Often abbreviated as TST, Tsim Sha Tsui is Kowloon's most vivid and bustling entertainment and shopping area, and one of Hong Kong's busiest districts.
It's a relatively compact area that stretches from the waterfront promenade along Victoria Harbor in the south, all the way to Austin Road in the north.
Although fairly small in size, Tsim Sha Tsui is chockfull with shopping and entertainment venues, as well as with tourist attractions... You can actually spend a couple of days here without being able to see everything...
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Most shopping, entertainment and tourism facilities can be found along Nathan Road and its smaller offshoots, while most of the large and modern shopping malls are located on the eastern and western fringes of Tsim Sha Tsui - on the reclaimed lands adjacent to the waterfront.
Nathan Road is Kowloon's main thoroughfare. Going in a south-north direction from Tsim Sha Tsui to Mong Kok, It is lined with shops, restaurants and tourists, and was known in the post-World War II years as the "Golden Mile", a name that is now rarely used. It starts on the southern part of Kowloon, on the junction with Salisbury Road, a few steps from Tsim sha Tsui's Seafront Promenade, and ends at its intersection with Boundary Street in the north (where the colony's border passed in the 19th century, before Britain leased the New Territories).
Here are some of Tsim Sha Tsui's best shopping venues :
♦ Harbor City is a huge shopping mall and entertainment complex, comprising four parts: Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel, Ocean Terminal, Ocean Centre (with 1980s retro decor), and the Gateway. The complex is located on the west side of Tsim Sha Tsui, along Canton Road, stretching from the Star Ferry Terminal in the south to China Hong Kong City in the north.
The mall boasts more than 700 shops that sell everything... From branded boutiques, such as Louis Vuitton, Salvatore Ferragamo, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, Polo, Ralph Lauren, Versace, Burberry and Hugo Boss, to prestigous department stores, such as Lane Crawford and supermarkets, like City Super. The mall also has two cinemas at both ends: the Grand Ocean and the Grand Gateway. The 3rd floor of Ocean Terminal was converted in the early 2000s into LCX, a collection of retailers targeted at the younger generation. Other than that, there is a great choice of restaurants, cafés and food outlets. Harbor City is open daily, from 10 am to 9 pm.
To get there: you can either take exit A-1 of MTR-Tsim sha Tsui (towards the mosque) and walk along Haiphong Road or take exit E towards Kowloon Hotel and proceed along Peking Road. It is also a short walking distance from the Star ferry Pier, next to the clock tower.
♦ Along Canton Road, outside Harbor City, there are quite a few fashion shops and boutiques, specializing in international brands.
♦ At the bottom of Canton Road, right opposite Star Ferry Pier, the impressive Victorian buildings of the former Marine Police Headquarters were beautifully converted into a stylish shopping and entertainment centre, called "1881 heritage" (after the year at which this historical compound was built). The centre is really worth a visit... if not for the swanky shops, then at least for the great photo ops (if you like architectural shots, go for it).
♦ Another popular shopping mall in Tsim Sha Tsui is New World Center, located on the waterfront next to the "Avenue of Stars". The mall's six floors house hundreds of shops, many of which specialize in fashion brands. There are also quite a few restaurants and cafés. New World Center is a short walking distance from the Star Ferry Pier (along Salisbury Road), as well as from MTR-Tsim Sha Tsui (you can either take exit E and walk along Nathan Road, down to the waterfront, or use the underground passage all the way to the mall - which is the better option). Open daily from 10 am to 10 pm.
♦ Those of you who want to buy export surpluses of international brands at a good price should visit Granville Road. There are plenty of reasonably priced boutiques along this street. When on Granville, don't miss the small Rise arcade, located in Rise Commercial Building, on Granville Circuit (a branch of Granville Road), where you can find an amazing variety of young-style fashion and accessories at a good price.
For good prices on perfumes and colognes, try SaSa, Bonjour, and Lung Shing Dispensary.
♦ The small streets on both sides of Nathan Road are packed with all sort of shops...
Cameron Road, Carnarvon Road, Mody Road and Kimberley Road are all worth visiting.
♦ A new branch of the lucrative Japanese department store, SOGO, is located on the waterfront, right next to the Space Museum. This mega-store is extremely popular among locals and tourists alike. Open daily from 10 am to 10 pm.
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A word of cautious from 'Metropolasia-Man' :
The brightly lit electronic shops along the lower end of Nathan Road in Tsim sha Tsui (and to a lesser extent in Jordan) are particularly infamous for cheating.
They will usually display a zillion signs of international manufacturers all over the front, including some tempting "tax free" and "duty free" stickers... (this is one of the best ways to "spot" them...)
They will process your credit card manually and will then tell you the product has to brought over from their "other shop"... As you are waiting for the product to be brought, the salesman will try to push you another product (which is supposedly "better" / "more adequate to your country" / "newer" or any other nonsense...). Once you agree to take the so called "better" product, the paper will be torn and a computerized credit-card terminal will suddenly appear (where on earth has it been all this time?). Obviously, the product they just convinced you to buy will be sold to you at a rip-off price !
Try to stick to reputable shops and don't pull your credit card out before you actually see the product and ensure that's what you wanted...
Another trick that some salesmen try is to unpack a product you didn't even ask for, and then to try and play on your guilt, as if you made them think you want to buy this piece...
* Do not hesitate to speak to the Consumers Counci of Hong Kong if you think you have been taken for a ride (phone: 2929 2222)
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You may also want to read about other shopping districts nearby...
Mong Kok
Sham Shui Po and Kowloon Tong
