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Exploring Mong Kok
Exploring Mong Kok and the Ladies Market in Hong Kong
If you want to explore the vibrancy and energy of Hong Kong, Asia’s World City, then look no further than Mong Kok and the Ladies Market. When Hong Kong night falls, Mong Kok gets buzzing, so check out our best picks for attractions and souvenirs.
Hong Kong nights are fun, energetic, vibrant and colourful. As the sun sets, neon lights flicker on and the outline of the city’s most famed skyline takes form. The best place to be is in the bustling neighbourhood of Mong Kok. Home to Sneaker Street, Bird Market, Flower Market and of course, the famed Ladies Market, this neighbourhood is a tourists’ haven. When night falls, the clamour of bargaining and the smell of street food will be bound to entice you to explore the best this city has to offer. You’ll find everything here, be it jewellery, apparel, collectables or souvenirs. From cheap knick-knacks to even cheaper looking knock-offs, Hong Kong nights are best spent in Mong Kok and the Ladies Market. Check out our top picks for the best souvenirs you need to buy, as well as some recommendations for things to do and explore in the area.
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TOP TOURIST SPOTS IN MONGKOK, HONG KONG If you thought Mong Kok was just for a Hong Kong night of knick-knacks and knock-off shopping, think again! Mong Kok is home to a whole splendour of tourist attractions aside from the Ladies Market. There’s the incredible Bird Market, Flower Market and Fish Market, as well as many other fabulous sightings to see. Best of all, most of these tourist sightings are free, so if you’re on a wallet-friendly trip, Mong Kok is for you!
1. Bird Market
For most tourists, heading to Hong Kong to go bird shopping isn’t on their agenda. Nevertheless, if you’re going to make a pit stop at Mong Kok, you just have to head to the Bird Garden on Yuen Po Street. This garden isn’t your ordinary garden. Instead, it’s designed in the style of a traditional Chinese aviary, with hundreds of individual bird stalls with hustling bird owners and bamboo cages hanging above. You’ll hear tweeting, chirping and even singing if you’re lucky. See if you can name all the different bird species!
Yuen Po Street, Prince Edward 7:00am – 8:00pm
2. Fish Market
Where there are birds, there are fish. Yes, you guessed the name correctly: Mong Kok is home to a Goldfish Market on Bute Street, Prince Edward. Like an open-air aquarium, a plethora of fish of different tropical species swims in tightly sealed plastic bags hanging overhead. Their scintillating scales in an array of colours will surely catch your eye, as will the sky-high prices for exotic species! There’ll even be a couple of amphibians and reptiles joining the parade and some wonderful saltwater aquariums and coral on display.
43-49 Bute Street, Bute St, Prince Edward 10AM – 9:45PM
3. Flower Market
And of course, no Hong Kong Mong Kok sighting is complete without a trip to the famed Flower Market. This is where the locals go to pick out the best flowers and foliage that money can buy. During seasonal highs and boisterous festivals, like Chinese New Year or Mid-Autumn Festival, this Flower Market gets hot and busy with a litany of tropical flower species and arrangements, filled with wondrous scents and colours. Flower Market Rd, Prince Edward 9:30AM – 7:30PM
4. Four Seasons Clay Pot Rice
After a night of souvenir shopping and bargaining, you’ll need to refuel and recharge, so why not sample the finest of Hong Kong cuisine, a traditional Four Seasons clay pot dish? The Four Seasons Pot Rice is a one of a kind classic only to be found at this local joint on Arthur Street in Mong Kok Hong Kong. The dish is a clay pot crispy rice topped with 32 different combinations of barbequed meat and “Lap Mei” (Chinese Preserved Meat) that will satisfy even the most insatiable of appetites! Another delicious Hong Kong comfort food is their deep-fried oyster cake with chicken feet and pork chop rice, a true Hong Kong classic. It’s a hearty way to end a Hong Kong night of shopping.
46-58 Arthur Street, Yau Ma Tei 06:00pm – 01:00am Must Try: Deep Fried Oyster Cake, Chicken Feet and Pork Chop with Rice HK$50 – HK$100 (US$6 – US$13)
5. Fei Jie
Hong Kong nights in Mong Kok must be done in the right way- with local street food! Go to Fei Jie, where you can taste the most delectable fresh skewers. Pork gizzards? Pork Tongue? Maybe even intestines? Hong Kong’s Mong Kok street food is not for the faint-hearted, but if you want to eat your way through the Hong Kong night like a real local, Fei Jie is the place to be. For the less adventurous though, it might be worth sticking to octopus and sausage skewers.
