Visit

The shrine is located on the cusp of two emerging Kowloon neighbourhoods: Kowloon Bay and Kai Tak. Both are being transformed as part of a new, thriving Kowloon East business district. Once an enclave of local factory buildings, Kowloon Bay is enjoying a new lease of life as a commercial hub, and is now studded with gleaming office towers; Goldin Financial Global Centre is among the newest. Kai Tak, site of the old Hong Kong international airport, is undergoing redevelopment, with the construction of a cruise terminal (completed), sports stadiums, and residential and commercial buildings.

After visiting the Hong Kong Brahma Shrine, why not:

EAT There are four speciality restaurants on the lower floors of Goldin Financial Global Centre:

LE PAN (tel: 3188 2355) presents creative, contemporary French dining by award-winning chef Edward Voon in a refined setting.

Matsunichi (tel: 3188 2760) is a spacious Japanese restaurant with counters for teppanyaki, tempura, and sushi and sashimi.

Dynasty Garden (tel: 3188 2153) serves fine Cantonese cuisine, including lunchtime dim sum.

Congeodle (tel: 3188 2667) is a popular spot for local comfort food (rice, noodles, congee) at breakfast and lunch, and hot pot in the evening.

STROLL The shrine is situated in a quiet, green corner of Kowloon East. Behind it lies Kowloon Bay Park, with shady paths, and a playground and cycling track for children. On the other side of Kowloon Bay, a leisurely eight-minute walk away, is ZCB, Hong Kong’s first zero carbon building, set within a landscaped area with native woodland. A small café in the park offers outdoor grazing.

SHOP Clad in red and towering over ZCB is MegaBox which offers nine floors of boutiques, from fashion and sportswear to homeware, as well as restaurants, a cinema, an ice rink and an indoor golf simulator.

Closer by, and painted shades of yellow, KITEC (Kowloon Bay International Trade & Exhibition Centre) houses E-Max, where outlet shops of well-known brands occupy the ground floor. Other attractions here are a cinema and an indoor trampoline park.

Kowloon Bay’s third cinema is at Telford Plaza, a sprawling mall packed with standard, mass-market shops adjacent to the MTR station. Run by the fourth-generation founders of Hong Kong’s first hand-painted porcelain factory, Yuet Tung China Works is a hidden gem in the old industrial area in front of Telford Gardens. Watch staff decorate china crafted in the colourful Guangcai tradition.

STAY Kowloon Bay’s first hotel opened in April 2017, just a few minutes walk from the shrine. Camlux features 185 comfy rooms in a converted factory building.

SIGHTSEE The Hong Kong Brahma shrine is not the only temple in the district. While you are in Kowloon East, you may wish to visit Lei Yue Mun, a scenic fishing village to the east, with seafood markets and restaurants, a wishing tree, a lighthouse and a temple dedicated to Tin Hau, the Chinese goddess of the sea (also called Ma Tsu).

Diamond Hill, inland to the northwest, is home to the Chi Lin Nunnery, a Buddhist temple complex rebuilt in the 1990s, and the adjacent Nan Lian Garden with its rock and water features. Both are charming examples of Tang Dynasty-style architecture. A vegetarian restaurant in the garden is popular with locals and tourists alike.

Just one MTR stop to the west of Diamond Hill is Wong Tai Sin, where a large Taoist temple is framed by high-rise public housing. ‘Great Immortal’ Wong is a Taoist deity revered for his healing powers. Visitors flock here, especially during festivals, to have their fortunes told.