Recreational and Sports Facilities

The sports facilities and other amenities in Hong Kong’s 18 districts comprise 41 gazetted beaches, 43 swimming pools, two outdoor stadia (Hong Kong Stadium and Mong Kok Stadium), 45 natural turf soccer pitches, 33 artificial turf soccer pitches, 230 hard-surface soccer pitches, two hockey pitches, one rugby pitch, 95 sports centres, 295 squash courts, 25 sports grounds, 256 tennis courts, four golf driving ranges, five water sports centres, four holiday camps, 26 major parks, and 699 children’s playgrounds. These leisure facilities cover a total area of 2 278 hectares.

The Tin Yip Road Artificial Sand Court in Tin Shui Wai, the first multi-purpose sand court in Yuen Long District, opened to the public on October 8, 2014. Occupying an area of more than 2 700 square metres, the Tin Yip Road Artificial Sand Court is suitable for beach volleyball and beach handball trainings and competitions. It also provides facilities such as a spectator stand and shower rooms.

Located adjacent to the Tin Yip Road Artificial Sand Court, Tin Yip Road Park was opened on October 23, 2014. These two venues are the latest recreational and sports facilities provided by LCSD in the district. The Tin Yip Road Park has a total area of more than 25 000 square metres. In addition to providing the first large-scale artificial turf pitch in Yuen Long District, the park also offers a jogging trail and a landscape terrace surrounded by trees. Various energy-saving features such as solar-powered lighting, a solar hot water system and a rainwater recycling system for plant irrigation have also been adopted, helping create a green environment.

Kai Tak Runway Park Phase I, covering an area of around 2.82 hectares, is situated at the tip of the former airport runway. The park provides a waterfront promenade, a large lawn and extensive soft landscape plantings. Members of the public can take a relaxing walk along the pedestrian walkway, and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Lei Yue Mun and Kwun Tong waterfronts. The park was opened to the public in April 2014.

Parks

LCSD manages 1 554 parks and gardens of different sizes, including the following major parks:

Hong Kong Park

Hong Kong Park, covering 8.16 hectares, was opened in May 1991 on the former Victoria Barracks site. Major attractions include a conservatory, an aviary, a squash centre, a sports centre, a children’s playground, a vantage point, a restaurant, and Olympic Square.

The aviary, simulating a tropical rainforest, is home to around 600 birds of 70 different species. Several of these species bred successfully during the year, specifically the Bali Myna, Java Sparrow, Yellow-faced Myna and Green Imperial Pigeon. The conservatory comprises a Display Plant House, a Dry Plant House and a Humid Plant House, all of which have environmental controls that simulate different climatic conditions for plants from arid and tropical regions. An Exhibition on Aquatic Plants was held in the Display Plant House from July to September 2014, at which some 50 species of aquatic plants were displayed, including species such as Indian Lotus, Common Duckweed, and Common Reed.

Victoria Park

Victoria Park, first opened in October 1957, is one of the most popular parks in Hong Kong. An attractive venue for sports and leisure activities, the 19.3-hectare park is also a popular spot for community events that draw hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, such as the annual Lunar New Year Fair, the Hong Kong Flower Show, and the Urban Mid-Autumn Lantern Carnival.

Kowloon Park

The 13.3-hectare Kowloon Park, which served as a military camp during the 1860s, was converted into an urban park in 1970. Redeveloped by the former Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club, the park took its present shape in 1989. Located in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui, it is the largest park in Kowloon and provides an array of indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, including a hard-surface soccer pitch, a sports centre and a swimming pool complex.

Occupying an area of around three hectares, the Kowloon Park Swimming Pool can hold up to 1 469 swimmers. Average annual use over the past three years has exceeded 906 000 users. One of the best-equipped swimming pools in Hong Kong, it serves as a major training and competition venue for many international aquatic events.

