at low tide, is a good choice by sampan from Sai Kung Pier (otherwise, it’s a long hike).

Kids may also like the Volcano Discovery Centre in Sai Kung Waterfront Park which organizes tours and showcases how the rock formations were made.

If you happen to be staying at The Peninsula Hong Kong, they now offer a private helicopter tour of the UNESCO Geopark as part of their Peninsula Academy bespoke programs, or you can book one via Klook. There are also boat tours and kayak tours. Your best bet is to do some research to decide which Geopark experience is most appropriate for your family as some are rigorous to get to.

Neighborhood: Sai Kung

How to get there: From MTR Diamond Hill Station, take Exit C2 to Bus 92. You can also take Exit C2 out of Choi Hung Station and then take Minibus 1A. Keep in mind that the different areas of the park have different addresses.

Activity: Nature Excursion

Cost: This will depend on what type of tour you take. There are helicopter tours, walking tours, boat tours, and more.

Hours: Open 24 hours

Ages: Kids old enough to handle the walking and climbing will have the most fun.

11. Watch the Nightly Symphony of Lights and ICC Light Shows

The Symphony of Lights view from Kowloon side, looking at Central.

The Symphony of Lights show over Victoria Harbour never gets old, and my daughter has loved it since before she could talk. I highly recommend harbour view hotel rooms as most have views of it (the closer you are to the harbour, the better).

The ‘World’s Largest Permanent Light and Sound Show’ as named by Guinness World Records starts every night at 8:00 p.m. Colored lasers and lights shoot from the top of 40 buildings lining the Hong Kong skyline on both sides of the harbour. Listen to music (Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra recorded the new musical score) and narration available via the A Symphony of Lights app though it is broadcast live near Avenue of the Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui and at the promenade at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai.

The ICC Light Show has won a Guinness Book of World Record for “Largest Light and Sound Show on a Single Building” occurs on the exterior of the International Commerce Centre (ICC) building, where The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong resides. It’s the tallest building in Hong Kong.

Remember, you can see both shows at the evening Star Ferry tour or book a Symphony of Lights tour on Aqua Luna, a (newer) traditional Hong Kong red-sailed junks (more details below).

Download the ICCLightShow app so that you can listen to music synchronized with the light show.

Neighborhood: West Kowloon / Tsim Sha Tsui / Central

How to get there: You can see both shows extremely well from a harbour view room at Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong, the IFC terraces on Podium 3 and 4 as well as some harbour view restaurants. See both also from Ocean Terminal Deck at Harbour City with its 270-degree harbour view.

Activity: Light Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Symphony of Lights at 8 p.m. and ICC shows at 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

12. Ride the Mid-Levels Escalator

This activity depends on the level of patience your kids have, but the Mid-Levels Escalator is the largest outdoor covered escalator in the world at roughly half a mile long and worth checking out. There are more than a dozen entry and exit points, rest areas, and even cafes and shops. You can actually hop on and off along the route.

Starting at 6 a.m., the escalator runs downhill to take residents to work and switches directions at roughly 10:15 a.m. to run uphill until midnight, at which point it turns off until the morning.

Make it a challenge and see if you can ride it all the way to the top, though note that it doesn’t reach The Peak. You can always exit for lunch, dinner, shopping, or a snack.

There are tons of great restaurants, shops, and markets around the escalator including the famous Wellington Street Michelin mile, Hollywood Road, Tai Kwun and some of Hong Kong last remaining dai pai dongs.

As you’ve likely taken the escalator up, it’s easy to walk back down though it’s mostly by staircases and not stroller-friendly, unless you know how to wind your way down the various streets, which is certainly possible by looking out for sidewalks leading downhill. My daughter liked to count the steps down when she was younger. Or, you can simply taxi back down to Central.

Neighborhoods: Central and the Mid-Levels

How to get there: The starting point of the escalator in Central is 100 Queens Road. It’s an easy walk from the Central MTR Station (Exit D2) and Central Hong Kong hotels.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free

Hours: The escalator runs from 6 a.m. until midnight, though keep in mind that the direction changes at 10:15 a.m.

Ages: Elementary school age kids think it’s fun but it’s a slow-moving escalator so may run out of patience before hitting the top. And, remember one has to walk back down. Older kids will enjoy the area surrounding the escalator up to Elgin Street. Look out for Instagram-worthy street murals.

13. Bike the New Territories

Cycling is becoming one of the most popular things to do in Hong Kong with kids and is most often done in the New Territories. We took a half-day private biking tour of the Walled Villages in the New Territories with Mountain Biking Asia, that I would recommend for kids that can handle more rugged terrain. It’s pretty flat, with a few small hills and dirt roads, but they do need a little strength and endurance. My daughter was nine when we first did this and fine.

We have also rented bikes, including kids’ bikes, and explored scenic paved bike paths in the area ourselves. The entire route is pretty flat and there is a dedicated bike path. Discover Hong Kong has a helpful page outlining the various bike paths and rental information

Neighborhood: Tai Wai

How to get there: You can rent bikes just outside of the MTR station in Tai Wai and Hong Kong biking tours depart from various locations.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, depending on the tour

Hours: Varies, though plan for a half day

Ages: Kids old enough to ride a bike independently and have the endurance to handle a couple of hours of biking off-road.

14. Ride a Hong Kong Junk

Red-sailed junks are Hong Kong’s icon, often seen in travel ads, and a sight that lends immediate recognition to Victoria Harbour. Duk Ling is the last authentic Chinese sailing junk in Victoria Harbour. The junk has been painstakingly restored and is available for short cruises during the week or private hire. If you’re not going to ride it, keep an eye out for it in the harbour. I see it often when we stay at the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong.

Another red-sailed junk built by the Aqua Group is also visible on the harbour and available for dining and tours. It’s called Aqua Luna but keep in mind that it is a new ship which means the experience is a bit more posh with more comfortable seating, cocktails, and food for purchase. Those who prefer a more authentic experience should choose Duk Ling.

There are also some junks you can rent by the day (sans the red sails, usually). We’ve done it with friends (and loads of champagne), and it’s quite fun. If you ride a Hong Kong junk during the day, do bring sunscreen.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: You can catch Duk Ling at Kowloon Public Pier 3 in or Central Pier 9. Aqua Luna departs from Tsim Sha Tsu Pier 1 and Central Pier 9.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Tickets on Duk Ling cost HK$230 for adults and HK$160 for kids 3–11 years old and seniors. The cost of Aqua Luna tours varies depending on the tour.

Hours: Duk Ling picks up passengers hourly from 2:30 p.m. through 8:45 p.m. Aqua Luna runs on a hop-on, hop-off basis between noon and 5:00 p.m. Private tours are available by request.

Ages: All Ages (though anyone prone to seasickness probably won’t enjoy this)

15. Ferry to an Outer Island

Cheung Chau island

Kids who love boat rides can get their fill in Hong Kong between the Star Ferry, Duk Ling, Aqua Luna, dolphin watching, and taking the ferries to outlying islands where the buzz of a big city is less noticeable. The two most popular islands are Cheung Chau (pictured above), which is famous for the annual bun festival in May (if you are in Hong Kong in May, this festival is a must), and Lamma Island, another fishing village.

Cheung Chau is home to a pretty beach near the ferry terminal and water-based outdoor activities like kayaking and swimming, while Lamma Island is home to fresh seafood and a little beach. Both are worth visiting if time and weather permits.

Lamma island on a sunny day during a recent visit.

We used to take the 20-minute ferry ride over to Lamma from Central, walk around the island and then eat at one of the small seaside restaurants. The islands, especially Lamma, provide a nice break from city life.

Seasickness is less likely to occur on these larger ferries, unlike a smaller junk boat.

Neighborhood: Lamma and the other small islands

How to get there: There are various ferry companies that depart from Central

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, but ferry tickets are very inexpensive

Hours: Varies, but ferries typically run all day and depart every half hour or so

Ages: All ages, though smaller kids may tire out after lots of walking (strollers are easy to take on the ferries).

16. Ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel

Recently opened on the Central Harbourfront, the Hong Kong Observation Wheel (or Hong Kong Ferris Wheel) provides 20 minutes of fun for all ages. The wheel spins around three times per ride and provides excellent views over Victoria Harbour.

One of the best times to visit is during the Golden Hour when the sunlight hits the skyscrapers or during the Symphony of Lights show. But really, any time is a good time to ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: You can walk to the Observation Wheel from any of the ferry terminals and Central hotels

Activity: Family Fun

Cost: Tickets are HK$20 for adults, HK$10 for children 3-11, and free for kids under three years old. You can also reserve a private gondola for HK$160. Buy tickets in advance.

Hours: The Ferris wheel runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Ages: All Ages

17. Explore Tai Kwun, the Former Central Police Station

The Tai Kwun courtyard is a nice place to grab a drink and rest while sightseeing in Central.

Tai Kwun opened in late 2018 as a centre for heritage and arts located just off of the Mid-Levels escalator in Old Town Central. It’s used to be the Central Police Station compound which is made up of three parts: Central Police Station, Central Magistracy and Victoria Prison.

Now, visitors enjoy the large open square surrounded by bars and cafes. It’s a nice place to take a break when in Hong Kong with kids after sightseeing around the area. Shops featuring local artists and designers flank the square. Check the event calendar to see what’s on display in the various galleries during your visit.

Kids will enjoy the walking through some of the Victoria Prison cells that are now animated to tell the story of what life was like in there back in the day. They can also pick up a scavenger hunt sheet in the Visitor’s Center that they can stamp at various stations around Tai Kwun.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the Central-Mid-Levels escalator uphill and when you get to the elevated walkway above Hollywood Road, walk straight into Tai Kwun.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: 10 a.m. to 11p.m. daily (can vary during holidays)

Ages: All Ages

18. Visit the Trick Eye Museum (Temporarily Closed)

Note: Trick Eye Museum is located inside The Peak Galleria which is closed for renovation until summer 2019.

The Trick Eye Museum at The Peak in Hong Kong (mentioned briefly above) is a fun thing to do with kids.

My daughter and her friends love this little 3-D art museum with about 50 mind-bending optical illusion paintings and installations that bring art to life. It doesn’t take long to walk through the entire thing. I would say allow 30 minutes or so to walk through all the rooms in the Trick Eye Museum. If you’ll be touring The Peak at some point anyway, plan to spend a little time here.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the uphill bus or the Peak Tram at Garden Road Terminal

Activity: Museum

Cost: Full price tickets cost HK$150 for adult admission and HK$100 for children ages 3 through 11.

Hours: The Trick Eye Museum is currently closed for renovations

Ages: All Ages

19. Eat Character Dim Sum

Bao dumplings at Yum Cha’s Central location

People often ask me what to eat in Hong Kong, and of course, the answer changes when you’re traveling in Hong Kong with kids. Character dim sum is trending in Hong Kong and elsewhere, and kids love it. One of the most popular places for it in Hong Kong is a restaurant called Yum Cha, which has locations in Central, Tsim Sha Tsui, Mongkok, and Causeway Bay. We often meet friends here because the kids love it and the food is good. Do make a reservation. They also offer dim sum making classes.