2:00pm – 11:00pm (852) 9191 7683 Must Try: Pork Gizzard, Pork Tongue, Sausage, Octopus Below HK$50 (US$6)
6. Ladies Market
Gentlemen, don’t be fooled by the name - Ladies Market, is not just for ladies. In fact, if anything, there’s something for everyone here at the Ladies Market in Mong Kok. A hot Hong Kong night should be well spent and it should be spent here, bargaining for a wide variety of discounted clothing, handbags, travel goods, accessories, toys and electronics. You’re bound to have incredible fun, hopping from stall to stall. So, lads, this market is for you too!
Tung Choi Street, Mong Kok 11:00am – 11:30pm |
TOP 6 SOUVENIRS AT THE LADIES MARKET Ladies Market is the epitome of a bustling, boisterous Hong Kong night. Wondering what to buy? Take a look at some of the best things you can get at the Ladies Market in Mong Kok, including all sorts of fun, tongue in cheek gadgets, accessories and other amazing buys!
1. Novelty Street Signs
Hong Kong is infamously known for Chinglish, as words and messages get lost in translation. Here in Mong Kok's Ladies Market, you'll find funny spoofs of these tongue-in-cheek, poorly-translated idioms, sayings or phrases, printed cleverly on street sign mockups that almost look like they've been taken off the actual streets of the city. These souvenirs will make a great addition to any home decor collection, hung up on walls or doors as a memento of your travels.
2. Jade
Jade is a ubiquitous symbol in Hong Kong, representing virtue, longevity and good fortune. A precious stone easily distinguishable for its beautiful green colour, jade is often seen in jewellery products, figurines and even furniture. Whilst there's no guarantee that the Ladies Market in Hong Kong has the best quality jade or even real jade, if you want to buy a piece of Chinese culture for an affordable price, you can’t go wrong buying an imitation jade bangle or any jade collectable. Alternatively, speak to the experts and head over to Canton Road, or Jade Street as its colloquially known, and familiarize yourself with this ceremonious cultural gem.
3. T-Shirt
End your Hong Kong night in Ladies Market by purchasing an infamous "I love" T-Shirt. It’s not cheesy, it’s classic! The “I Love Hong Kong” T-Shirt is a must-have for so many tourists who travel to this city. An inexpensive souvenir, this is your opportunity to bargain for a better deal until you see fit. You’ll also find other quintessential pieces of clothing, from Chairman Mao-inspired memorabilia to shirts emblazoned with Chinese characters and Hong Kong iconography.
4. Phone cases
How can a trip to the Ladies Market Hong Kong be complete without fun and quirky iPhone cases? Forget heading to the Apple Store- they have all you need here in Mong Kok! It’s hard not to notice the vast array of smartphone cases and stylish iPhone accessories ranging in size, shape and colour that are marked down for cheap. Crystals, logos, leather, plastic, glitter, aluminum- you name it, they have it. Buying nifty phone cases is all part of the modern Mong Kok experience.
5. Red-White-Blue Bag
If you’re looking for the classic travel accessory that screams Hong Kong, you can’t forego the red-white-blue bag. Though it’s now seen as a hip fashion trend, the origin of this coloured design is humble. It might surprise you that the bag first came into production by tailor Lee Wah in Hong Kong in the 1960s, as a piece of hand-carry luggage for travelling to and from Mainland China. You'll find these everywhere in the Ladies Market and around in Mong Kok and for a cheap price too! Talk about practicality and affordability.
6. Lucky Cats
Lucky cats are a common sighting in Hong Kong, whether on the dashboard of a taxi or sitting in the windowsill of a shop. This figurine is a lucky symbol in Chinese and Japanese culture: if the left paw is raised, the cat attracts customers but if the right paw is raised, the cat attracts good fortune and money. Their fun, cute and whimsical nature makes them great collectables and souvenirs for friends and family and they come in an array of different colours and sizes.
WHERE TO STAY? Looking to check out Ladies Market in Mong Kok? Want to spend a Hong Kong night with us? Then check out HOTEL ICON, a 5-star luxury harbour-view hotel and eco-conscious design hub for world-class travellers. With a rooftop pool, luxury spa, HOTEL ICON is prominently located in Tsim Sha Tsui, steps away from Hong Kong’s tourist attractions and Mong Kok’s tourist splendours.
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