The park also has a number of attractive gardens and walks. The Garden of Life was unveiled in November 2011 in acknowledgement of the generosity of organ donors and their families.

The Sculpture Walk features permanent and temporary displays by both local and overseas artists, including the Concept of Newton, a permanent sculpture by Eduardo Paolozzi. A 240-metre tree walk introduces 35 of Hong Kong’s most common flowering tree species.

Another significant attraction is the landscaped bird lake and aviary, with its flock of more than 100 flamingos and many other bird species.

The park hosts a number of major events throughout the year, including Kung Fu Corner and the Arts Fun Fair, held on Sundays and/or public holidays. Regular morning birdwatching activities are organised to introduce the public to common bird species in the park. District-wide community events such as carnivals, outdoor exhibitions and entertainment events are regularly held in the piazza, attracting hundreds of thousands of locals and tourists over the year.

The Avenue of Comic Stars was opened in 2012. Organised by Hong Kong Comics & Animation Federation Limited and set to remain in place for three years, the Avenue of Comic Stars aims to promote and publicise Hong Kong’s comics industry to the world. Its goals are to consolidate the status and image of Hong Kong comics, to recognise the outstanding achievements of Hong Kong cartoonists, and in the process to become a significant tourist attraction.

Tai Po Waterfront Park

The 22-hectare Tai Po Waterfront Park is the largest park managed by LCSD. Its 32-metre Spiral Lookout Tower offers visitors a panoramic view of Tolo Harbour and the surroundings. Other facilities include a 1 000-metre promenade, an insect house, an amphitheatre, a central water feature, a sheltered viewing terrace, children’s play areas, bowling greens, a gateball court, and a kite-flying area. The park also has a number of themed gardens, including a Floral Display Garden, a Scented Garden, a Malvaceae Garden, a Western Garden, an Ecological Garden, a Palm Garden, a Herb Garden, a Fig Garden and a Camellia Garden.

Tuen Mun Park

Tuen Mun Park was the first major park in the New Territories to provide a wide range of facilities. Phases I, II and III opened to the public in 1985, 1988 and 1991 respectively.

Built on reclaimed land, this 12.5-hectare park holds more than 2 000 trees and 120 000 shrubs of various species. The one-hectare artificial lake is a popular spot, as is the Reptile House, which attracted 370 060 visitors in 2014-15, including 37 740 group visitors.

Other facilities include a water cascade, a model boat pool, an amphitheatre, a roller-skating rink, three children’s playgrounds, a fast food kiosk, a conservation corner, a sitting-out area for the elderly, four pebble walking trails, pavilions, and a multi-game area.

Tamar Park

Tamar Park, adjacent to the new Central Government Offices and the Legislative Council Complex, covers an area of around 1.76 hectares. The park has been opening to the public in phases since October 2011. It includes a landscaped garden, water features, a floating platform, an amphitheatre, Tamar Corner, and Tamar Café. Its spacious green lawns provide valuable open space and broad views of Victoria Harbour.

Pet Gardens

LCSD has responded to the increase in the number of dog owners in Hong Kong by opening more pet gardens. At present, 38 of its leisure venues have pet gardens, and the department is continuing to identify suitable sites for building more, in consultation with District Councils (DCs).

In 2014-15, four new pet gardens were opened to the public; they are Lok Man Road Pet Garden, Fu Hong Street Pet Garden, Po Kong Village Road/Shung Wah Street Sitting-out Area, and Lam Tei Pet Garden.

Beaches and Swimming Pools

Hong Kong people made more than 12.27 million visits to beaches and 13.10 million visits to public swimming pools managed by the department in 2014-15.

To promote water sports safety, the department co-organised a series of campaigns and activities during the year in collaboration with the Hong Kong Life Saving Society and other relevant government departments.

The department also organised a swimming pool cleaning campaign for children and their parents.