Dim Sum Icon, now only in Kowloon, is another restaurant where the themed character dim sum changes every so often to keep people coming in. To be honest, I did not recognize the character series featured when we were there, but they’ve featured Gudetama, Sailor Moon, and other favorite characters in the past. In my opinion, the food is better at Yum Cha.

Of course, you can also reserve Crystal Lotus inside Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel for Disney dim sum.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Yum Cha locations can be found at

Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road, Central

Emperor Watch & Jewellery Ctr., 8 Russell Street, Causeway Bay

20-22 Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Shop 07, Level 4A, Langham Place, Mongkok

Activity: Dining

Cost: Character dim sum options range from HK$50-60 per order

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner on weekdays. On weekends, lunch lasts until 4:30 p.m.

Ages: Toddlers and up

20. Eat a Hong Kong Waffle

One of our recent Mammy Pancake eggettes

Even picky kids may enjoy one of Hong Kong’s most popular street food snacks: the egg waffle (also called Hong Kong waffles, bubble waffles, or eggette). Egg waffles have actually become pretty trendy in U.S. cities (in case you want to try them but aren’t traveling abroad any time soon) where they’re usually wrapped around ice cream.

In addition to enjoying the mildly-sweet flavor of the original (many flavor variations exist now), it’s fun to see how the waffles are made and dried by a fan. We like Mammy Pancake (locations on the island and in Kowloon) which has recently earned a Michelin star. Lee Keung Kee (North Point and Kowloon) is popular, as is Oddie’s (Central and Wan Chai) if you’d like an eggette wrapped around soft-serve gelato.

Other local must-trys that kids may love include pineapple buns, Hong Kong toast, wonton noodle soup, and egg tarts.

Neighborhood: Throughout Hong Kong

How to get there: You can research where to go ahead of time or wait until you come across a shop selling them.

Activity: Dining

Cost: About HK$15 for a traditional waffle

Ages: Toddlers and up

Good Things to Know When in Hong Kong With Kids

Eating in Hong Kong with kids isn’t challenging. There is plenty of Western food available, but kid-friendly Asian favorites like steamed rice, fried rice, egg rolls, and other simple Chinese food can be ordered, too.

Do not panic if you forget to pack something. Many Western brands of jarred baby food, formula, diapers, and other items for infants and toddlers are available at chemists (pharmacies) and grocery stores.

Car seats aren’t required in taxis. Uneven pavement makes using a stroller difficult in some areas and finding a lift in an MTR station can be difficult, though not impossible. This is a good opportunity to try babywearing.

Hong Kongers love kids, and I’ve received plenty of help with my own strollers and bags from strangers over the years.

If time permits, Hong Kong is a fantastic city for a vacation photographer. We used Flytographer for a 30-minute session and were quite pleased. Book through my link for 20% more photos and a free SmugMug print (applied after checkout), if you’d like to try it. Shoots start at $250 for 30 minutes.

When you’re booking a hotel, keep in mind that the maximum occupancy in Hong Kong hotels is three people, including kids, with a few exceptions. Even families of four will usually need connecting rooms.

Look into meet and greet service at Hong Kong Airport if you’re worried about how tired kids will handle long walks and clearing customs after long haul flights (it’s a big airport). They’ll pick you up at the jetway in a buggy if your gate is further away than gate 25. Learn more about how to get from Hong Kong airport to your hotel.

I have had nothing but good experiences with babysitters at both the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong and Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong. These are my top two Hong Kong family hotel picks and where we stay every year.

If you are considering a luxury Hong Kong hotel, I have access to VIP amenities and perks (that may include complimentary breakfast for two, room upgrades, food, and beverage credits and more) at five-star hotels in town through my role as an independent affiliate at Cadence Travel. You can book online with benefits. For moderate and budget hotels, most people save with Agoda.

See also: The Best List of Family Hotels in Hong Kong

What are your favorite things to do in Hong Kong with kids?

Photo credits: Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Symphony of Lights, Cheung Chau are courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

#HongKong #familytravel"#039;ll

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topfygad · 5 years ago

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20 Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

Getting Discounted Tickets for Hong Kong Attractions

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

The Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

1. Hong Kong Disneyland

Songs on rides like “it’s a small world” are sung in English, though instructions around the park are typically given in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Definitely, buy your tickets in advance online and print them before you go so you can avoid the lines at the ticket booths. Options include:

Discounted Hong Kong Disneyland tickets on Klook (QR code mobile entry)

Hong Kong Disneyland hotel or other luxury hotel concierge

The Hong Kong Disneyland app

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

Activity: Theme Park

Cost: Standard park tickets start at HK$639. There are special packages available, and you can often get discounted tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland on Klook.

Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (verify on the day you plan to visit)

Ages: All Ages

2. Ocean Park Hong Kong

Neighborhood: Wong Chuk Hang

How to get there: Ocean Park is accessible by car, bus, taxi, and the MTR (it’s one stop on the South Island Line from the Admiralty station).

Activity: Theme Park and Aquarium

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

3. Ride the Star Ferry Hong Kong

Definitely take the 6-12 minute ride (length depends on the time of day) from Central to Kowloon on the historic Star Ferry when visiting Hong Kong with kids.

Depending on how far you have to walk to the ferry terminals, it can be faster to take the Star Ferry Hong Kong to Kowloon than the MTR.

Neighborhood: Central / Wan Chai / Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

How to get there: To get to the Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier, exit the MTR at the L6 exit. To get to the Central Pier, exit the MTR at the A2 exit or Exit A.

Activity: Scenic Boat Ride

Cost: Tickets start at HK$2.20 per adult per ride in the ferry’s lower deck or HK$2.70 to sit on the upper deck. Use an Octopus Card or purchase admission in the machines near the entrance gates.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

4. Shop the Toy Streets and Other Markets

Fuk Wing Street toy street in Sham Shui Po

Yes, there are streets in Hong Kong dedicated entirely to toys. Since we are always in Hong Kong near my daughter’s birthday, these streets are where we load up on party favors.

Another option is Tai Yuen Street in Wan Chai. This one has more variety and nostalgic toys. Take Exit A3 at Wan Chai station and walk just a few minutes. You’ll see it.

I’ve written in detail about where to go shopping in Hong Kong.

Neighborhoods: Sham Shui Po / Wan Chai / Central / Mongkok

How to get there: MTR Exits listed next to each market above

Activity: Shopping

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: Varies

Ages: Kids who like to shop

5. Visit The Peak

Despite these closures, The Peak is still a worthwhile Hong Kong attraction to visit. Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options.

The observation deck is on the top of this building.

Neighborhood: Victoria Peak

How to get there: Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options, or you can take the Peak Tram up and a taxi back down.

Activity: Sightseeing

Ages: All ages

6. Hong Kong Science Museum/Hong Kong Museum of History

Neighborhood: Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Take the West Rail Line, get off at East Tsim Sha Tsui Station Exit P2 and walk along Chatham Road south for about 10 minutes.

Activity: Museum

Cost: General admission to the Hong Kong Science Museum is HK$20. Children under 4 are free. The Hong Kong Museum of History is free for all visitors.

Hours: Both museums open daily at 10 a.m., but closing times vary.

Ages: Elementary school kids up to adults will appreciate the exhibits in the Hong Kong Museum of History most, but toddlers and above may like the Hong Kong Science Museum.

Tip: You can visit both in the same day as you’ll likely spend an hour or two at most at both.

7. Hong Kong Park

Kids (and adults) love looking at the turtles in the ponds.

If families are considering the Admiralty hotels (Upper House, Conrad, JW Marriott, and Island Shangri-la), I always point out this park as a perk of the location.

Neighborhood: Central / Admiralty

Activity: Park

Cost: Free

Hours: The park opens at 6 a.m. daily and closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

8. The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery via Ngong Ping 360

Get your daily exercise by climbing the steps up to the Tian Tan Buddha.

I recommend you book the glass-bottom cable car at Ngong Ping 360. Kids love the glass-bottom cable car for obvious reasons and it usually has a shorter boarding queue.

The glass bottom cable car.

My daughter loves visiting the Big Buddha and asks to visit every time we go to Hong Kong now. You can read more about our tips for visiting the Big Buddha because there is a lot to know.

Some hotel concierge desks can purchase your Ngong Ping cable car tickets in advance. Otherwise, Klook has them and a dedicated expedited line at the entrance.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: Take the MTR to Tung Chung station and the cable car is just a few minutes away on foot.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies depending on which cable car you ride, though full-price single standard tickets start at HK$160 for adults and HK$75 for children 3-11. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends

Ages: Kids who won’t mind the walking (strollers are okay for younger kids)

9. Go Hong Kong Pink Dolphin Watching

Neighborhood: Many tours depart in Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Varies

Activity: Wildlife Experience

Cost: Varies depending on which tour you take, but expect to spend about HK$470 for adult tickets

Hours: Varies, but expect to spend half a day on your tour

Ages: All ages, though older kids who can wait patiently for sightings will enjoy it most.

10. Explore the Geoparks

Sharp Island – Wikimedia Commons: kobe CHENG [CC BY-SA 2.0]

Exploring the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark with kids is the perfect outdoor activity for a family vacation.

Kids may also like the Volcano Discovery Centre in Sai Kung Waterfront Park which organizes tours and showcases how the rock formations were made.

Neighborhood: Sai Kung

Activity: Nature Excursion

Cost: This will depend on what type of tour you take. There are helicopter tours, walking tours, boat tours, and more.

Hours: Open 24 hours

Ages: Kids old enough to handle the walking and climbing will have the most fun.

11. Watch the Nightly Symphony of Lights and ICC Light Shows

The Symphony of Lights view from Kowloon side, looking at Central.

Remember, you can see both shows at the evening Star Ferry tour or book a Symphony of Lights tour on Aqua Luna, a (newer) traditional Hong Kong red-sailed junks (more details below).

Download the ICCLightShow app so that you can listen to music synchronized with the light show.

Neighborhood: West Kowloon / Tsim Sha Tsui / Central

Activity: Light Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Symphony of Lights at 8 p.m. and ICC shows at 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

12. Ride the Mid-Levels Escalator

Starting at 6 a.m., the escalator runs downhill to take residents to work and switches directions at roughly 10:15 a.m. to run uphill until midnight, at which point it turns off until the morning.

Make it a challenge and see if you can ride it all the way to the top, though note that it doesn’t reach The Peak. You can always exit for lunch, dinner, shopping, or a snack.

Neighborhoods: Central and the Mid-Levels

How to get there: The starting point of the escalator in Central is 100 Queens Road. It’s an easy walk from the Central MTR Station (Exit D2) and Central Hong Kong hotels.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free

Hours: The escalator runs from 6 a.m. until midnight, though keep in mind that the direction changes at 10:15 a.m.

13. Bike the New Territories

Neighborhood: Tai Wai

How to get there: You can rent bikes just outside of the MTR station in Tai Wai and Hong Kong biking tours depart from various locations.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, depending on the tour

Hours: Varies, though plan for a half day

Ages: Kids old enough to ride a bike independently and have the endurance to handle a couple of hours of biking off-road.

