Outlying Islands, Hong Kong: neighborhood guide

"Outlying Islands" is a broad, territory-wide label for the islands, islets and rocks beyond Hong Kong Island, Lantau and the New Territories. The ones travellers actually reach are a short list: Cheung Chau, Lamma, Peng Chau, Po Toi and, in the northeast, Tap Mun and Tung Ping Chau.

These are old fishing communities first and resort areas second. Villages cluster around a ferry pier, with seafood restaurants on the waterfront, a few beaches, and hiking trails that cross the island in an hour or two. Almost all are car-free, so the soundtrack is bicycles, dogs and generators rather than traffic.

Lantau is Hong Kong's largest island and is administratively part of the New Territories, with its own MTR connection; treat it as a separate trip and use the Lantau guide.

Stay if you want two or three slow days: a guesthouse above a shop in Yung Shue Wan on Lamma, or a small hotel on Cheung Chau, with dinner of steamed fish and a walk home in the dark. It also works for travellers who have already done the city and want the contrast without leaving the territory.

Do not stay if your trip is built around late dinners, bars, museums or early meetings on the other side of the harbour. Ferries thin out in the evening, so check the return timetable before you commit to a late dinner. Families with strollers and travellers with heavy luggage should note that many lanes are stepped and narrow.

A middle path: base in Central, Sheung Wan or Kowloon and take a morning ferry out, returning after an early seafood dinner. That covers Cheung Chau, Peng Chau and Po Toi well.

The default meal is seafood bought by weight and cooked to order along the waterfront: steamed fish, prawns, squid, clams, often with garlic and spring onion. Prices are per catty (about 600 g), so ask the price before ordering and confirm whether it covers preparation. Cheung Chau and Lamma have the deepest bench of restaurants; Peng Chau is cheaper and quieter; Po Toi has a small number of tables and you are advised to reserve ahead.

Away from the water, expect simple noodle shops, bakeries and cafes. Cheung Chau is known for its mango and red-bean glutinous rice dumplings and for dried seafood sold along the main lane. Lamma's Yung Shue Wan has a strip of Western-leaning cafes and bars that stays open later than most island places.

Vegetarian food exists but is thin outside Lamma and Cheung Chau; Buddhist monastery kitchens on Lantau are a separate trip. Alcohol is easy to find in Lamma and Cheung Chau, less so on the smaller islands.

Ferries leave from the Central piers on Hong Kong Island, with fast and ordinary services to Cheung Chau, Lamma (Yung Shue Wan and Sok Kwu Wan) and Peng Chau; some routes also run from Aberdeen. Ordinary ferries cost less and take longer; fast ferries cost more. Fares are cheap by city standards, and Octopus cards work on most routes. Check the operator's timetable for the day you travel, since Sunday and holiday sailings differ and fill up.

On the islands you walk or cycle. Bicycles can be rented near the piers on Cheung Chau, and on Lamma availability varies by shop and season (check). Some islands ban bicycles on certain paths. There are no taxis and no car ferries for visitors on the main tourist islands. Tap Mun and Tung Ping Chau are reached by less frequent services from the northeast New Territories and are best treated as full-day outings.

Weather decides everything in typhoon season: check operator notices during severe weather, since sailings can be suspended at short notice. Build a buffer day into any plan that depends on a ferry.