From the fascinating marvel that is Singapore to the rustic charm of Kuala Lumpur, Asia is blessed with many magnificent cities that are all beautiful in their own right. However, if there were a showdown requiring a winner for the tag of the continent’s best, it’s hard to find any that would hold a candle to Hong Kong. It’s the all-round vacation and entrepreneurial city, affording several holiday pleasures and a thriving market, perfect for investment. Today, we cast a closer look at the city of skyscrapers as we unravel why it is worthy of such a title. Take a look:
1) It has the most number of skyscrapers in the world
Hong Kong’s cityscape is like a collection of trees in the Amazon. Only instead of trees, there is a dense forest of high-rises, towering structures, and sky-piercing buildings clinging to almost every part of the island. While many other countries look to science fiction for a city of glowing lights disappearing into the night sky, the future is already here in a town spoilt with architectural modernity. It outrightly holds the title of the city with the most skyscrapers not only in Asia but the world at large. With 355 completed buildings each amassing elevations of more than 150 meters, it outranks its closest rival, New York, which takes runners up with 75 fewer structures.
2) A vast tropical paradise with one of the best country park proportions on the planet
Hong Kong is like an intriguing coin with two wonderfully contrasting halves. On one side is this lively cosmopolitan city that seems straight out of aMatrixmovie while on the other is a tropical paradise of country parks looking over dreamy coastal waters. With 40% of the landscape reserved for nature, you’ll be hard placed to find anywhere else in the world which such generous proportions of untouched lands.
3) A cashless lifestyle unlike anywhere else
Do you even need a wallet in Hong Kong at a time when the Octopus card has effectively overtaken money as the preferred form of payment? Be it a therapeutic Hong Kong massage, a tasty meal at your favorite fast food joint, or grocery shopping; there’s seemingly nothing you can’t do with an Octopus card. These cards ensure transactions are solely cashless and convenient, availing bracelet-fitting attachments no larger than a SIM card. Talk about living in the future!
4) The most sophisticated transport system known to man
Hong Kong is a public transit utopia! From colorful double-decker busses to a comprehensive rail system not forgetting a vast network of ferries and tramways, public transportation is a tourist delight of its own. A ride aboard these artistic vessels, which offer the most picturesque sceneries, ranks highly on the bucket list of many sightseers.
The numbers say it all too!
Did you know that Hong Kong is the most visited city in Asia? Well, according to an August poll that compiled a top ten list from a pool of dozens, it is, and by a country mile. The city receives the lion’s share of touring traffic in the continent, having amassed a tally just shy of 28,000 million people, which was seven million more than runners-up Bangkok and 11 million more than third-placed Singapore. Hong Kong is, without a doubt, the best city in Asia, and the statistics attest to that being the case.