14. Ride a Hong Kong Junk

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: You can catch Duk Ling at Kowloon Public Pier 3 in or Central Pier 9. Aqua Luna departs from Tsim Sha Tsu Pier 1 and Central Pier 9.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Tickets on Duk Ling cost HK$230 for adults and HK$160 for kids 3–11 years old and seniors. The cost of Aqua Luna tours varies depending on the tour.

Hours: Duk Ling picks up passengers hourly from 2:30 p.m. through 8:45 p.m. Aqua Luna runs on a hop-on, hop-off basis between noon and 5:00 p.m. Private tours are available by request.

Ages: All Ages (though anyone prone to seasickness probably won’t enjoy this)

15. Ferry to an Outer Island

Cheung Chau island

Lamma island on a sunny day during a recent visit.

Seasickness is less likely to occur on these larger ferries, unlike a smaller junk boat.

Neighborhood: Lamma and the other small islands

How to get there: There are various ferry companies that depart from Central

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, but ferry tickets are very inexpensive

Hours: Varies, but ferries typically run all day and depart every half hour or so

Ages: All ages, though smaller kids may tire out after lots of walking (strollers are easy to take on the ferries).

16. Ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: You can walk to the Observation Wheel from any of the ferry terminals and Central hotels

Activity: Family Fun

Cost: Tickets are HK$20 for adults, HK$10 for children 3-11, and free for kids under three years old. You can also reserve a private gondola for HK$160. Buy tickets in advance.

Hours: The Ferris wheel runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Ages: All Ages

17. Explore Tai Kwun, the Former Central Police Station

The Tai Kwun courtyard is a nice place to grab a drink and rest while sightseeing in Central.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the Central-Mid-Levels escalator uphill and when you get to the elevated walkway above Hollywood Road, walk straight into Tai Kwun.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: 10 a.m. to 11p.m. daily (can vary during holidays)

Ages: All Ages

18. Visit the Trick Eye Museum (Temporarily Closed)

Note: Trick Eye Museum is located inside The Peak Galleria which is closed for renovation until summer 2019.

The Trick Eye Museum at The Peak in Hong Kong (mentioned briefly above) is a fun thing to do with kids.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the uphill bus or the Peak Tram at Garden Road Terminal

Activity: Museum

Cost: Full price tickets cost HK$150 for adult admission and HK$100 for children ages 3 through 11.

Hours: The Trick Eye Museum is currently closed for renovations

Ages: All Ages

19. Eat Character Dim Sum

Bao dumplings at Yum Cha’s Central location

Of course, you can also reserve Crystal Lotus inside Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel for Disney dim sum.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Yum Cha locations can be found at

Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road, Central

Emperor Watch & Jewellery Ctr., 8 Russell Street, Causeway Bay

20-22 Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Shop 07, Level 4A, Langham Place, Mongkok

Activity: Dining

Cost: Character dim sum options range from HK$50-60 per order

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner on weekdays. On weekends, lunch lasts until 4:30 p.m.

Ages: Toddlers and up

20. Eat a Hong Kong Waffle

One of our recent Mammy Pancake eggettes

Other local must-trys that kids may love include pineapple buns, Hong Kong toast, wonton noodle soup, and egg tarts.

Neighborhood: Throughout Hong Kong

How to get there: You can research where to go ahead of time or wait until you come across a shop selling them.

Activity: Dining

Cost: About HK$15 for a traditional waffle

Ages: Toddlers and up

Good Things to Know When in Hong Kong With Kids

Hong Kongers love kids, and I’ve received plenty of help with my own strollers and bags from strangers over the years.

See also: The Best List of Family Hotels in Hong Kong

What are your favorite things to do in Hong Kong with kids?

Photo credits: Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Symphony of Lights, Cheung Chau are courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

from Cheapr Travels https://ift.tt/2y4JXZj via https://ift.tt/2NIqXKN

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quantumdotdot · 7 years ago

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No Place Like Home Actual Play

Today, I finally had the pleasure of playtesting my game, No Place Like Home! No Place Like Home is a surreal horror/mystery game based on the Blades in the Dark system that focuses on small communities and the secrets they keep behind closed doors. It's inspired by stuff like Twin Peaks and Silent Hill. I had a lot of fun creating a weird town and exploring it, and wanted to do a write-up of the game for posterity, along with my notes about it.

GM/Facilitator: Me (Mikey Zee)

Players: DC, Felix, Halogen (who sadly had to drop out after worldbuilding), and Adam/DarkLavenderVoid

Play method: Roll20 Virtual Tabletop

Worldbuilding & Character Creation

The Town

Playtest Design Notes: town creation worked so, so well. It flowed really well once we had a location (sea-side town, vaguely East Coast), and the questions I’d set up in my playtest document worked really well as a jumping-off point to continue building. There was a lot of great energy, and we kept building on ideas and creating locations like you see here. This took us about 30 minutes total, which was about what I expected. It was about at this point that Halogen had to drop out, and Adam joined.

Tragedy - What Happened in the Town that Caused Things to Go Downhill

Suddenly all the fish in the bay are dead, leaving no more fishing industry. Old Man McGrady was the first to notice, but no one believed him when he said anything. Soon, fishermen were hauling in nets of decaying fish, leaving the tourism and hospitality industries as the town’s only income.

The Characters

Felix - Nes Morris, a junior mailman who works at the post office operated by his dad. His dad used to own the old arcade, and Nes wants to refurbish the arcade. Nes sees his dad as having failed, and he wants to prove that the arcade is a good idea, actually, and his dad was the one who was a failure. Nes likes to think of himself as a teen but he’s actually just over 20, yet still dresses like a teenager did 5 years ago. His dad named him Nes because he thought naming his son a video game word was cool and futuristic, and would help him succeed in life.

Adam - Mónica Lupe, aka Mo, a 30-something gas tanker trucker who is in and out of Sandy Bay. She may drive a gas truck but she refuses to go to the shitty gas station off the highway because people are rude there, however, she’s friendly with the folks at the convenience store in town. Mo wants to ride the line between complete social outcast and having a couple friends, and has gotten rid of her family name because it got misspelled, mispronounced, and got her teased.

DC - Owen Peterson, a 19-year-old clerk for the convenience store in the middle of town. Owen wants to save up enough money to leave because he got accepted to a college, but he’s sticking around to help his family out and hoping he can still save up. Owen is irrationally afraid of people with different-colored eyes, because he read about them once and got spooked. Even though he knows it’s an irrational fear, the thought of meeting someone with the mutation fills him with dread. Owen feels responsible for people in general, and often delivers stuff from the convenience store to old man McGrady in the evenings 2-3 times a week, like cigarettes, beef jerky, and whatever weird stuff the old man needs. In return, McGrady has an open ear to tell stories and conspiracies he’s been thinking about. Owen also orders comic books for the convenience store, and getting to read them is the one thing he looks forward to every week.

Playtest Design Notes: Character creation seemed like it didn’t flow as well as I had hoped it would. Folks took their own time to come up with good, personal answers for the questions posed, which is awesome! However, I could’ve done better by giving them space to write out their thoughts and making that more explicit. We were playing in Roll20 and I just started with a blank canvas and moved on from there, but I know now that giving the players index cards or something that they feel like is theirs will probably help a lot in that regard if I don’t have character sheets. It’s something I rectified later in play.

How They Know Each Other

Nes and Owen went to school together (they were in the same year) and bonded over comic books and video games. Nes has a shelf full of comics in the ruins of the arcade and they read them together. Also, Nes is the one to deliver the new comics Owen orders, as they come by mail.

Mo and Nes met because Mo’s oil truck crashed into Nes’ mail truck on Nes’ first week of driving it. Nes wasn’t paying attention while turning, and even though Mo slammed on the brakes, she wasn’t able to fully stop in time and pushed the mail truck against a pole, slightly dinging the truck. Neither of them wanted to face the repercussions of telling anyone what really happened (as Mo would face paperwork and Nes would have to deal with his dad), so Nes just brushed it off as him having hit a pole. Nes still got chewed out by his dad, but no one was the wiser. Mo offered to pick Nes up to help him with his route (now on bike), but he didn’t accept. There’s a lot of small winding streets, and Nes delivers the mail to the people he doesn’t like last.

Owen and Mo know each other because they struck up a friendship when Mo would come in to get her coffee, and they got to be people that each other could trust mutually, a genuine connection in this town where that’s a rarity. Since then, they’ve started to talk to each other about their problems and their lives.

How They Feel About the Tragedy

Owen is the town ear; he hears people worrying about it in hushed tones, everyone has their theories but no one has a concrete reason. It’s disturbing because usually there’s a common thread in rumors, but there isn’t to this.

Mo thinks there’s demons in the town, goth is in again and that’s super suspicious, it’s the devil’s fault--Mo relies heavily on Christian stereotypes of what’s evil versus holy.

Nes more worried about the monetary aspect of the fish crisis, almost every single household started getting past-due bills, something else doesn’t smell right.

Playtest Design Notes: How the group knows each other and how they feel about the tragedy flowed super-well once the group had a solid grasp on their characters. I didn’t even have to prompt to talk about how the group knew each other--it was just a natural evolution from character building, which is the kind of thing I was hoping for, and it made me very happy to see as a designer. I thought these two sections really helped to flesh out the characters and how they exist in this world, as well. At this point we were about an hour in, which I felt was the perfect amount of time.

Investigation Begins

What Brought Them Together

Mo originally learned about the fishing industry dying when she overheard Nes and Owen talking about it in hushed tones while she was getting her morning coffee. They agreed to meet later to talk about it in greater detail.

Figuring out “The Mystery”

Later that same day, group meets up at the abandoned bistro of convenience store around 1-2pm. There used to be a cafe here that served sandwiches and coffee, but now people just sit here and drink their coffee, which is just drip machine now. There also used to be phone booths, but those got ripped out a while back.

Nancy, Owen’s boss and the manager of the Convenience Store, hands Owen a bag full of Smucker’s Uncrustable sandwiches she expensed and microwaved for him so he and his friends could have a snack for their meeting, despite the fact that you aren’t really supposed to microwave Uncrustables in their wrappers. Owen grabs the bag and sits down with Mo and Nes, distributing the sandwiches.

“They’re really not so bad once you get past the bread,” he says, trying to make up for the fact that the bread on the outside is slightly hard from microwaving them, and the inside is maybe still a little frozen. “The warm jelly is actually alright.”

Mo wordlessly takes out her own sack lunch, which she’s packed for driving, and takes out the lukewarm ham sandwich she’s made for herself. She eats the Uncrustable first out of principle and doesn’t say anything.

Once they’re done with their lunch, Nes pulls out a stack of bills, along with a registry of names from the Post Office with red marks next to a bunch of them. “Seventy-five percent of the people in the town have been getting these overdue bills,” Nes says, and explains that he only recently realized that there was a pattern and got names for the people, though more and more people have been getting them over time. The group talks about it and decides that there has to be a connection to the fish dying, the fishing industry slowly shuttering, and the debts of the townspeople. Nes says that he wants to check along his route, check peoples’ windows maybe, see what’s up. Mónica asks if she can tag along. Owen says he was due to take some supplies to Old Man McGrady after his shift is over, but asks Mo for a favor--he needs her to buy him some Lindlelof’s Vodka so he can stock the old man up. Mo reluctantly agrees as long as Owen will pay her for it.