Water Sports Centres and Holiday Camps

LCSD manages five water sports centres (Chong Hing, Stanley Main Beach, St Stephen’s Beach, Tai Mei Tuk and Wong Shek) and four holiday camps (the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village, the Sai Kung Outdoor Recreation Centre, the Tso Kung Tam Outdoor Recreation Centre, and Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village). During the year, 120 000 people participated in programmes at the water sports centres, while 509 804 enjoyed the facilities at the holiday camps. The department also organises evening camps so that people can participate after office hours; a total of 36 113 people took part in these during 2014-15.

Stadia

Hong Kong Stadium, with a capacity of 40 000, is a major venue for sports and community events. During the year 18 events were held there, attracting 229 000 spectators. Major events included an invitation football match between Kitchee and Paris Saint-Germain, an HKFA Centennial Celebration Match between Hong Kong and Argentina, and the famous Hong Kong Sevens rugby tournament. A range of other football and community events were also held there. Mong Kok Stadium, reopened in 2011 after redevelopment, has a seating capacity of 6 668, and serves as one of the major venues for the Hong Kong Premier League and as the training ground for the national football squad. A total of 75 events were held at the stadium in 2014-15, including the LFP World Challenge Asian Tour involving Valencia, Villarreal and BC Rangers, the Asian Football Confederation Cup involving Hong Kong, India, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, the 37th Guangdong-Hong Kong Cup, and two international friendly football matches, between Hong Kong and Guam and Hong Kong and Singapore. A total of 268 197 patrons visited the venue this year.

Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) at Land-based Venues

The department is assisting victims of cardiac arrest by introducing AEDs at all fee charging and non-fee charging land-based facilities with active sports facilities, and at all cultural venues. Public access will be available in emergencies. A total of 272 land-based venues, 87 aquatic venues and 67 cultural venues have now been provided with AEDs. We will review the provision of AEDs at leisure and cultural venues, and will consider installing more AEDs at other popular venues, with priority being given to waterfront promenades with high patronage.

Venue Management Initiatives and Improvements

Leisure Link

Launched in 2002, the Leisure Link System enables the public to book leisure facilities and enrol in community recreation and sports programmes either online, over the telephone, or at booking counters throughout the territory. In 2008 the department introduced self-service kiosks, which allow people to easily book leisure facilities or enrol in programmes using their Smart Identity Cards, and to pay by Octopus card. Currently 47 LCSD venues have self-service kiosks, with nine on Hong Kong Island, 15 in Kowloon, and 23 in the New Territories.

Counter services are provided at 158 recreational venues, at which the public can book facilities, enrol in recreational programmes and get help with queries regarding facilities and sports programmes.

In 2014-15, the department implemented a number of measures to tackle abuse of the booking system and ‘touting’ activities. These included measures to tighten the peak-time booking quota for individual users, and the introduction of a penalty system for hirers who fail to use their booked sessions, who abuse the concessionary arrangements or who transfer permits for use of the booked facilities without authorisation. Another initiative enabled Leisure Link Patrons to re-register by using their Hong Kong identity cards.

Work Improvement Teams

By the end of March 2015, the department had set up 293 Work Improvement Teams at district leisure venues, each tasked with carrying out self-initiated and departmental improvements. Given the success of this scheme, the department will continue to support the work of these teams at all major leisure venues, including holiday camps, water sports centres, swimming pools, beaches, sports centres, parks and playgrounds.

Free Use Scheme

The Free Use Scheme aims to maximise the use of recreational facilities by allowing eligible organisations free access to the main arenas and activity rooms of all sports centres, squash courts, hockey pitches, outdoor bowling greens and obstacle golf courses between opening and 5 pm on weekdays, except public holidays from September 1 to June 30 of the following year. Eligible organisations include schools, National Sports Associations, district sports associations and subvented non-governmental organisations.

Facilities for National Sports Associations

The department provides National Squad Training Centres for 38 associations, encouraging the use of LCSD facilities and providing a wide range of training opportunities for individual athletes and national squads.