Hong Kong, Hong Kong S.A.R., China + Add a trip

Hong Kong offers some great bars and clubs. This is a quick guide to the general scene, rather than a comprehensive review of any one venue.

The top-tier clubs in terms of prestige are Drop, Volar, and Dragon-I. All three are very hard to get into for the general crowd. They play mostly house or techno, some nights with special themes or DJ sets. Personally, I prefer Drop, the entrance to which is basically a run-down alleyway off a SoHo street—the only difference is, this run-down alleyway is blocked by a grim bouncer. Once you're in, you'll find a small but techno-banging club, packed to the max. Dragon-I is quite stylish in an Asian crossover kind of way, and also sports a restaurant. It's a bit larger and plays more house. Volar is perhaps the hardest to get into; it's located in a Lan Kwai Fong basement, and is darker, more techno-heavy, and draws a more local crowd.

In LKF you may also like:

– Hei Hei. Steep cover charge, hip-hop and R&B music, mostly local clientele.

– Club 9. Dramatic but annoying layout, hip-hop and R&B music.

– Kee Club. Small and members “only.”

– Armani Bar. That's right, it's a bar in the Armani building.

For a real treat when it comes to bars, visit Feather Boa on Staunton Street. It’s hard to find, since it has no proper entrance—however, it is a gem, exquisitely Baroque-styled and with a fragrance of chocolate-strawberry daiquiris.

Bars of the slicker kind include:

– Red. Outdoor patio in the IFC plaza, Central.

– Felix. Sky bar at the Peninsula hotel, Kowloon.

– Aqua. Japanese/Italian bar and restaurant, 1 Peking Road, Kowloon.

The night-time view from these, especially the latter, is not to be missed. The hard-to-find Knutsford Terrace in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, features some nice bars as well.

If you don't live in Central, note that the MTR generally stops around midnight to 12.30am. A taxi ride at a negotiated price from Central to, say, Clearwater Bay, is 120–150 HKD depending on the day of the week and your skills.