The Mystery

What connects the town's debts to the dead fish?

Playtest Design Notes: I wasn’t initially sure how to frame this initial scene, so I deferred to the players, who decided that, after we talked about how they learned about the information and what brought them together, that we could elide that initial scene and just play out them sitting down to talk about the mystery. This was a little bit awkward, and I don’t make a good distinction in the rules--I think it would be better to provide the GM and the players both with a little bit more support in how to narrate their getting together versus their in-character discussion of how to deal with what they know. Blades is very good about cutting to the action, and this game would do well to function similarly.

The Scenes

Playtest Design Notes: We decided at the beginning of the session that it would be better to have each person in a scene roll 1d6, and then the highest result among the characters in a scene would be the result. I like this change a lot and I’ll be changing that in the design doc, as it ensures everyone gets to roll. It makes more sense too--both of the characters agreed on the course of action, so there wasn’t really a “leader.”

Nes and Mo go together to check out the mail route and see what information they can find out about the people on it. Nes is taking his bike since the mail truck is still out of commission, and Mo is jogging behind in athleticwear even though no one really does that in Sandy Bay. It’s fine.

They both roll 1d6, and both fail, and their search directs them to an apartment complex called Windy Peaks Apartments, where the greatest density of people who received the bills is found. It’s also where a lot of folks who work in the boardwalk hospitality live, given its proximity. The buildings look nice from far away--canvas awnings, shingled exterior walls--but up close you can tell the awnings are covered in grime and sea salt, and the green tinge of the shingles is from mold and other growth on them. The complex is generally in a state of disrepair.

Mo goes into the complex first while Nes stays behind to lock his bike. The apartment complex is fairly quiet--no one is really around during the day, it seems. As she walks further into the complex, she notices the door to one of the apartment buildings has been busted open, so she enters. Inside, the building smells like sewage, has astroturf carpet which crunches underneath your feet, and the doors are fake dark wood varnish with brass fake-gold mail slots. There’s a staircase leading up to the 2nd and 3rd floors of the building, but Mo wants to look around to see if there’s a second staircase. She finds a handyman stairwell at the far end of the hallway and goes up it.

Nes walks into the building shortly after she walks up the staircase, sees the door close, shrugs, and goes to check the mail slots to see if there’s anyone who hasn’t taken their mail yet. He crouches down to look into the mail slot, but a big burly man opens the door and asks what in the sam-hill Nes is doing. Nes makes up some bullshit excuse about misdelivering a letter, and the man directs him to the message board where everyone posts information and/or tacks misdelivered letters, then slams the door in his face.

Upstairs, Mo hears the sound of someone crying out in the hallway. She walks out into the hallway to see who it is, and sees a small 8 year old girl sitting in the hall, clutching a letter and sniffling, face tear-stained. As Mo gets closer, she sees that the door to the apartment the girl is sitting in front of has been forced open, and that there is a blank spot where the TV was, along with broken bookcases tossed over, and cabinets open and emptied. The little girl is still wearing her My Little Pony backpack, which is tattered around the edges like it’s a hand-me-down. Mo asks the little girl for her name, and the girl replies Julie. Mo then asks who she’s supposed to call when something bad happens, which causes Julie to start crying again when she admits that they took the phone, and mumbles something about her grandpa before the tears break out again. Mo then says that she has a phone and hands it to Julie, who types in the numbers ‘911’ before looking to Mo for confirmation. Mo nods, and they dial 911.

Meanwhile, Nes has gone outside to hide in a bush and wait to see if anyone comes home. After waiting several minutes, he eventually leaves the bush to sit on the grass next to it. He hears the sound of police sirens, which continue to get louder until a contingent of police cars pull up to the complex in front of him. He sees the officers rush past, and we cut to the police, Mo, and Julie outside the building. Julie is crying as the police comfort her, while another officer asks if she saw the robbery take place and if she could give a statement. Mo says she didn’t see and leaves with Nes as they walk the bike home.

As they walk the bike home, both clearly bummed out that they didn’t get any good information, Mo comments to Nes, "I didn't know you had the gumption to go into doors." Nes just shrugs neutrally and they keep walking. Mo stops by her house to take a chance to rest and have some alone time before they meet up.

(Nes and Mo both give up one token of Stress for the failed roll.)

Meanwhile, Owen has arrived at Old Man McGrady’s with a bag full of various sundries, hoping he can get some information out the old man. He rolls 1d6, and also fails. There’s a sign on the outside of the houseboat that used to say “Gone Fishin’” but now the “Fishin’” part has been crossed off with Sharpie. Underneath it, there’s an arrow pointing to the deck that says “Deliveries.” Owen decides to try and see if he can get inside the houseboat to leave the stuff inside. Once he puts it on the counter and organizes a little, he decides to look around to see if there’s any conspiracy theory stuff or yarnboards that McGrady has out, any information at all. He rolls 1d6 again, and fails again. As he walks into the living space of the house boat, he sees that there’s not a lot that’s nice sitting around--not because McGrady’s poor, but more that he doesn’t care about having things. There’s a lure spinner on the small table which doubles as both workspace and dining table, and a dusty bookshelf that has a few Audobon guides and the like on local birds, fish, and wildlife. Also on the bookshelf is a giant, state-of-the-art safe with both physical and digital locks. The boat is fairly sparse other than that. Owen, lacking any good leads, decides to tidy up things around the boat before leaving.

(Owen gives up two tokens of Stress for the failed rolls.)

When the group meets up again, it’s that evening, and the ruins of the old arcade are thumping with music. The teens who gather there have rigged up an old DDR machine to play music from their iPods, and they are having a breakdancing competition while the music plays. The group enters the back offices of the arcade, and the bass from the music pulses and throbs through the walls. Mo sits on a stack of old, burnt-out CRT monitors that flicker into being from time-to-time, and still show the sprites and scores from their old games. The team decides to take the night to rest and reconvene the next day.

Playtest Design Notes: It was an interesting challenge for me to think up how things could fail from the beginning, and how to make things more interesting than “you don’t get anything.” DC had an idea for a new question he wanted Owen to ask after his failure, which he could articulate as a different and distinct question, which I decided made sense in the moment. I’m not entirely satisfied with how the resolution of failed rolls played out, but it helped me realize some blind spots in my design. More on this below.

Moving between the scenes and the options present after a scene had wrapped felt a little awkward. I think I can restructure the game to make what actions players can take at any given point clearer. As much as I like the way the current game flows when reading it, in play it doesn’t work super great--which is the kind of information I needed from this playtest!

Final Thoughts & Takeaways

Overall, I felt like it went pretty well. We had to break an hour earlier than planned, but we still managed to get what felt like a lot accomplished in the three hours that we played. Other than some stumbling blocks in pacing and roll resolution I’m going to address before we continue this playtest, everything flowed pretty well. I’m really happy to have something that works as a game, rather than just falls apart after closer examination. I was also very lucky to have players who were enthused about the game, which helped too, and which I’m extremely thankful for.

I mentioned I’d bring up the resolution of failed rolls, from both a GMing and game design perspective, because as soon as it happened, I realized a couple blind spots with the game as currently written.

First, I intended to write the text for investigation rolls to be similar to Blades’ Gather Information rolls. For Gather Information, before rolling, the GM asks the player how they’re gathering information, and then the GM determines if there’s a consequence or harm associated. If there is a consequence, the player makes an Action roll, and the result of that roll determines how well the character does as well as any harm or complications they suffer. If the roll is a success, the roll also determines the quality of the information they receive. If there’s no “danger or trouble at hand,” a Fortune roll is made instead. For a Fortune roll, you always get some information, and the roll result determines the quality of information you get. As far as I can tell from the rules, fortune rolls always net you something even if it’s very little.

For Nes and Mo, I should have established the location before having them roll, but when I saw the result, I had vague ideas of how their failures would manifest. Once we did establish the location, I wanted to play out the scene in a similar way to how I would play out a Gather Information roll in Blades. Nes failed, got close to what he wanted (the letters in the door slot), but was rebuffed in the last second. Meanwhile, Mo also didn’t get what she wanted, but got some interesting information regardless about a burglary. I figured what happened here was also kind of similar to a 7-9 result for Spout Lore in Dungeon World.

For Owen, on the other hand, I feel like I goofed it a bit as a GM initially. The result of a roll should never just be “you get nothing”. Sure, a consequence for an Action Roll could be “you lose this opportunity,” but that’s because of that danger or trouble bit.

Where’s the danger or trouble at hand in either of these instances? My thought was the danger or trouble at hand would be that circumstances just don’t line up the way the characters wanted. However, I don’t know that this works super-well for a Forged in the Dark game or feels like a satisfying result. By conflating standard Action rolls and Fortune rolls like I did in my design, I created a circumstance where you could be essentially making a Fortune roll, but you get nothing as a result since in the rules I say “you don’t get what you wanted out of this”, i.e., you get nothing, which is a bit antithetical to Blades’ design. I’m completely okay with characters finding the trail has gone cold, but I need to look at restructuring what that looks like.

Second, after not finding anything, DC wanted to push on and ask an additional question after his initial failure. Once again, by conflating Action rolls with Fortune rolls and removing Position/Effect, I’ve created a blind spot in the rules. In standard Blades, if you’re acting more or less on your terms (a Controlled position), a failure means that you “press on by seizing a risky opportunity, or withdraw and try a different approach.” If you’re not acting on your terms, then things go badly and there’s a more severe consequence. Here, it makes total sense that Owen would want to press on and try a different approach. However, the rules don’t currently provide any support for the player or the GM in terms of how to handle failure and severity.

In summary, if I want to keep this current version with no Position and Effect and only one type of roll, then I need to be more explicit about creating consequences and how that should work. The question is, how do I prompt to make those consequences fit the mood I want this game to create? I’ll have to go back to the drawing board on that one, I think.

After all, it makes sense that there would be consequences when you’re snooping around in others’ business, whether they’re severe or mild.

Ironically, by failing, my players helped show the flaws in my initial design more than successes would have!

I’m definitely going to take a hard look at what I felt didn’t work and try to update it for when this group plays again to finish up our exploration of Sandy Bay. I’m excited to find out what happens.

#actual play #No Place Like Home #blades in the dark #forged in the dark #playtesting

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takenews-blog1 · 7 years ago

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Descenders assessment

New Post has been published on https://takenews.net/descenders-assessment/

Descenders assessment

Looking over the plush forests from the beginning cabin, it’s straightforward to get misplaced within the stunning panorama of Descenders. It’s inarguably a visible masterpiece, and developer RageSquid has rendered the mountains, hills and leap ramps with beautiful consideration to element, one thing I didn’t count on from such a studio finest identified for the crude humor of 2015’s Motion Henk.

