Moving to Sth Lantau - Cheung Sha / Tung Fuk - a good idea?

hello there


We (me, my partner and our little daughter who will be 18 months by then) are moving to HongKong in August. Actually, my boyfriend already started working there and is able to go house hunting for us.


Since he is working for Cathay (no pilot, in IT) we quite definitely are going to move to Lantau. We had a look at DB and would consider it, but it wasn´t our kind of place. To many buildings, to planned. We would prefer something greener, more quiet, as long as there are the basics covered.


Now we were thinking of moving somewhere along South Lantau Road. (Cheung Sha, Tung Fuk, not necessarily Mui Wo). Since I didn´t find anything on the forums yet (most posts were more than a couple of years old) I was hoping someone here could help out ;)


Here are my questions:


- Is it a good place to live with a little child ie are there any playgroups (one would be enough ;) ) , playgrounds, a hospital nearby? Are there a a few families with smaller children my daughter could play with?


- Is there some kind of community live or would it mean to be really living "far away" from urban life on your own? (I´m exaggerating but still, how lonely does it get?)


- How is it with shopping groceries, are there any supermarkets in Mui Wo?


- I could´t find anything about the road permits which isn´t older than 2 years. I guess we would get a car, could we drive to Tung Chung with a normal permit? Is the road very dangerous or is it ok?


- Is it very bad with mosquitoes and snakes?


- Last but not least, is there any surf in the area?


Thanks soooo much for any comment, I hope there is someone here who actually lives there or has a friend there or some other kind of insider knowledge ;)


cheers

Teresa

I only know a little about South Lantau but here goes.


- For a child it is fine. There are playgrounds, but of course it depends where exactly you will live. I don't know about hospitals on Lantau but HK is a small place so you're never THAT far from anything. In a dire medical emergency there is helicopter service.

- There WILL be some kind of community, but it depends on the village or town if that community is your cup of tea. Villages have their own quirks depending on which one. You will be living "far away" for HK, but as mentioned HK is a small place. It's not like living 5 hours drive from anywhere in Montana. Even the furthest places on South Lantau are only about ½ hour from Tung Chung and ½ hour from Mui Wo, meaning Central is only an hour away. That's a shorter commute than a lot of people in London and NY have.

- Mui Wo has at least one supermarket. The road is twisty like most in HK but I would not call it dangerous. Well maintained and plenty wide enough.

- As I understand it, you can get a permit with proof of address on South Lantau.

- Mosquitoes and snakes are all over HK except for the most urbanized areas. You're not hovering in constant danger from snakes. They tend to avoid people. I hike almost every day in the woods and I've only seen 5-6 snakes in over two years. Mosquitoes are mostly a problem at night but manageable.

- Don't know about surf.

totally off topic, but something you should consider, is that commonlaw relationships are not recognized by Immigration here, so unless you have a visa allowing you to stay beyond the typical duration of a visitor visa, you won't be living here legally (your boyfrind will have an Employment Visa so he's okay...not sure if a child in a commonlaw rel. qualifies as a dependent under HK law...).


Easiest thing is to get married and come as a dependent...


Pui O has some surf...see the thread about HK's best beaches

I've been living in Tong Fuk for the last eight years - it is a lovely place to be, away from the pollution and hustle and bustle of Hong Kong...but thinking of renting my place out now as I'm getting a bit tired of the commute to work.


In terms of playgroups, I think there are some in Mui Wo, which is only twenty minutes on the bus away, and there is a hospital there too. If it's something serious, they will usually helicopter you over to Chai Wan hospital - this happened to me last month after the ambulance journey to Mui Wo.


Mui Wo and Tung Chung have supermarkets, but as previously mentioned, probably Tung Chung is more westernised. The roads to both these places are really quite good compared to how they were when I first arrived - then they were only single lane, but now they are fine. Nothing to moan about really. You can get a permit to use these, which is simple enough to acquire fro the Transport Department.


Where my place is, I am right on the road, so I hardly ever see snakes...in fact, I have only ever seen their skin once it has been shed. I believe that friends who live further back have seen snakes, which can occasionally be quite large. They are more of a threat to wild animals than people I hear. Mosquitoes? Not a problem either, unless you are pretty far back. Though that said, I have had a nightmare with a sneaky one that's been troubling us at night!


Surf isn't too bad at times in the village - there is also Pui O, and between the two, is a new watersports centre called Palm Beach...


