• Private Tour
• Instantly Confirmed
• Carbon Neutral

Take a walk off the beaten track, away from the tourist crowds, and see the real side of Hong Kong. On this private tour, go beyond the classic route and explore Kowloon where you’ll experience a different Hong Kong, like a local with a local by your side!

Destination

Hong Kong

Category

City Highlight Tours

Duration

2.5 hours

Transport mode

Walking tour

Available languages

English, Italiano, 中文, Español

Included

• Private Guide
• All Withlocals Tours are Carbon Neutral

Excluded

• Entrance to attractions

What you can expect

Choose your local

Get to know these 7 passionate locals, each bringing unique perspectives and talents. Choose your favorite, check their availability, and book to create an unforgettable adventure tailored to you.

This is the plan

Check out the plan below to see what you'll get up to with your local host. Feel free to personalize this offer with the host of your choice.

1. Meeting point

   Meet at Shek Kip Mei MTR station exit C at the 7/11 supermarket entrance - Hong Kong to start your journey

   View on Maps

2. Itinerary

   This is what our experience could look like, but it’s not set in stone! Once you book, you can chat directly with your host to make small tweaks to suit your preferences.

3. Off the Beaten Track

   Done with the main highlights of Hong Kong? Check out Kowloon. Explore a lesser-known part of the city that will give you a more authentic feel of Hong Kong. Check out the JCCAC Art centre, Sham Shui Poh and more!

4. The Real Deal

   Let a local expert in the area you’ll visit show you their Hong Kong from a different perspective - away from the tourist traps. See street art, cultural hot spots, local vendors, hangout spots, and historical gems, and embrace the vibe!

5. Personalized Recommendations

   Want to explore more of the area after the tour? Your host is happy to recommend their favorite eateries and where to take a break while wandering in this vibrant area

6. Unique Plan

   Depending on your host, this tour will be experienced based on their knowledge, passion, and expertise. Pick a host that matches your interests and see their city through their eyes!

7. Make it yours

   Want to tweak the itinerary? Book directly & chat afterwards with your host to adjust highlights, skip stops, or make small changes to fit your preferences.

   Book risk-free: Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund.

   Need something special? Personalize your experience for more time, alternative locations or a completely tailored plan.

Flexible cancellation policy

• Feel confident booking

  Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund. Even up to 7 days before your experience, you’ll receive a refund, minus the service fee.

• Change of plans?

  Reschedule your experience to a date and time that works best for you.

• Loved by travelers worldwide

  Simple and flexible – your plans, your way.

Reviews from guests

Unknown

(About local Sum Pui)

9 March 2025

Sehr wertvolle Informationen gut und gezielt übermittelt. Sehr aufmerksam und nett auf unsere Wünsche gut eingegangen. Sehr empfehlenswert. Ein junger energischer gutgebildeter Guede

Susanna

(About local Matteo)

5 March 2025

The city tour with Matteo was extremely interesting and fun. Matteo showed us and told us unusual and amazing things. We enjoyed a tour of the city that was not banal and boring. Thanks Matteo!!Hong Kong from a different point of view!

Eric

(About local Sherman)

1 March 2025

Sherman was an amazing guide for our tour of Kowloon. We wanted to learn more about and visit neighborhoods outside of Hong Kong Island and the harbor, and couldn't have asked for a better guide for that. She grew up in Kowloon, so was able to not just share things about history, culture, and architecture, but also point out things from her childhood and share personal stories related to things we were learning. Aside from having great local knowledge, she was friendly, funny, and clearly really excited to share Hong Kong with us. She also gave us lots of good recommendations. I would 100% recommend anyone going to Hong Kong book a tour with her, and I'll definitely be looking to do more tours with her next time I'm in Hong Kong! Amazing local knowledge

John

(About local Angel)

9 February 2025

Angel was a warm and generous guide. Lots of local knowledge and tips to get the best out of HK. You will not be disappointed. See HK with a Native!