Descenders, which launches into Early Entry on Steam immediately, is a recreation about driving bikes down hills very quick, in first or third particular person. When the sport is in its stride, every run appears like a mechanical playground: You’re barreling down slopes, swinging into turns and performing aerial stunts on something you’ll be able to launch your self off of. Sadly, Descenders stumbles in attempting to craft a complete recreation round that core mechanic, and when the honeymoon of flips and downhill drifting wears off, the cracks start to indicate.

The sport is centered across the randomization of every run down the mountain. Not solely are particular person programs randomized by stage of steepness, curves and stunts, however the routes obtainable as you progress by way of a world are equally distinctive to every run. Full a complete run in a world with out bailing out too many instances, and face a boss stage — a steep and difficult course ending in a gargantuan mega-jump.

Ranges in every run range resulting from their procedurally generated nature, however all include a couple of staple obstacles relying on the world that they’re set in. Within the Highlands, grassy fields are interspersed with quarter pipes and picket ramps, and even the occasional fort tower leaping problem. The Forest, the second world, provides jumps by way of firewatch towers and twisted bridges over rocky pits. 4 worlds can be found in complete — the aforementioned Highlands and Forest, and the latter-game Canyon and Peaks.

Every stage’s path has a number of checkpoints that, if handed by way of, will act because the respawn location after bailouts. These checkpoints are fully optionally available, although, and breaking from the trail is all the time a chance. Nonetheless, going your individual approach may result in lacking out on some alternatives to attain Rep factors by pulling off a trick on a ramp, or almost lacking an impediment that may in any other case bail you out, gaining you some ‘Close to Miss’ Rep as a reward.

Fame, or Rep, is the first technique for Descenders to mark your achievements. Rep pulls double obligation in Descenders, performing each as a marker of talent (larger Rep locations you in larger talent ranks) and in addition as a way of gaining new beauty objects, a few of which solely drop at larger ranges. New worlds are unlocked after beating the boss stage of the earlier world thrice, but it surely’s Rep that acts as your marker of progress, each inside ranges and out of doors of them. It’s additionally the sport’s most vital stumbling block — it was almost not possible in my play classes to reliably acquire Rep between runs, as Rep penalties are nearly as plentiful as Rep alternatives.

You start every run inside a world with four well being. Collisions and botched landings result in wipeouts, which knock off Rep and well being, relying on the dimensions of the crash. Well being will be gained by reaching secondary aims assigned after every stage — issues like “do two backflips” or “end the extent with out letting go of the acceleration.”

Mild tumbles will solely take out one well being level and a pair hundred Rep, however scratch a touchdown on a boss leap and it’s not unusual to lose a couple of thousand Rep and two (or three!) well being factors. While you undershoot a double backflip and land in your head, don’t be shocked to finish up shedding extra Rep than you’ve earned in the whole run to that time.

This overly punishing design isn’t helped by the truth that quitting a run anytime earlier than ending the boss stage on the finish will incur one other Rep penalty. Every run, even within the beginning Highlands stage, was a probably disastrous one, with a single crash threatening vital injury to my Rep. There’s an choice to take a session as a observe run, which doesn’t save Rep modifications to your everlasting profile however in any other case performs out the identical a normal session.

After your first few runs, you’ll obtain three gives to affix one of many three biking groups within the recreation: Arboreal, Enemy, and Kinetic. Becoming a member of a group will will let you make progress on the worldwide leaderboards primarily based on group allegiance, and add a stage tied to the group’s signature focus to the pool of obtainable ranges. Taking part in the sport earlier than launch meant that most of the multiplayer elements have been unavailable to me.

Between runs, you might be free to discover the small coaching space, refit your self or your bike with beauty objects, or take a couple of journeys down the three observe programs obtainable within the small stage. The varied shirts, helmets, pants and bike decorations don’t have an effect on the sport’s play type in any respect, however do supply some venues of customization in your biker — who, it ought to be famous, is all the time a person. Sorry, nonmale bikers: Descenders doesn’t supply any various participant fashions.

The procedural technology of every stage led to my different main frustration with Descenders: With every stage being generated on the time of a run, there was no alternative to grow to be acquainted , the observe. Descenders’ clear design ancestors, style favorites like Skate and SSX Difficult, have been all identified for bespoke ranges with ample distinctive content material. Whereas they’d not one of the “infinite play” prospects afforded by Descenders’ random technology, they felt extra fleshed out and learnable.

Descenders’ tracks, by design, can’t be “realized.” Every session is exclusive from tracks to overworld paths, and greater than I’d’ve prefer to, I discovered myself pissed off with a flip that got here too fast, or a leap that I didn’t have time to arrange for as a result of it was obscured by environmental property. In a recreation with out procedural technology, wiping out could be a studying expertise for the extent’s design — as soon as the place that tough part is, you’ll be able to put together for it the following time round. Descenders doesn’t fairly enable for this, and with so few recoveries obtainable in every run, ranges would typically finish in irritating, preventable wipeouts.

For the appropriate participant, that is most likely much less of a bummer. Descenders’ randomization does successfully convey the breakneck, twitchy decision-making that’s essential when barreling down a mountain at 40 mph. Round any nook there is likely to be a rock, or a dip, or only a flip taken too slowly, sending your character ragdolling throughout the panorama after being launched from his bike. Like every good excessive sports activities recreation, Descenders revels within the wipeout cam, slowing down the motion and placing it into black and white after each ridiculous bailout.

Even with all of the frustrations I had with Descenders, the core gameplay remains to be gracefully easy and pure. Selecting up pace whereas whipping your bike round hairpin turns, simply barely lacking the bushes off the aspect of the trail, aiming your self at a ramp like a missile and hovering tumbling by way of the air solely to land solidly on the observe — all of this feels so tight, so well-crafted that the much less swish elements of the sport stick out much more as compared.

Descenders takes a valiant stab at integrating the fast-paced, stunt-focused gameplay of downhill sports activities with the procedural technology of recent video games. Sadly, this mix robs the style of certainly one of its strongest attributes: handcrafted stage design that gamers can dive into and be taught from. That is balanced by tight controls and a slick presentation that retains you from ever getting too indignant at it — simply make certain to not wipe out too arduous.

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alekseiw-blog · 7 years ago

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Guitar Hero 5 & Rock Band 3 - The End of an Era

I finally had a chance to play both Rock Band 3 and Guitar Hero 5. Once again, I would like to talk about both these games in tandem since they follow similar design principles and were released around the same time.

To be completely honest, coming into this independent study I had only played Guitar Hero III. However, I did play countless hours of the game and grew very fond of it. Whenever I go back home for the winter, I always power up my Wii to play a few songs. This is the game that got me into rhythm games and will always hold a special place in my heart. Because of this, I associated the guitar hero franchise as being one of quality. More importantly, I defended the franchise as being better than rock band, even though I had never played a rock band game and was only familiar with Guitar Hero III.

At the time writing, I have played many guitar hero and rock band games including GH, GH II, GH III, GH World Tour, GH 5, GH Live, RB, RB 2, RB 3, The Beatles RB, Lego RB, DJ Hero, and DJ Hero 2. Looking back at my time with all these games I still find Guitar Hero III to be my favorite. Its unfortunate Harmonix did not have the chance to keep working on the franchise. They had paved the way for the peripheral based rhythm game genre. Never soft and GH III owe a lot to them. Guitar Hero III is where the franchise peaked, and it was unfortunately all downhill from that point on. It seemed GH was satisfied reusing the same old formula for their next entries in the franchise. When new mechanics were implemented, it was clear they were heavily inspired by their competitor’s design decisions. Furthermore, Guitar Hero’s focus on the implementation of “Rock Star” playable characters ended up losing its charm especially compared to the ability to create your own band in Rock Band (a similar feature was implemented in Guitar Hero later in the series history). Ultimately, the Guitar Hero franchise expected demand for the game to stay the same while minimum effort was put into new mechanics and design. To be blunt, the series’ formulae overstayed its welcome and got boring fairly quickly. Rock Band on the other, continuously tried to improve upon the feel of the game, even if the core mechanics stayed pretty much unchanged. Before its reboot its 2015, the Rock Band series ended on a high note with the best game in the franchise and in the peripheral based rhythm game genre, Rock Band 3.

I want to briefly talk some of the changes I noticed in Guitar Hero 5. The main one being the lack of a campaign. In previous games, there was always some sort of bare bones narrative revolving around a small and unknown band becoming rock legends. Later games also had some more extravagant story beats which involved you fighting the devil. But this time around there was none of that. You simply played setlists, completed challenges, and unlocked various locations. While similar to the Rock Band formulae, its execution was not perfect. Ultimately, it felt as if the band played no role in the game. The progression was associated to the unlocking of songs and not the popularity of your band. Overall the characters felt disposable and uninteresting (even if you created your own).

Compare this to Rock Band 3 where the whole experience was focused on the band. During every moment you are in the game, you can see your band performing various activities. While in menus or in loading screens, you see your band walking down the street, in subway cars, or setting up for a gig. Of course, you also see them when playing songs. As you play through the game, you see your band evolve. Your rise in popularity is constantly visible. This helps make the player’s experience feel so much more engaging as they are constantly present within the band during every possible activity.

Furthermore, every mode you play is now tied to your band. In previous games, when you were in quickplay, your band’s progression was halted. Now, since the game focuses more on challenges than an explicit narrative, any mode you play gives you the opportunity to play as your band and complete the various tasks. I was surprised to see me gain more fans after I decided to play a few songs on quickplay.

The set lists for both games are quite good. Of course, we run into the same problem as the previous games in both franchises where there are some songs that are just more fun to play than others. Thankfully both games offer the opportunity to increase the speed of the game, offering some more difficulty without having to bump it up to expert.

I have tried playing both games on expert, however it is just not fun. In Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s book Flow, he talks about entering a state of flow when the difficulty of an activity being performed matches up with the skill level of the player. I believe that hard difficulty with an increased speed is the difficulty that matches my skill and leads to a state of flow. I have attempted playing on expert but I have found that, especially for Guitar Hero, the games have embraced the idea of making the game hard for the sake of being hard, rather than for it to be fun. Of course, maybe I would think differently if I was actually able to play well on expert and thus able to achieve a state of flow. However even when I spoke to those who can play on that difficulty, they often say the button combinations and chord progressions are simply not fun to play as they are too complicated.

Flow as discussed by Csikszentmihalyi is an important part of both the Guitar Hero and Rock Band games. By focusing so intently on the game we are able to bring order to our conscious. We simply focus on the notes falling and pressing the buttons in time. As mentioned before, an activity enables flow when the difficulty of the activity matches up with the person’s skill. A song that is too easy is dull and one that is too hard is frustrating. However, it is impossible for GH or RB to constantly provides flow through their songs, as a lot of it relies on the player as well. For me the most exciting parts of the games is hitting various sets of notes in quick succession while going up and down the fret. Hitting hammer ons, and going from the green to orange button is exhilarating especially when it is successfully pulled off. The dull and frustrating moments for me are hitting multiple buttons at the same time to form chords. This is my experience, and is most likely not the same for all players. Something that I found interesting regarding a point Csikszentmihalyi made was that flow here is dependent on an external device (the game). Even though there is skill involved in playing, the game can only offer so much flow. Csikszentmihalyi explains that there is a certain amount of untapped experience in the actions we are performing that could lead to more flow. We need to move on from becoming dependent on the game, and produce our own experiences of flow. Based on what Csikszentmihalyi has to say, it seems the next step for us would be to actually play guitar. By independently developing this skill we would be able to access balance within our conscious and flow at a much larger scale. Learning how to play guitar is something we will get to soon.

