“Home to the world”
Nowadays, there are countless ways to stay in Hong Kong inexpensively, but 30 years ago this huge complex of five connected buildings was the first choice for backpackers and travellers on a budget. The unlucky ones got a tiny double room with a shower-toilet, and a window opening on to an air shaft, where cockroaches and other unwelcome creatures flitted across the walls in the dim light. As you can gather from travellers’ reports, conditions in most guesthouses – but by no means in all of them – have now improved substantially.
Built in the 1960s as luxury flats, the 17-storey Chungking Mansions today look like a relic from another time. In the eyes of many older Hong Kong citizens it even bears some resemblance to the notorious Kowloon Walled City. That the building has changed so little over time is related to the large number of owners who have to agree before major changes can take place. Some 100 guesthouses are located in Chungking Mansions, most of them now firmly in Indian or Pakistani hands, and they accommodate around 4,000 guests each night.
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Address 36-44 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui | Public Transport Buses 1 or 2 from the Star Ferry Pier, MTR Tsuen Wan Line (red), Tsim Sha Tsui Station, Exit E | Tip Right next door is the Mirador Mansion, which dates from a similar time, and is also worth a visit.
For decades, Chungking Mansions was the base of the majority of African traders who bought cheap copies of mobile phones from manufacturers in Shenzhen in order to export them to Africa - a business that nowadays is hardly worthwhile since genuine smartphones have become affordable.
To polish up their image, in 2005 the owners’ association threw out prostitutes and drug dealers, of which there were quite a few. In recent years almost the entire electrical installation and the lifts have been renewed and for safety reasons more than 400 surveillance cameras were installed.
Those who do not stay here can explore the lower two floors, where shops sell everything from electronics to food and watches, and a multitude of good authentic Indian restaurants, and various foreign exchange offices.