Hope that helps! :)

Been there a while I think - I don't remember much about the ambulance journey, but there was an A & E dept, and they had enough facilities to give me a drip and adrenalin (allergic reaction made my airways collapse) before sending me in a helicopter to Chai Wan for full chest x-rays etc...

Googling reveals an outpatient clinic in Mui Wo, not a full hospital.

I think you may be right. It did seem small.

There are two supermarkets in Mui Wo.

There are plenty of playgroups (google OWLS in Mui Wo) and opportunities to socialize for a little kid.

Thanks very much everyone, that was very helpful so far!

Re the visa issue, we are both covered and the child is a dependent on his visa. I´m on a working holiday for now.


So it actually sounds like something we are looking for. Everything covered and Tung Chung isn´t to far away to go shopping once or twice a week.


If there isn´t a hospital on Lantau in general, that means other places wouldn´t have one either (DB etc) and as long as they helicopter you over like Hunby said, that´s fine.


I didn´t find much re OWLS becaue lantaulink.com is down but it seems like a kindergarten?


thanks everyone!

I would probably say Mui Wo is the better of your options if you don't want a minucured place like DB, I would say the two supermarkets there are 'westernised enough', I come from Europe and have never had a problem, communicating.

There is a bus station there served by what seems a lot of buses to different places, the nearest MTR would be Tung Chung, which also has a really good range of shops. There is a direct ferry service to Central, and a small ferry to DB, and I think to Peng chau as well.

As other posts have said there are plenty of play groups, don't know about other schools, most property is low rise, so no worries about heights with your children.

There is quite a good bar there near ferry pier, also Turkish restaurant-rustic outside but the best food-- yummy, also Italian style,and of course Chinese.

Mui Wo has a lovely beach, and although I live in Db I love to go to Mui Wo, such a friendly nice little place, and of course all the local people are lovely here in HK and its islands.

NO hospitals on Lantau, but I think the Gov. are thinking of building one somewhere on the Island, there was an artical about 4 weeks ago in the SCMP.

Most Doctors surgeries can deal with any emergancy until ambulance or helicoptor arrives.

Snakes, I have seen a few, mostly if you stamp your feet/make a noise they slide off and don't bother you, but if hiking in the hills i would take a little more care!

You will love it out here...moving to lantau was the best move we made!

You can find some more information on lantau chat http://www.lantauchat.com/


There are plenty of playgroups out here as alot of us have littlies. You could start with the drop-in playgroup at the church in Mui Wo (mon and fri 9-11am) OWLS also have a drop in playgroup and kindy which is great...no website yet but you could call them 2984 0006 for more info.


There is as much 'community' here as you want i.e if you like to keep to yourself that is ok or if you like to meet people and need to pop over for a cup of sugar there are plenty of lovely people here and plenty of support. And you aren't 'far away' - you can still pop into Central or anywhere else!


There are Wellcome and PnS in Mui Wo - they have definitely become more westernised since I've been here. I pretty much do all my shopping there or go to Taste at Tung Chung (15 mins away the new road is brilliant - not too twisty and very safe - you can get your permit when you get an address here http://www.td.gov.hk/en/public_services/licences_and_permits/lantau_closed_road_permit/index.html!!). Meat market delivers or there are plenty of other places for meat too.


If you need an ambulance, they will take you either to the clinic in Mui Wo (and yes, you can be airlifted to HK) or Princess Margaret. I use the Drs at the airport (and when I had to take my son to hospital, hopped onto the airport express and went to Canossa) There is also a Quality Health Care at Tung Chung.


We live on the edge of the village, so I have seen a snake once but they will disappear once they sense anyone near by - I agree, if you are out hiking, I would take a little more care. Mossies - it depends where you are but you will need spray if you are outdoors at dusk/night...


Surf - after a typhoon, lots gets their boards and head out for a surf!! (otherwise, the beaches are very calm!)


If you need to know anything else, please send me a message!

Thanks so much, we pretty much have decided to move there now, all your comments have been very helpful. TTD, I will take you up on that offer, I´m sure I will have a few more questions in the future. cheers, Teresa

Hi Guys,


I've found a house in the Cheung Sha are (Leyburn Villas), was just wondering about some basic essentials for food shopping, since we wont have transport (car) as soon as we are there, any comments please...thank