For tourists, Hong Kong Wetland Park is too far away to make it a worthwhile visit. Even if it was closer, I’d think twice before heading out here. It’s supposed to be ecotourism spot where the Hong Kong Tourism Board states ” is home to an impressive cast of wildlife, including birds, butterflies, dragonflies, amphibians, reptiles and fish. Ands this is probably one of the reasons why the reviews of Hong Kong Wetland Park aren’t that great.
It’s far from having an impressive cast of wildlife. Even the main attraction, the birds, are few and are between and you’re going to be disappointed if you head all the way out there expecting to find any number of animals. I’ve been out here three times now and have no intention of going again. I guess it’s ok walking around the place, it’s not too crowded out on the actual wetlands and there’s some ok walks but not worth driving 45 minutes to. If you take public transport it’s going to take you longer than that.
Probably the best thing at Hong Kong Wetland Park is the Mangrove Boardwalk where you can find hundreds of mudskippers. Other than that, I think we’ve only ever seen a couple of turtles and some fish. There’s a butterfly garden, but when you mention butterfly garden it usually conjures up a place with a shitload of butterflies flying all around you. Here, it’s basically not better than any other place in Hong Kong with a bit of greenery. Honestly I’ve seen more butterflies walking around the Peak.
I’ve seen bird watchers out here but I’ve never ever seen anything more than a few popular local birds that again, you can see at a lot of other places in Hong Kong. Probably worst ting about Hong Kong Wetland Park is the food. The cafeteria serves up the equivalent of pig slop. Ordered some chicken wings and french fries, which, let’s be honest, only the worst of worst cooks can bugger up. They would be probably amongst the worst chicken wings and french fries I’ve tried anywhere in the world.
The thing about Hong Kong Wetland Park, is it doesn’t really deliver on the two things most people go there for – which are the birds and animals, and to get away from the city and smog. Because it’s closer to China, I’d say the pollution, haze and smog here are actually worse than being in Central or TST. On the plus side, getting in is easy, it’s cheap and there’s no lines when it first opens. There’s a car park there but its got very limited spaces so you better make sure you get there before it opens if you want to park nearby.
Overall, and in conclusion, as a tourist, don’t waste your time going out to Hong Kong Wetland Park. If you want some space there’s lots of better places to go and if you want to see animals, there’s also better places to go that are much closer. If you live in Hong Kong, it’s probably worth going to check out once, you might think it’s alright and if you catch it on a relatively clear day with some nice weather, it can be pleasant out there. But trust me, you’re not going to be that impressed.
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