We have reached the end of the Rock Band Series and are at the last Guitar Hero game before both franchises were rebooted in 2015.

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krystangreen-blog · 6 years ago

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Getting Discounted Tickets for Hong Kong Attractions

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

The Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

1. Hong Kong Disneyland

Songs on rides like “it’s a small world” are sung in English, though instructions around the park are typically given in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Definitely, buy your tickets in advance online and print them before you go so you can avoid the lines at the ticket booths. Options include:

Discounted Hong Kong Disneyland tickets on Klook (QR code mobile entry)

Hong Kong Disneyland hotel or other luxury hotel concierge

The Hong Kong Disneyland app

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

Activity: Theme Park

Cost: Standard park tickets start at HK$639. There are special packages available, and you can often get discounted tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland on Klook.

Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (verify on the day you plan to visit)

Ages: All Ages

2. Ocean Park Hong Kong

Neighborhood: Wong Chuk Hang

How to get there: Ocean Park is accessible by car, bus, taxi, and the MTR (it’s one stop on the South Island Line from the Admiralty station).

Activity: Theme Park and Aquarium

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

3. Ride the Star Ferry Hong Kong

Definitely take the 6-12 minute ride (length depends on the time of day) from Central to Kowloon on the historic Star Ferry when visiting Hong Kong with kids.

Depending on how far you have to walk to the ferry terminals, it can be faster to take the Star Ferry Hong Kong to Kowloon than the MTR.

Neighborhood: Central / Wan Chai / Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

How to get there: To get to the Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier, exit the MTR at the L6 exit. To get to the Central Pier, exit the MTR at the A2 exit or Exit A.

Activity: Scenic Boat Ride

Cost: Tickets start at HK$2.20 per adult per ride in the ferry’s lower deck or HK$2.70 to sit on the upper deck. Use an Octopus Card or purchase admission in the machines near the entrance gates.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

4. Shop the Toy Streets and Other Markets

Yes, there are streets in Hong Kong dedicated entirely to toys. Since we are always in Hong Kong near my daughter’s birthday, these streets are where we load up on party favors.

Another option is Tai Yuen Street in Wan Chai. This one has more variety and nostalgic toys. Take Exit A3 at Wan Chai station and walk just a few minutes. You’ll see it.

I’ve written in detail about where to go shopping in Hong Kong.

Neighborhoods: Sham Shui Po / Wan Chai / Central / Mongkok

How to get there: MTR Exits listed next to each market above

Activity: Shopping

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: Varies

Ages: Kids who like to shop

5. Visit The Peak

Despite these closures, The Peak is still a worthwhile Hong Kong attraction to visit. Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options.

Neighborhood: Victoria Peak

How to get there: Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options, or you can take the Peak Tram up and a taxi back down.

Activity: Sightseeing

Ages: All ages

6. Hong Kong Science Museum/Hong Kong Museum of History

Neighborhood: Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Take the West Rail Line, get off at East Tsim Sha Tsui Station Exit P2 and walk along Chatham Road south for about 10 minutes.

Activity: Museum

Cost: General admission to the Hong Kong Science Museum is HK$20. Children under 4 are free. The Hong Kong Museum of History is free for all visitors.

Hours: Both museums open daily at 10 a.m., but closing times vary.

Ages: Elementary school kids up to adults will appreciate the exhibits in the Hong Kong Museum of History most, but toddlers and above may like the Hong Kong Science Museum.

Tip: You can visit both in the same day as you’ll likely spend an hour or two at most at both.

7. Hong Kong Park

If families are considering the Admiralty hotels (Upper House, Conrad, JW Marriott, and Island Shangri-la), I always point out this park as a perk of the location.

Neighborhood: Central / Admiralty

Activity: Park

Cost: Free

Hours: The park opens at 6 a.m. daily and closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

8. The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery via Ngong Ping 360

I recommend you book the glass-bottom cable car at Ngong Ping 360. Kids love the glass-bottom cable car for obvious reasons and it usually has a shorter boarding queue.

My daughter loves visiting the Big Buddha and asks to visit every time we go to Hong Kong now. You can read more about our tips for visiting the Big Buddha because there is a lot to know.

Some hotel concierge desks can purchase your Ngong Ping cable car tickets in advance. Otherwise, Klook has them and a dedicated expedited line at the entrance.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: Take the MTR to Tung Chung station and the cable car is just a few minutes away on foot.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies depending on which cable car you ride, though full-price single standard tickets start at HK$160 for adults and HK$75 for children 3-11. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends

Ages: Kids who won’t mind the walking (strollers are okay for younger kids)

9. Go Hong Kong Pink Dolphin Watching

Neighborhood: Many tours depart in Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Varies

Activity: Wildlife Experience

Cost: Varies depending on which tour you take, but expect to spend about HK$470 for adult tickets

Hours: Varies, but expect to spend half a day on your tour

Ages: All ages, though older kids who can wait patiently for sightings will enjoy it most.

10. Explore the Geoparks

Wikimedia Commons: kobe CHENG [CC BY-SA 2.0]

Exploring the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark with kids is the perfect outdoor activity for a family vacation.

Kids may also like the Volcano Discovery Centre in Sai Kung Waterfront Park which organizes tours and showcases how the rock formations were made.

Neighborhood: Sai Kung

Activity: Nature Excursion

Cost: This will depend on what type of tour you take. There are helicopter tours, walking tours, boat tours, and more.

Hours: Open 24 hours

Ages: Kids old enough to handle the walking and climbing will have the most fun.

11. Watch the Nightly Symphony of Lights and ICC Light Shows

Remember, you can see both shows at the evening Star Ferry tour or book a Symphony of Lights tour on Aqua Luna, a (newer) traditional Hong Kong red-sailed junks (more details below).

Download the ICCLightShow app so that you can listen to music synchronized with the light show.

Neighborhood: West Kowloon / Tsim Sha Tsui / Central

Activity: Light Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Symphony of Lights at 8 p.m. and ICC shows at 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

12. Ride the Mid-Levels Escalator

Starting at 6 a.m., the escalator runs downhill to take residents to work and switches directions at roughly 10:15 a.m. to run uphill until midnight, at which point it turns off until the morning.

Make it a challenge and see if you can ride it all the way to the top, though note that it doesn’t reach The Peak. You can always exit for lunch, dinner, shopping, or a snack.

Neighborhoods: Central and the Mid-Levels

How to get there: The starting point of the escalator in Central is 100 Queens Road. It’s an easy walk from the Central MTR Station (Exit D2) and Central Hong Kong hotels.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free

Hours: The escalator runs from 6 a.m. until midnight, though keep in mind that the direction changes at 10:15 a.m.

13. Bike the New Territories

Neighborhood: Tai Wai

How to get there: You can rent bikes just outside of the MTR station in Tai Wai and Hong Kong biking tours depart from various locations.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, depending on the tour

Hours: Varies, though plan for a half day

Ages: Kids old enough to ride a bike independently and have the endurance to handle a couple of hours of biking off-road.

14. Ride a Hong Kong Junk

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: You can catch Duk Ling at Kowloon Public Pier 3 in or Central Pier 9. Aqua Luna departs from Tsim Sha Tsu Pier 1 and Central Pier 9.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Tickets on Duk Ling cost HK$230 for adults and HK$160 for kids 3–11 years old and seniors. The cost of Aqua Luna tours varies depending on the tour.

Hours: Duk Ling picks up passengers hourly from 2:30 p.m. through 8:45 p.m. Aqua Luna runs on a hop-on, hop-off basis between noon and 5:00 p.m. Private tours are available by request.

Ages: All Ages (though anyone prone to seasickness probably won’t enjoy this)

15. Ferry to an Outer Island

Lamma island on a sunny day during a recent visit

Seasickness is less likely to occur on these larger ferries, unlike a smaller junk boat.

Neighborhood: Lamma and the other small islands

How to get there: There are various ferry companies that depart from Central

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, but ferry tickets are very inexpensive

Hours: Varies, but ferries typically run all day and depart every half hour or so

Ages: All ages, though smaller kids may tire out after lots of walking (strollers are easy to take on the ferries).

16. Ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: You can walk to the Observation Wheel from any of the ferry terminals and Central hotels

Activity: Family Fun

Cost: Tickets are HK$20 for adults, HK$10 for children 3-11, and free for kids under three years old. You can also reserve a private gondola for HK$160. Buy tickets in advance.

Hours: The Ferris wheel runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Ages: All Ages

17. Explore Tai Kwun, the Former Central Police Station

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the Central-Mid-Levels escalator uphill and when you get to the elevated walkway above Hollywood Road, walk straight into Tai Kwun.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: 10 a.m. to 11p.m. daily (can vary during holidays)

Ages: All Ages

18. Visit the Trick Eye Museum (Temporarily Closed)

Note: Trick Eye Museum is located inside The Peak Galleria which is closed for renovation until summer 2019.

The Trick Eye Museum at The Peak in Hong Kong (mentioned briefly above) is a fun thing to do with kids.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the uphill bus or the Peak Tram at Garden Road Terminal

Activity: Museum

Cost: Full price tickets cost HK$150 for adult admission and HK$100 for children ages 3 through 11.

Hours: The Trick Eye Museum is currently closed for renovations

Ages: All Ages

19. Eat Character Dim Sum

Of course, you can also reserve Crystal Lotus inside Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel for Disney dim sum.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Yum Cha locations can be found at

Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road, Central

Emperor Watch & Jewellery Ctr., 8 Russell Street, Causeway Bay

20-22 Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Shop 07, Level 4A, Langham Place, Mongkok

Activity: Dining

Cost: Character dim sum options range from HK$50-60 per order

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner on weekdays. On weekends, lunch lasts until 4:30 p.m.

Ages: Toddlers and up

20. Eat a Hong Kong Waffle

Other local must-trys that kids may love include pineapple buns, Hong Kong toast, wonton noodle soup, and egg tarts.

Neighborhood: Throughout Hong Kong

How to get there: You can research where to go ahead of time or wait until you come across a shop selling them.

Activity: Dining

Cost: About HK$15 for a traditional waffle

Ages: Toddlers and up

Good Things to Know When in Hong Kong With Kids

Hong Kongers love kids, and I’ve received plenty of help with my own strollers and bags from strangers over the years.

See also: The Best List of Family Hotels in Hong Kong

What are your favorite things to do in Hong Kong with kids?

