An oasis of peace in the heart of Kowloon, this graceful, wooden Buddhist nunnery is the largest building in the world to be constructed using no nails only wooden dowels and brackets. It's a 33,000-square-meter complex whose architectural style dates back to the Tang Dynasty, although the buildings themselves were completed in 1998. At its heart is a courtyard with lotus-covered pools. Achieve inner peace in the four halls of the Celestial Kings, pay your respects to the beautiful statues of the Sakyamuni Buddha, Guanyin and the bodhisattvas (some made from gold), then treat yourself to a vegetarian meal in the dining hall on Sundays (open 11am-4pm).

Hong Kong's highest mountain (957m) is also called Big Misty Mountain because it's often shrouded in cloud so pick a clear day to visit for fabulous views. There's a car park and picnic area a couple hundred meters below the summit. From there, follow the access road to the weather station on the peak. It's a huge mountain, so you'll have no trouble finding a lonely spot. This is one of the few places where you might find frost before dawn on midwinter mornings, but we prefer the everyday magic at sunset. You may see people picking a variety of green tea, called mist or cloud tea, which grows high on the stunning mountainside.