William

(About local Sum Pui)

2 February 2025

Sum Pui’s tour secrets of Kowloon promised to show us the othe, less glitzy side of Hong Kong, where ordinary people lived. Sun Pui is knowledgeable, energetic an devote to educating his guests on the complex social background of his hometown, of which he is justly proud. He met guided us from the Marriott lobby to the MTR to a Kowloon’s San Wai estate housing in Shek Kip Mei Estate Hong Kong built in 1953 after a fire destroyed the neighborhood of migrants from the mainland. It’s been completely redeveloped and looks almost new. These housing estates built by the Brits in the 50s and 60s, and now in the process of renovation for select low income HK residents and merchants . Nearby, another older complex is being renovated and sits empty behind bar wire, surrounded construction sheds, a few scraps of forgotten or discarded laundry clinging to its balconies. We then visited tht Tai Hang Estate, a w rise complex. Its markets are vibrant and stocked with delicious vegetables and even some live chickens, frogs and fish. There are play yards, sports courts interspersed with the residences, which are midrise apartment blocks whose balconies are draped with drying laundry. The apartments and public spaces are inviting and well maintained, and in the shops and restaurants everything is half the price in subsidized Kowloon than in the Admiralty. This subsidized enclave contrasts with its overcrowded, neighbor, where market rents are double for inferior flats, and the markets are more desperate: commerce trades in second hand shoes, obsolescent electronics, used power drills, it seems impossible, but the impoverished neighborhood seems safer than LA, or even Bangkok, and boasts dynamite noodle shops with Michelin street food accolades. The Catholic church is surprisingly prominent in Hong Kong despite its British Protestant influences and mainland Chinese influences. He pointed us to the Man Kei Card noodle shop where we enjoyed delicious noodles recommended by Michelin

christos🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Sum Pui)

30 January 2025

Thanks for taking me, despite Chinese New Year, to the " other" side of Hongkong. In this tour do not expect the "beautiful" nor the "rich" side of the city you will see the everday live of migrant wokers and other lower income people who have a significant role to play in the city. Thanks for this important insight. The unknown Hongkong

Henriette🇸🇬 Singapore

(About local Angel)

17 December 2024

We did 2 tours with Angel, a lovely local girl. She explained a lot in our foodtour and brought us to a very special teahouse which we never had found by ourselves. Also the fresh lifestock and foodmarket in the second tour was awesome. We can surely recommend Angel, we enjoyed every minute with her. A lovely Angel

Auriel 🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Sum Pui)

9 December 2024

I booked this tour pretty last minute and had no regrets. My partner and I had a great tour with Sum Pui who took us around Kowloon and Sham Shui Po. We learnt lots about public housing, got street food, shopped at electronic markets, spontaneously visited an art exhibit visit and had good dim sum! It was a leisure and casual tour. We could have visited these areas ourselves but having Sum Pui there meant we had someone to ask questions to and give us that extra insight we wouldn't know.Great experience!

Clare

(About local Angel)

3 December 2024

I gad a great time with Angel. She is very knowledgeable and had lots of interesting stories to tell. It’s definitely worth seeing how people in Hong Kong live, away from the glitz of Hong Kong Island.A different side to Hong Kong

dana🇷🇴 Romania

(About local Matteo)

28 November 2024

It was the perfect journey in the Hong Kong rain. It was perfect! Thank you Matteo! Amazing experience!

Niklas🇨🇭 Switzerland

(About local Sum Pui)

15 November 2024

we can only recommend the tour with Sum Pui. He is a very nice and funny guy and knows everything you want to know about Hong Kong and its history. book the "real taste of hongkong" tour if you wanna know more about the city then just the classic tourist sightseeings and see other places that show the rich history of Hong Kong.very interesting tour

Mary Ann

(About local Angel)

13 November 2024

Angel is a natural. She’s attentive and informative. The tour in the public housing history display was very well done and taught us a lot. She was professional and easy to chat with. She even followed up with restaurant recommendations based on what we had discussed. Pick Angel! We had 3 different guides while in Hong Kong and April was the best. Fabulous tour and tour guide

Kurt🇺🇸 United States

(About local Sum Pui)

11 November 2024

Ronnie went above and beyond to show me things only locals would know about and really treated me like a friend taking me through his favorite city. I had an absolutely amazing time! Definitely book him! Amazing guide!