Photo credits: Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Symphony of Lights, Cheung Chau are courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

#HongKong #familytravel"#039;ll

0 notes

topfygad · 5 years ago

Text

20 Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

Getting Discounted Tickets for Hong Kong Attractions

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

The Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

1. Hong Kong Disneyland

Songs on rides like “it’s a small world” are sung in English, though instructions around the park are typically given in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Definitely, buy your tickets in advance online and print them before you go so you can avoid the lines at the ticket booths. Options include:

Discounted Hong Kong Disneyland tickets on Klook (QR code mobile entry)

Hong Kong Disneyland hotel or other luxury hotel concierge

The Hong Kong Disneyland app

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

Activity: Theme Park

Cost: Standard park tickets start at HK$639. There are special packages available, and you can often get discounted tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland on Klook.

Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (verify on the day you plan to visit)

Ages: All Ages

2. Ocean Park Hong Kong

Neighborhood: Wong Chuk Hang

How to get there: Ocean Park is accessible by car, bus, taxi, and the MTR (it’s one stop on the South Island Line from the Admiralty station).

Activity: Theme Park and Aquarium

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

3. Ride the Star Ferry Hong Kong

Definitely take the 6-12 minute ride (length depends on the time of day) from Central to Kowloon on the historic Star Ferry when visiting Hong Kong with kids.

Depending on how far you have to walk to the ferry terminals, it can be faster to take the Star Ferry Hong Kong to Kowloon than the MTR.

Neighborhood: Central / Wan Chai / Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

How to get there: To get to the Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier, exit the MTR at the L6 exit. To get to the Central Pier, exit the MTR at the A2 exit or Exit A.

Activity: Scenic Boat Ride

Cost: Tickets start at HK$2.20 per adult per ride in the ferry’s lower deck or HK$2.70 to sit on the upper deck. Use an Octopus Card or purchase admission in the machines near the entrance gates.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

4. Shop the Toy Streets and Other Markets

Fuk Wing Street toy street in Sham Shui Po

Yes, there are streets in Hong Kong dedicated entirely to toys. Since we are always in Hong Kong near my daughter’s birthday, these streets are where we load up on party favors.

Another option is Tai Yuen Street in Wan Chai. This one has more variety and nostalgic toys. Take Exit A3 at Wan Chai station and walk just a few minutes. You’ll see it.

I’ve written in detail about where to go shopping in Hong Kong.

Neighborhoods: Sham Shui Po / Wan Chai / Central / Mongkok

How to get there: MTR Exits listed next to each market above

Activity: Shopping

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: Varies

Ages: Kids who like to shop

5. Visit The Peak

Despite these closures, The Peak is still a worthwhile Hong Kong attraction to visit. Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options.

The observation deck is on the top of this building.

Neighborhood: Victoria Peak

How to get there: Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options, or you can take the Peak Tram up and a taxi back down.

Activity: Sightseeing

Ages: All ages

6. Hong Kong Science Museum/Hong Kong Museum of History

Neighborhood: Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Take the West Rail Line, get off at East Tsim Sha Tsui Station Exit P2 and walk along Chatham Road south for about 10 minutes.

Activity: Museum

Cost: General admission to the Hong Kong Science Museum is HK$20. Children under 4 are free. The Hong Kong Museum of History is free for all visitors.

Hours: Both museums open daily at 10 a.m., but closing times vary.

Ages: Elementary school kids up to adults will appreciate the exhibits in the Hong Kong Museum of History most, but toddlers and above may like the Hong Kong Science Museum.

Tip: You can visit both in the same day as you’ll likely spend an hour or two at most at both.

7. Hong Kong Park

Kids (and adults) love looking at the turtles in the ponds.

If families are considering the Admiralty hotels (Upper House, Conrad, JW Marriott, and Island Shangri-la), I always point out this park as a perk of the location.

Neighborhood: Central / Admiralty

Activity: Park

Cost: Free

Hours: The park opens at 6 a.m. daily and closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

8. The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery via Ngong Ping 360

Get your daily exercise by climbing the steps up to the Tian Tan Buddha.

I recommend you book the glass-bottom cable car at Ngong Ping 360. Kids love the glass-bottom cable car for obvious reasons and it usually has a shorter boarding queue.

The glass bottom cable car.

My daughter loves visiting the Big Buddha and asks to visit every time we go to Hong Kong now. You can read more about our tips for visiting the Big Buddha because there is a lot to know.

Some hotel concierge desks can purchase your Ngong Ping cable car tickets in advance. Otherwise, Klook has them and a dedicated expedited line at the entrance.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: Take the MTR to Tung Chung station and the cable car is just a few minutes away on foot.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies depending on which cable car you ride, though full-price single standard tickets start at HK$160 for adults and HK$75 for children 3-11. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends

Ages: Kids who won’t mind the walking (strollers are okay for younger kids)

9. Go Hong Kong Pink Dolphin Watching

Neighborhood: Many tours depart in Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Varies

Activity: Wildlife Experience

Cost: Varies depending on which tour you take, but expect to spend about HK$470 for adult tickets

Hours: Varies, but expect to spend half a day on your tour

Ages: All ages, though older kids who can wait patiently for sightings will enjoy it most.

10. Explore the Geoparks

Sharp Island – Wikimedia Commons: kobe CHENG [CC BY-SA 2.0]

Exploring the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark with kids is the perfect outdoor activity for a family vacation.

Kids may also like the Volcano Discovery Centre in Sai Kung Waterfront Park which organizes tours and showcases how the rock formations were made.

Neighborhood: Sai Kung

Activity: Nature Excursion

Cost: This will depend on what type of tour you take. There are helicopter tours, walking tours, boat tours, and more.

Hours: Open 24 hours

Ages: Kids old enough to handle the walking and climbing will have the most fun.

11. Watch the Nightly Symphony of Lights and ICC Light Shows

The Symphony of Lights view from Kowloon side, looking at Central.

Remember, you can see both shows at the evening Star Ferry tour or book a Symphony of Lights tour on Aqua Luna, a (newer) traditional Hong Kong red-sailed junks (more details below).

Download the ICCLightShow app so that you can listen to music synchronized with the light show.

Neighborhood: West Kowloon / Tsim Sha Tsui / Central

Activity: Light Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Symphony of Lights at 8 p.m. and ICC shows at 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

12. Ride the Mid-Levels Escalator

Starting at 6 a.m., the escalator runs downhill to take residents to work and switches directions at roughly 10:15 a.m. to run uphill until midnight, at which point it turns off until the morning.

Make it a challenge and see if you can ride it all the way to the top, though note that it doesn’t reach The Peak. You can always exit for lunch, dinner, shopping, or a snack.

Neighborhoods: Central and the Mid-Levels

How to get there: The starting point of the escalator in Central is 100 Queens Road. It’s an easy walk from the Central MTR Station (Exit D2) and Central Hong Kong hotels.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free

Hours: The escalator runs from 6 a.m. until midnight, though keep in mind that the direction changes at 10:15 a.m.

13. Bike the New Territories

Neighborhood: Tai Wai

How to get there: You can rent bikes just outside of the MTR station in Tai Wai and Hong Kong biking tours depart from various locations.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, depending on the tour

Hours: Varies, though plan for a half day

Ages: Kids old enough to ride a bike independently and have the endurance to handle a couple of hours of biking off-road.

14. Ride a Hong Kong Junk

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: You can catch Duk Ling at Kowloon Public Pier 3 in or Central Pier 9. Aqua Luna departs from Tsim Sha Tsu Pier 1 and Central Pier 9.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Tickets on Duk Ling cost HK$230 for adults and HK$160 for kids 3–11 years old and seniors. The cost of Aqua Luna tours varies depending on the tour.

Hours: Duk Ling picks up passengers hourly from 2:30 p.m. through 8:45 p.m. Aqua Luna runs on a hop-on, hop-off basis between noon and 5:00 p.m. Private tours are available by request.

Ages: All Ages (though anyone prone to seasickness probably won’t enjoy this)

15. Ferry to an Outer Island

Cheung Chau island

Lamma island on a sunny day during a recent visit.

Seasickness is less likely to occur on these larger ferries, unlike a smaller junk boat.

Neighborhood: Lamma and the other small islands

How to get there: There are various ferry companies that depart from Central

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, but ferry tickets are very inexpensive

Hours: Varies, but ferries typically run all day and depart every half hour or so

Ages: All ages, though smaller kids may tire out after lots of walking (strollers are easy to take on the ferries).

16. Ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: You can walk to the Observation Wheel from any of the ferry terminals and Central hotels

Activity: Family Fun

Cost: Tickets are HK$20 for adults, HK$10 for children 3-11, and free for kids under three years old. You can also reserve a private gondola for HK$160. Buy tickets in advance.

Hours: The Ferris wheel runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Ages: All Ages

17. Explore Tai Kwun, the Former Central Police Station

The Tai Kwun courtyard is a nice place to grab a drink and rest while sightseeing in Central.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the Central-Mid-Levels escalator uphill and when you get to the elevated walkway above Hollywood Road, walk straight into Tai Kwun.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: 10 a.m. to 11p.m. daily (can vary during holidays)

Ages: All Ages

18. Visit the Trick Eye Museum (Temporarily Closed)

Note: Trick Eye Museum is located inside The Peak Galleria which is closed for renovation until summer 2019.

The Trick Eye Museum at The Peak in Hong Kong (mentioned briefly above) is a fun thing to do with kids.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the uphill bus or the Peak Tram at Garden Road Terminal

Activity: Museum

Cost: Full price tickets cost HK$150 for adult admission and HK$100 for children ages 3 through 11.

Hours: The Trick Eye Museum is currently closed for renovations

Ages: All Ages

19. Eat Character Dim Sum

Bao dumplings at Yum Cha’s Central location

Of course, you can also reserve Crystal Lotus inside Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel for Disney dim sum.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Yum Cha locations can be found at

Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road, Central

Emperor Watch & Jewellery Ctr., 8 Russell Street, Causeway Bay

20-22 Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Shop 07, Level 4A, Langham Place, Mongkok

Activity: Dining

Cost: Character dim sum options range from HK$50-60 per order

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner on weekdays. On weekends, lunch lasts until 4:30 p.m.

Ages: Toddlers and up

20. Eat a Hong Kong Waffle

One of our recent Mammy Pancake eggettes

Other local must-trys that kids may love include pineapple buns, Hong Kong toast, wonton noodle soup, and egg tarts.

Neighborhood: Throughout Hong Kong

How to get there: You can research where to go ahead of time or wait until you come across a shop selling them.

Activity: Dining

Cost: About HK$15 for a traditional waffle

Ages: Toddlers and up

Good Things to Know When in Hong Kong With Kids

Hong Kongers love kids, and I’ve received plenty of help with my own strollers and bags from strangers over the years.

See also: The Best List of Family Hotels in Hong Kong

What are your favorite things to do in Hong Kong with kids?

Photo credits: Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Symphony of Lights, Cheung Chau are courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

source http://cheaprtravels.com/20-best-things-to-do-in-hong-kong-with-kids/

0 notes

topfygad · 5 years ago

Text

20 Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

Getting Discounted Tickets for Hong Kong Attractions

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

The Best Things to Do in Hong Kong with Kids

You may also want to consider the Hong Kong Pass. This sightseeing pass is for active travelers who would like to see multiple attractions in a day.

