With the rising trends and consumer preferences for wellness and outdoors, on January 20 Hong Kong Tourism Board organised a virtual tour for travellers, bloggers and media from all over the world. The hour-long interactive virtual tour transported the viewers to Lai Chi Wo – an enchanting historic Hakka village that dates back some 300 years.

Lai Chi Wo is one of Hong Kong’s oldest, largest and best-preserved rural settlements. Flanked by the lush ‘fung shui’ wood and mangrove forest, it is a walled village of more than 200 picturesque hillside homes — auspiciously arranged in rows when built more than 300 years ago.

In 2020, the village won UNESCO’s Special Recognition for Sustainable Development award for promoting cultural heritage conservation. One can stroll along tree-shrouded Lai Chi Wo Nature Trail, home to many species of mammals and butterflies, and take selfies beside a dramatic mangrove forest and stunning coastal scenery.

The virtual event not only consisted of the tour but participants were also asked to try their hands at soil painting where they were guided by an expert. Activities like jig saw puzzles were also organised by HKTB to make the event interactive and interesting.

Hong Kong Tourism Board has recently launched the winter phase of its 2021/22 Great Outdoors Hong Kong campaign. It showcases how Hong Kong, a city renowned globally as a business hub, for its urban delights, its international acclaimed art scene, and the incredible dining options, holds one of the greatest surprise – a world of nature and tranquility – ranging from sandy beaches and rocky foreshores to open grasslands and mountain ranges, merely footsteps away from the city’s hustle and bustle.