tonilofink🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

6 November 2024

Me and my friend met Angel and knew from the beginning that we would like her. She was very nice, funny, and had a kind heart. We were interested in seeing how where the locals live, work, shopped, and restaurants they go to. She was very informative on all of the social classes. We went to the food market, the outdoor marketplaces in which she helped find what we wanted and get the best deals on things we bought. We had to purchase some personal items, so she took us to a store and helped us with our purchases. We were very interested in housing of the locals, and she explained about public housing in detail, very interesting. The tour came to an end way too soon. Angel took us to a restaurant that I believe has been in business since the 1950's. We met the owner; he helped us with our order. It was funny because when we asked if he was the boss, he said no, and pointed at his mother who was rolling spring rolls, I believe, and said, she is the boss. Before we left the restaurant he gave us a package of noodles. I would totally recommend Angel as a tour guide for this tour, Angel, you Rock!You Rock Angel

dm9000🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Angel)

1 October 2024

We were so lucky to have secured Angel for a walk and talk about 'hidden' Kowloon. She is quite amazing, what a wonderful knowledge of the area and an intuition that almost immediately knew what we wanted. Whether you want to find an Instagramable location, the best fishballs in Kowloon or Angels take on Hong Kong and her growing up experiences, then she's the guide for you. We found the tour really personalised, it's not prescriptive nor was Angel clock watching or hurrying us to move from one location to another. We saw the Kowloon we wanted to see and I'm sure Angel will guide you to the Kowloon you want to see, you only have to ask. Thank you Angel.Engaging and Informative

Paul🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Yin)

18 February 2024

Right from the start it was clear this was going to be no normal tour. We visited a housing area where real people live and real people go about their daily lives. We also learned about the history. We then took in back street markets where locals were shopping and engaging. Yin brought everything to life. A brilliant few hoursOff the beaten track

Stuart🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

27 January 2024

We were a group of 4 and signed up for the Off The Beaten Track Kowloon tour. We were happy we did as you got to see real life Hong Kong versus the big city glitz of HK Island. Angel was our guide and did a fabulous job taking us around providing historical commentary on all the relevant sites. We toured the markets, housing areas, a local museum, etc. About 2.5 hours in total. Just the right amount of time. Great job!!!Excellent Kowloon Walking Tour

Samm🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

24 January 2024

We had such a great experience with Angel! We had a long layover in Hong Kong and wanted to make the most of it and she certainly helped us do so. We began with a wonderful meal, in which she taught us all about the local food. She even tailored the tour to our interests, as we work with unhoused folks in the states and she spoke to this community in Hong Kong quite a bit. She was amazing and we highly recommend her! Angel was amazing!

sean🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Angel)

13 November 2023

Very interesting and fun mix of history and what’s happening now.

Allan🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Cosmo)

9 June 2023

Another excellent tour with Cosmo ! Such a nice guy ans so interesting and knowledgeable about this local area! Hard to describe but just fantastic. Thanks Cosmo! Real street life

Mike🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

30 June 2020

Angel is very knowledgeable about the area and made it an enjoyable experience for us all. Fun morning

Marieke🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Matteo)

14 November 2019

In a periode in which the city was in quite a turmoil , Matteo took us on a very enjoyable and interesting tour through parts of Kowloon. We enjoyed his stories and especially the the eggs and Snake soup. Real Kowloon experience

Davison🇹🇼 Taiwan, Province of China

(About local Angel)

5 September 2019

這次參加Angel的行程體驗非常棒，他會跟你分享許多有趣的故事與自己的經驗、看法。 你不會覺得你只是在參加一個行程，而是感受到你融入了當地，了解當地的大小事。 特別一提，Angel真的是個非常親切積極的人，在行程之前我每次跟他詢問問題都不用半小時就能得到回覆，而且會從你的角度跟你分享資訊。這是其他人都做不到的！親切、積極、即時回覆

Nicole🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Angel)

31 August 2019

Angel Made us feel welcome in Hongkong. She is easy to communicatie and it felt good riggr away. She showed us the way people in Hongkong live, eat and Work. We can recommand Angel to anyone who wants to Experience Hongkong Great time

Sarah🇸🇬 Singapore

(About local Yau Ning)

10 August 2019

Yau Ning was a fantastic guide I’m so glad I choose him. He’s witty & funny, his knowledge of HK was informative and interesting. He’s happy to talk about his family & his upbringing here, you get a true understanding of daily life in HK . He talked about the history of buildings, traditions, the ever changing shape of HK and what the future may entail regarding lost traditions and architecture. We strolled around for about 2 1/2h, through neighbourhoods stopping to look and talk about everything around us. I wouldn’t hesitated to do another tour with Yau 😀The real Hong Kong

Anthony🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Angel)