1. Hong Kong Disneyland

Songs on rides like “it’s a small world” are sung in English, though instructions around the park are typically given in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Definitely, buy your tickets in advance online and print them before you go so you can avoid the lines at the ticket booths. Options include:

Discounted Hong Kong Disneyland tickets on Klook (QR code mobile entry)

Hong Kong Disneyland hotel or other luxury hotel concierge

The Hong Kong Disneyland app

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

Activity: Theme Park

Cost: Standard park tickets start at HK$639. There are special packages available, and you can often get discounted tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland on Klook.

Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (verify on the day you plan to visit)

Ages: All Ages

2. Ocean Park Hong Kong

Neighborhood: Wong Chuk Hang

How to get there: Ocean Park is accessible by car, bus, taxi, and the MTR (it’s one stop on the South Island Line from the Admiralty station).

Activity: Theme Park and Aquarium

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

3. Ride the Star Ferry Hong Kong

Definitely take the 6-12 minute ride (length depends on the time of day) from Central to Kowloon on the historic Star Ferry when visiting Hong Kong with kids.

Depending on how far you have to walk to the ferry terminals, it can be faster to take the Star Ferry Hong Kong to Kowloon than the MTR.

Neighborhood: Central / Wan Chai / Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

How to get there: To get to the Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier, exit the MTR at the L6 exit. To get to the Central Pier, exit the MTR at the A2 exit or Exit A.

Activity: Scenic Boat Ride

Cost: Tickets start at HK$2.20 per adult per ride in the ferry’s lower deck or HK$2.70 to sit on the upper deck. Use an Octopus Card or purchase admission in the machines near the entrance gates.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

4. Shop the Toy Streets and Other Markets

Fuk Wing Street toy street in Sham Shui Po

Yes, there are streets in Hong Kong dedicated entirely to toys. Since we are always in Hong Kong near my daughter’s birthday, these streets are where we load up on party favors.

Another option is Tai Yuen Street in Wan Chai. This one has more variety and nostalgic toys. Take Exit A3 at Wan Chai station and walk just a few minutes. You’ll see it.

I’ve written in detail about where to go shopping in Hong Kong.

Neighborhoods: Sham Shui Po / Wan Chai / Central / Mongkok

How to get there: MTR Exits listed next to each market above

Activity: Shopping

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: Varies

Ages: Kids who like to shop

5. Visit The Peak

Despite these closures, The Peak is still a worthwhile Hong Kong attraction to visit. Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options.

The observation deck is on the top of this building.

Neighborhood: Victoria Peak

How to get there: Klook offers uphill or downhill bus options, or you can take the Peak Tram up and a taxi back down.

Activity: Sightseeing

Ages: All ages

6. Hong Kong Science Museum/Hong Kong Museum of History

Neighborhood: Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Take the West Rail Line, get off at East Tsim Sha Tsui Station Exit P2 and walk along Chatham Road south for about 10 minutes.

Activity: Museum

Cost: General admission to the Hong Kong Science Museum is HK$20. Children under 4 are free. The Hong Kong Museum of History is free for all visitors.

Hours: Both museums open daily at 10 a.m., but closing times vary.

Ages: Elementary school kids up to adults will appreciate the exhibits in the Hong Kong Museum of History most, but toddlers and above may like the Hong Kong Science Museum.

Tip: You can visit both in the same day as you’ll likely spend an hour or two at most at both.

7. Hong Kong Park

Kids (and adults) love looking at the turtles in the ponds.

If families are considering the Admiralty hotels (Upper House, Conrad, JW Marriott, and Island Shangri-la), I always point out this park as a perk of the location.

Neighborhood: Central / Admiralty

Activity: Park

Cost: Free

Hours: The park opens at 6 a.m. daily and closes at 11 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

8. The Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery via Ngong Ping 360

Get your daily exercise by climbing the steps up to the Tian Tan Buddha.

I recommend you book the glass-bottom cable car at Ngong Ping 360. Kids love the glass-bottom cable car for obvious reasons and it usually has a shorter boarding queue.

The glass bottom cable car.

My daughter loves visiting the Big Buddha and asks to visit every time we go to Hong Kong now. You can read more about our tips for visiting the Big Buddha because there is a lot to know.

Some hotel concierge desks can purchase your Ngong Ping cable car tickets in advance. Otherwise, Klook has them and a dedicated expedited line at the entrance.

Neighborhood: Lantau Island

How to get there: Take the MTR to Tung Chung station and the cable car is just a few minutes away on foot.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies depending on which cable car you ride, though full-price single standard tickets start at HK$160 for adults and HK$75 for children 3-11. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends

Ages: Kids who won’t mind the walking (strollers are okay for younger kids)

9. Go Hong Kong Pink Dolphin Watching

Neighborhood: Many tours depart in Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Varies

Activity: Wildlife Experience

Cost: Varies depending on which tour you take, but expect to spend about HK$470 for adult tickets

Hours: Varies, but expect to spend half a day on your tour

Ages: All ages, though older kids who can wait patiently for sightings will enjoy it most.

10. Explore the Geoparks

Sharp Island – Wikimedia Commons: kobe CHENG [CC BY-SA 2.0]

Exploring the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark with kids is the perfect outdoor activity for a family vacation.

Kids may also like the Volcano Discovery Centre in Sai Kung Waterfront Park which organizes tours and showcases how the rock formations were made.

Neighborhood: Sai Kung

Activity: Nature Excursion

Cost: This will depend on what type of tour you take. There are helicopter tours, walking tours, boat tours, and more.

Hours: Open 24 hours

Ages: Kids old enough to handle the walking and climbing will have the most fun.

11. Watch the Nightly Symphony of Lights and ICC Light Shows

The Symphony of Lights view from Kowloon side, looking at Central.

Remember, you can see both shows at the evening Star Ferry tour or book a Symphony of Lights tour on Aqua Luna, a (newer) traditional Hong Kong red-sailed junks (more details below).

Download the ICCLightShow app so that you can listen to music synchronized with the light show.

Neighborhood: West Kowloon / Tsim Sha Tsui / Central

Activity: Light Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Symphony of Lights at 8 p.m. and ICC shows at 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Ages: All Ages

12. Ride the Mid-Levels Escalator

Starting at 6 a.m., the escalator runs downhill to take residents to work and switches directions at roughly 10:15 a.m. to run uphill until midnight, at which point it turns off until the morning.

Make it a challenge and see if you can ride it all the way to the top, though note that it doesn’t reach The Peak. You can always exit for lunch, dinner, shopping, or a snack.

Neighborhoods: Central and the Mid-Levels

How to get there: The starting point of the escalator in Central is 100 Queens Road. It’s an easy walk from the Central MTR Station (Exit D2) and Central Hong Kong hotels.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free

Hours: The escalator runs from 6 a.m. until midnight, though keep in mind that the direction changes at 10:15 a.m.

13. Bike the New Territories

Neighborhood: Tai Wai

How to get there: You can rent bikes just outside of the MTR station in Tai Wai and Hong Kong biking tours depart from various locations.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, depending on the tour

Hours: Varies, though plan for a half day

Ages: Kids old enough to ride a bike independently and have the endurance to handle a couple of hours of biking off-road.

14. Ride a Hong Kong Junk

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: You can catch Duk Ling at Kowloon Public Pier 3 in or Central Pier 9. Aqua Luna departs from Tsim Sha Tsu Pier 1 and Central Pier 9.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Tickets on Duk Ling cost HK$230 for adults and HK$160 for kids 3–11 years old and seniors. The cost of Aqua Luna tours varies depending on the tour.

Hours: Duk Ling picks up passengers hourly from 2:30 p.m. through 8:45 p.m. Aqua Luna runs on a hop-on, hop-off basis between noon and 5:00 p.m. Private tours are available by request.

Ages: All Ages (though anyone prone to seasickness probably won’t enjoy this)

15. Ferry to an Outer Island

Cheung Chau island

Lamma island on a sunny day during a recent visit.

Seasickness is less likely to occur on these larger ferries, unlike a smaller junk boat.

Neighborhood: Lamma and the other small islands

How to get there: There are various ferry companies that depart from Central

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Varies, but ferry tickets are very inexpensive

Hours: Varies, but ferries typically run all day and depart every half hour or so

Ages: All ages, though smaller kids may tire out after lots of walking (strollers are easy to take on the ferries).

16. Ride the Hong Kong Observation Wheel

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: You can walk to the Observation Wheel from any of the ferry terminals and Central hotels

Activity: Family Fun

Cost: Tickets are HK$20 for adults, HK$10 for children 3-11, and free for kids under three years old. You can also reserve a private gondola for HK$160. Buy tickets in advance.

Hours: The Ferris wheel runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Ages: All Ages

17. Explore Tai Kwun, the Former Central Police Station

The Tai Kwun courtyard is a nice place to grab a drink and rest while sightseeing in Central.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the Central-Mid-Levels escalator uphill and when you get to the elevated walkway above Hollywood Road, walk straight into Tai Kwun.

Activity: Sightseeing

Cost: Free to enter

Hours: 10 a.m. to 11p.m. daily (can vary during holidays)

Ages: All Ages

18. Visit the Trick Eye Museum (Temporarily Closed)

Note: Trick Eye Museum is located inside The Peak Galleria which is closed for renovation until summer 2019.

The Trick Eye Museum at The Peak in Hong Kong (mentioned briefly above) is a fun thing to do with kids.

Neighborhood: Central

How to get there: Take the uphill bus or the Peak Tram at Garden Road Terminal

Activity: Museum

Cost: Full price tickets cost HK$150 for adult admission and HK$100 for children ages 3 through 11.

Hours: The Trick Eye Museum is currently closed for renovations

Ages: All Ages

19. Eat Character Dim Sum

Bao dumplings at Yum Cha’s Central location

Of course, you can also reserve Crystal Lotus inside Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel for Disney dim sum.

Neighborhood: Central and Tsim Sha Tsui

How to get there: Yum Cha locations can be found at

Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road, Central

Emperor Watch & Jewellery Ctr., 8 Russell Street, Causeway Bay

20-22 Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Shop 07, Level 4A, Langham Place, Mongkok

Activity: Dining

Cost: Character dim sum options range from HK$50-60 per order

Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner on weekdays. On weekends, lunch lasts until 4:30 p.m.

Ages: Toddlers and up

20. Eat a Hong Kong Waffle

One of our recent Mammy Pancake eggettes

Other local must-trys that kids may love include pineapple buns, Hong Kong toast, wonton noodle soup, and egg tarts.

Neighborhood: Throughout Hong Kong

How to get there: You can research where to go ahead of time or wait until you come across a shop selling them.

Activity: Dining

Cost: About HK$15 for a traditional waffle

Ages: Toddlers and up

Good Things to Know When in Hong Kong With Kids

Hong Kongers love kids, and I’ve received plenty of help with my own strollers and bags from strangers over the years.

See also: The Best List of Family Hotels in Hong Kong

What are your favorite things to do in Hong Kong with kids?

Photo credits: Star Ferry, Peak Tram, Symphony of Lights, Cheung Chau are courtesy of the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

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