If you haven’t been to Asia much then Nan Lian Garden is definitely worth a visit. It took me about 5 years before I decided to visit here and it was actually alright but going back a second time during the weekend it’s crowded and not so nice. The first time I went to Nan Lian Garden was on a weekday and I arrived around 8:30. There were very people around and I was quite surprised but how nice it was.
Don’t get too excited, it’s nothing compared to the best Japanese Gardens, but still, it’s a nice, quiet and peaceful (when there’s no tourists here) and if you haven’t seen much of Asia, you’ll probably appreciate this much more. Nan Lian Garden is situated in Diamond Hill, you can park at the nearby Plaza Hollywood Shopping Mall, or get there via the MTR (Diamond Hill station) or by bus. Most taxi drivers will know it. The contrast of the traditional Chinese Garden against the apartment blocks and hills of the surrounding area is quite nice. There’s a nice pond, and in all you could probably spend an hour or two walking around the actual gardens.
It’s not really for kids, as usual the fun police are out in full force and there’s no doing anything that would even remotely be related to having fun. I suppose that’s fair enough as having kids scootering and people yelling and screaming here would kind of ruin it. When you’re done taking photos here, walk up the stairs to Chi Lin Nunnery.
This is always considered a different attraction on most things to do in Hong Kong lists but they’re basically connected. Chi Lin Nunnery has some nice traditional wooden architecture, some lotus ponds and inside there’s some temple halls. It’s actually quite nice, not something I’d go to regularly, but if you’re in Hong Kong and want to see something traditional or want somewhere to take friends or family when they’re in town, this is actually worth a visit.
Because it’s so highly rated, it can get busy weekends. We once went early Sunday morning and it wasn’t too bad, but by the time we left it was starting to get packed and I can see this would an absolute nightmare when there’s 5 bus loads of tourists here. There’s not much to eat at either Nan Lian Garden or Chi Lun Nunnery with the exception of a vegetarian restaurant, so bring some snacks. Afterwards you can walk across to the Plaza Hollywood mall and there’s some more food options there. Crap shopping there so don’t plan on doing any there.
Overall I’d say Nan Lian Garden is worth a visit but you can probably do the whole thing in an hour or 2 at the most, unless you plan on doing some prayers or really take your time. There’s not a whole lot to do nearby and it’s quite a way if you’re staying or living on HK Island. Having said that, I’ve been here a few times now and as usual, the key is to go when there are no crowds because the experience is totally different, especially at a place like this where you really need to have as few a people as possible to make it worthwhile.
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