15 July 2019

Angel was fun, energetic and full of interesting family anecdotes about the area and local history. She easily adapted her style to older teenagers and her enthusiasm for sharing her local knowledge of Hong Kong gave us a great afternoon. We are working through her tips for further activities and places to visit. We would very happily go on another of her tours.Kowloon like a local - highly recommended

Chad🇺🇸 United States

(About local Matteo)

25 June 2019

Unfortunately Matteo injured himself just before we made it to Hong Kong which preventing him from being able to host us. But he still worked to find us and a replacement and when not successful with that worked to get us a refund. Along with that, he also provided us some tips on getting around Hong Kong in his absence. Sorry we could have Matteo take us around Kowloon, but he showed us that he still cared about our needs.Took Care of Us

Songyi🇸🇬 Singapore

(About local Matteo)

13 June 2019

He made the 2 hrs fun!Awesome

Esther🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Yau Ning)

30 April 2019

Yau Ning is a talented guide and even a better story teller. We were very happy to hear his personal stories about his life in Hong Kong. We can recommend Yau Ning!!!Good story teller

Roger🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Angel)

29 April 2019

We were lucky to book two tours with Angel . Lovely guide that showed us parts we otherwise would not have visited. Also a great photographer:) Hope to repay you with a tour in Alkmaar Roger and the girls Lovely guide

Isabelle

(About local Angel)

26 April 2019

The Heart of Hong Kong: Kowloon Like a Local

Carlton🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

23 April 2019

If you're going to take a tour in Hong Kong it should definitely be with Angel. She gives you a sense of the city's past and present without it feeling like a school lesson. Angel has great tips for restaurants, bars, and shops in all of Hong Kong. She gets you around Kowloon quickly and you get to see a lot in just a few hours. I’d highly recommend booking her for a tour if you can. She’s the best!Kowloon with Angel

Stephanie

(About local Angel)

19 April 2019

Angel was a fantastic guide! Very knowledgeable and taught me things I wouldn’t never learned or saw on my own! We also had a very nice lunch and great conversation. I would totally do this again and will recommend to others!Kowloon like a local

Kirsten

(About local Yau Ning)

14 April 2019

Yau Ning had so much wonderful knowledge of the history and local areas around Hong Kong. This was my favorite tour whilst in Hong Kong. Awesome tour of Kowloon

Vanessa

(About local Angel)

10 April 2019

We had a good time and she showed us many places a tourist wouldn‘t see without her. In the end she helped us to order a nice lunch and to find stuff we where looking for. thanksGood time with Angel

Thomas🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Matteo)

3 April 2019

The Heart of Hong Kong: Kowloon Like a Local

Sherrie🇨🇳 China

(About local Yau Ning)

12 February 2019

Yau Ning was born and brought up in Hong Kong and did his post secondary studies in Glasgow Scotland. Why do I mention this in the review? Because his depth of Hong Kong history and personal knowledge as a native Hong Kong local, iterated with impeccable English skills simply astounded me. Yau Ning shared his life growing up in Hong Kong with deep insight of British colonization. Ask him why his grandmother believes that North American women are giants? Why do the people of Hong Kong eat snakes? And for the first time I come to understand that British colonization has more positive results in Hong Kong than negative. We strolled through the streets of Kowloon where the stronger structures and more modern buildings dwarfed the old, poor, delapitated living units of struggling locals trying desperately to overcome the ever increasing rental hikes. Yau Ning gave fascinating information as to how the locals live and survive in the most expensive real-estate in the world. I insisted we treat ourselves to traditional Hong Kong sweets as the perfect ending to a memorable trip in Kowloon. I highly recommend a visit with Yau Ning when staying in Hong Kong. Thank you Yau Ning Simply unforgettable

Daniel🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Angel)

21 January 2019

Angel war einfach toll. Wir haben uns von Anfang wohl gefühlt und Sie hat uns alles super erklärt. Ohne Angel wären wir in diese Viertel wohl nicht gekommen. Sie ist auch noch auf unsere Wünsche eingegangen. Sie stellt sich sprachlich auch schnell auf unser Englisch ein und wir haben wirklich viel gelacht. Einfach spitze...Wir wären gerne noch länger mit Ihr unterwegs gewesen.Einfach überragend!So muss Withlocals sein

Britta

(About local Angel)

17 January 2019

Angel was the best guide I ever had. We saw a lot of things we didn’t expect. We saw some local places and not a standard tourism tour. Thank you so much, Angel. Cheers, Daniel & BrittaKowloon

