Hong Kong lawmakers have suggested turning the southern part of Lantau into a resort town to attract visitors, or making the entire island a tourist attraction like Sentosa in Singapore. The recommendations came when plans for the South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor were outlined during a recent Legislative Council meeting.
The proposals in the South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor plan include building a pier and setting up adventure water sports at Cheung Sha, as well as constructing accommodation facilities for tourists in the area. Authorities also hope to build a barrier-free walkway connecting Upper and Lower Cheung Sha Beaches that will have a playground along the way. In addition, there are plans to install uphill chairlifts and adventure sports facilities on the Cheung Sha Hillside.
Authorities intend to create a heritage trail connecting Shek Pik, Shui Hau, Cheung Sha, and Pui O, making it an open-air museum of sorts for visitors to get an understanding of the cultural history of the Shek Pik District. Other plans include building walkways along the sandflats in Shui Hau and treetops of Pui O so that visitors can explore these natural wonders of South Lantau, and developing glamping sites in the area. Over the next two months, the Sustainable Lantau Office will ask the public for their views about the project.
Some lawmakers expressed concerns about the lack of parking spots in the area, as well as its narrow roads, and the need for a special permit to drive in South Lantau. Others, like Wendy Hong, suggested increasing the scale of the plans by integrating other attractions in Lantau — such as the Ngong Ping Village and the upcoming Airport City — with the proposed ones in the south to make Lantau one big tourist attraction, much like Sentosa Island in Singapore. However, lawmaker Michael Tien recommended that just the southern part of the island should be developed into a large resort town catering to water sports players.
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