Aberdeen Harbour

Aberdeen harbour is a sheltered channel between Hong Kong Island and Ap Lei Chau, used as a typhoon shelter and still packed with fishing vessels, working boats and the sampans that ferry people across. For most of the twentieth century a large community lived permanently on boats here, a way of life that has almost ended as families moved ashore, though a handful of vessels remain occupied and the fishing fleet still works. Short sampan rides run through the moorings from the promenade, generally negotiated on the spot. The Jumbo floating restaurant, the harbour's best-known landmark for decades, closed in 2020, was towed away in 2022 and sank at sea.

History

From the Ming dynasty, "Hong Kong" was the name of the village now called Aberdeen, and Heung Kong Tsuen, "Hong Kong village", on Ap Lei Chau appears on Ming-era maps; in the early 19th century foreigners who landed nearby took the village's name for the whole island, and it stuck. The town was later named after George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, British Foreign Secretary from 1841 to 1846, and its harbour long held a floating village of Tanka boat people, several dozen of whom still live on boats here (Wikipedia, Aberdeen, Hong Kong).

What to look for

• The typhoon shelter moorings - fishing boats packed in the channel.
• Sampan rides through the fleet - the short trips from the promenade.
• The fish market and promenade - the working waterfront at dawn.
• The gap where Jumbo stood - the floating restaurant towed away in 2022.

When to go

October to April for comfortable walking; early morning for the fish market and the working fleet. Two to three hours. Sampan operators are on the promenade and prices are negotiated.

Things to know

The boat-dwelling community is largely gone and what remains is a working harbour, not a living heritage display. Sampan prices are negotiated and tourists are quoted high. The water is dirty and the smell is strong on hot days.

Nearby

Ap Lei Chau is across the channel; Repulse Bay lies east.

Key facts