Keller🇺🇸 United States

(About local Yau Ning)

10 January 2019

Yau Ning was very familiar with Kowloon and made us feel very comfortable walking around the streets at night. Not that there was any thing to be worried about as much as getting lost and making sure we saw all the cool evening activities. Thank you very much!We loved our intimate evening tour of Kowl

Emma🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Angel)

1 January 2019

The Kowloon Like A Local tour with angel was great fun! this tour surely shows a side of HK that you usually wouldnt find in your travel guides. Angel led us through the area, showing us amazing spots and sharing with us a lot of background knowledge. she also introduced us to some delicious hong kong treats. it truly was a lovely afternoon, thank you so much angel:)The Heart of Hong Kong: Kowloon Like a Local

Kevin🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Angel)

24 November 2018

I had a day and a half to kill in HK and wanted to see some of the sights but also see the "real" Hong Kong... I travel plenty and the inside of Western-style hotels and French-style restaurants look the same everywhere. Why come all this way and not see the good stuff? Booked - my first - withlocals tour with Angel and had no real idea what to expect.. I don't speak (or read) Cantonese so it's quite a daunting place to visit and I was really hoping I'd get to see a local perspective on someone's hometown. Very glad and happy to say I did - from an off-the-beaten track independent gallery with a great rooftop view to eating things I'd never dare order on my own (one of which I now know I won't need to order ever again...) to local treats like chocolate-filled egg muffin, to tours through market stalls and with explanations throughout of how what I'm seeing relates to the history and religion of the area, I genuinely couldn't have been happier with it. I was hoping withlocals would turn out to be something like visiting a friend's home city and being shown around by them... and it was. If you're wavering on "is it worth it? Should I book?" then the answer is a firm "yes!"Awesome tour, weird food - perfect!

David🇺🇸 United States

(About local Angel)

17 November 2018

We had a great tour with Angel. She walked us about parts of Kowloon we would of missed and gave us the back story on life there and its history. We recommend With Locals and highly recommend Angel as a tour guide.Saw part of Kowloon we would've missed

Adrian🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Angel)

17 November 2018

Angel was funny, informative and really good fun to tour with. She took us to lots of ‘off the track’ places and was a great source of knowledge. Definitely and 100% recommend. Great behind the tourist sights tour

Ewan🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Angel)

3 November 2018

We had a fabulous time with Angel. She was extremely warm and friendly and showed us a side of Hong Kong we would have otherwise never seen. An amazing experience, thank you so much! The Heart of Hong Kong : Kowloon like a local

Claudia🇨🇭 Switzerland

(About local Yau Ning)

28 October 2018

We took the "Kowloon like a local tour" with guide Yau Ning. It was absolutely great! We've been to Hong Kong several times before, but never to this particular neighbourhood, which is a bit off the tourist track. We saw a lot of new things and Yau Ning is a very knowledgeable guide. Highly recommend both the tour and Yau Ning as a guide. Great fun! Great tour, great guide!

Chan🇸🇬 Singapore

(About local Yau Ning)

7 September 2018

Yau Ning made it real. We roamed the alleys of Kowloon to soak in the history, laughters and sorrows of Hong Kongers, past and present. Thanks to him, I now know and love the place and its people even more. Two enthusiastic thumbs up!

Des🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Yau Ning)

27 August 2018

Such an intelligent young man who brought the history of Kowloon to life. Most informative and covered a lot in an interesting wayBeyond expectations

Kara🇳🇿 New Zealand

(About local Matteo)

22 August 2018

Matteo was a great guide. He picked us up at our hotel and made sure we got back to it safely. He had loads of stories to share about the city some historical, some general and a few funny ones. He took us on the MTR and showed us the different areas of Kowloon. We looked at buildings, ate weird food, looked in the markets and visited a temple and did lots of local type stuff that was not normal for our family. He was happy to change plans, thoughtful towards everyone in our group and knew where the toilets were!!! We stopped and enjoyed the things we were interested in and moved on when we weren’t interested. He was also good with our son who is 12 which we thought was excellent. Thanks for a great afternoon. Very informative and also entertaining. Doing it local

Cindy🇫🇷 France

(About local Yau Ning)

8 August 2018

We spend a nice moment with Yau Ning who knows very well H-K history and show us nice places there !Great moment