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Joshua Kwok

Amy Zhang is dressed in full sportswear, with sunglasses and a lightweight hiking backpack. She is one of many visiting Hong Kong’s Dragon’s Back following the social media craze in mainland China over “in-depth travels” in the city.
“The beautiful merging horizon and skyline make good photos for my friend circle on WeChat and RedNote,” said the 30-year-old education worker from Hunan province, referring to her networks on the Chinese social media platforms.
“I only wish for better toilets because of the queues, and clearer instructions for where to get water, as we didn’t know whether the water from the roadside tap was drinkable.”
It was an average Saturday morning when the Post visited the Dragon’s Back – one of Hong Kong’s top hiking routes that follows a ridge above Shek O and Big Wave Bay – last month.
About 100 people, many of them tourists, were seen hanging around the peak, with some trespassing into fenced-off areas near the cliff despite signs warning of “habitat restoration”, simply to grab a photo.
Queues were formed not only at bus stations but also outside toilets, at viewing points, large rocks and directional signs.
Hong Kong has rolled up its sleeves in diversifying its attractions to promote in-depth experiences, which include developing ecotourism, as its answer to a senior Beijing official’s call to treat every corner of the city as a potential spot that could entice visitors.
The push also prompted the ombudsman to launch a direct investigation last month into the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) and other departments over their management of country park facilities, citing reports such as a lack of toilets, disorganised transport and water filling station information, as well as damaged trails that were left in disrepair.
Hikers the Post talked to generally had mixed feelings about the need to step up ancillary facilities at the trails.
“The toilets are pungent, dirty and a cramped space filled with flies, though it is usable and acceptable because I don’t expect to be in my comfort zone when I go for a hike,” said Leong Kai-lok, a 27-year-old who was visiting the Dragon’s Back trail with his group of friends from Macau.
Hongkonger Moon So Wai-yuet, a 53-year-old experienced hiker, said the facilities were not a problem in country parks as she and her friends normally used the toilets before hiking.
What was an issue was the lack of education and publicity efforts for visitors on hiking etiquette and preparations, she said.
“Merely taking a photo for social media is far different from hiking,” said So, recalling her various encounters with underprepared tourists, even with those who didn’t hike for likes.
“One time, two young parched-looking foreign hikers asked us how far they were from the destination,” she said. “We were halfway there and didn’t have extra water to spare, so we could only give them some fruit to help them survive the rest of the trail.
“If the government promotes tourism in nature, they have the responsibility to educate everyone not to destroy nature.”

Brian Wong Shiu-hung, a member of Liber Research Community, an NGO focusing on development issues, warned that the proliferating number of tourists visiting ecologically sensitive areas, such as country parks, would overload their carrying capacity and incur irreversible damage due to trash building up and harm to vegetation from excessive use.
He cited the High Island Reservoir’s East Dam in Sai Kung that was flooded by thousands of mainland tourists during the Labour Day “golden week” holiday, forcing the government to boost public transport at the site and even deploy police officers to maintain order.
While authorities had removed rubbish bins in country parks in 2016 as part of the “Take Your Litter Home” public education campaign, Wong said the recent complaints about littering by tourists near the East Dam area highlighted the need for better supporting strategies and education.
“The lack of ancillary facilities is a small problem. It’s useless to point fingers at [authorities] when their resources are drained to deal with surging tourists, given their current manpower, all while the government lacks a systematic approach to ecotourism,” he said.
Wong also warned that the inconsistency of management principles in country parks by different departments could deal a fatal blow to the ecologically sensitive areas.
“Mass tourism contradicts ‘conservation over everything’, the principle [adopted] … when country parks were originally established,” he said.
He added that government departments operate under different principles, ecotourism projects were complex and involved more stakeholders and departments.
“The government sees a good-looking spot and turns it into an attraction, without much consideration,” Wong said.

Edwin Lau Che-feng, founder and executive director of The Green Earth, suggested that education was key to solving the issue and that the government should make use of every opportunity to promote sustainable trail hiking.
“The government could set up a water-filling station near toilets provided that basic infrastructure already existed there, and use the opportunity to tell hikers to bring their own bottle, or educate the public about the ‘leave no trace’ principle at vending machines,” Lau said.
“Ultimately, making the most of what we have, to educate the public that hiking benefits our mental wellness, and the scenic photo is just an extra reward.”
The government set aside HK$500 million (US$63.7 million) in 2021 for the AFCD’s second part of a programme to enhance hiking trails and their ancillary facilities, such as toilets, rain shelters, water-filling stations and information boards.
In response to a Post inquiry, the AFCD said it planned to build five new toilets and reconstruct six at popular spots in country parks, including Sai Kung East next to the Unesco Global Geopark that was swarmed by tourists and which were expected to be completed between 2026 and 2028.
It noted the challenge in providing water-filling stations in many parts of the country parks but said it would take the construction of toilets as an opportunity to provide such new facilities.
“The AFCD will also continue to enhance public awareness of nature conservation through education and publicity programmes, to encourage hikers to follow designated trails and avoid damaging the natural vegetation,” the department said.


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Mass tourism contradicts ‘conservation over everything’, the principle behind managing country parks, researcher says


Mass tourism contradicts ‘conservation over everything’, the principle behind managing country parks, researcher says.


Hong Kong environmental issues

Hong Kong wants an ecotourism boom, but can its parks handle more visitors?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Mass tourism contradicts ‘conservation over everything’, the principle behind managing country parks, researcher says

Mass tourism contradicts ‘conservation over everything’, the principle behind managing country parks, researcher says