Repulse Bay/Mid Levels/The American Club

[Molie]

Here they hang out at the iceskating rink, the cinema, the malls, the park and God knows where else.

[Mat]

OP if you really are a city family and enjoy tones of activities then I would suggest you skip Mid Levels and Repulse Bay

Mid Levels can be "isolated" in the sense that there are few activities for kids (no "malls per se", no sports ground...it's great for drinking and eating but not much more than that). Same with Repulse Bay (except the beach), nothing much to do.

In this case go for: Happy Valley/close to Causeway Bay (can hang out easily, shops, malls...and yet the beach is only a short ride away) or Kowloon Station (malls, ice skating ring - tad longer for the beach though but stunning views...)

[jaykay]

And as for summer weekends.....ugh!

Or race nights when it gets crazy in both directions.

[monster2003]

I am now more confused than ever, but I knew this was going to happen :-) Its a tough call for a city that I really don't know much about. I wish I didn't have to "fly blind", but then, everybody has to do that and hope for the best. I really appreciate all the input!

[carang]

you and your husband know your family best. the best thing to do is have hubby spend his "down" time scouting out the city. then he can help you cross places off of your list and add new places you may not have thought of or considered.

then, when you get here, spend a month in a serviced apartment, and you and he (along with the kids) can look at the new list that he has come up with.

that's the only way you are going to figure out what suits your family best.

[hello_there]

I actually don't find traffic to be that bad from the south side to Central, if you leave before 7:30 or after 9am in particular. It rarely takes me longer than 35 minutes in a car or 40-45 minutes on the bus. Repulse Bay is 5-10 minutes closer. I consider the living environment in Stanley well worth a few extra minutes in the car - low rise buildings, tree lined streets, plenty of nice quiet beaches, easy access to the country park, good facilities for young (a public indoor playroom, a couple of playgrounds one of which is right outside Starbucks, lots of formal and informal playgroups, a library witha nice children's section, etc) and older (beaches, water sports including kayaking, windsurfing, wake boarding, sailing and waterskiing, a smallish but nice shopping area, cafes and restaurants) kids.

If you have the opportunity, try to stay in a serviced apartment somewhere like Parkview for a month or two to get a feel for different areas. Lots of families at Parkview and it has amazing facilities. The location, although on top of a hill, is actually not far from most places you will likely frequent - Cental, Happy Valley, Causeway Bay, wan Chai, the Peak... Parkview isn't for everyone, but plenty of families love it.

Happy Valley is also nice, but I find that it can get a bit stuffy in the summer when the breeze isn't blowing in the right direction. Pokfulam is also worth looking at. Some beautiful apartments with amazing ocean views in your price range and great facilities. Also close to the country park for morning or weekend hikes.

If both your children are in school on HK island I would avoid the Kowloon side unless the schools have busses that go directy from your area to the school (most of the international schools do, but not all have them that go back after any after school activities). Otherwise their commute to school will involve a combination of MTR and busses and can easily take an hour each way unless you drive them or get a driver.

If you can narrow down what you are really looking for in a home perhaps we can provide some more specific advice - how important are on site facilities like tennis courts, resort style swimming pools and modern gyms to your family? Do you prefer living in a high rise or a smaller building/ house? How important is being able to walk everywhere to you and your family?

[Satay Sue]

Monster, definitely do not agree to take ANYTHING unless you or your husband has seen it in person and do try doing test commutes from Southside. I had a list of several places I thought I'd want to live in and got a shock how different they were when I saw them myself when I got here!

[Skyhook]

I agree with Hello_there for a family with teenage children, Stanley would be one of the best area's to live for a number of reasons. Stanley will suit a family that has teenage children, and the villas that are located on this side of the Island are of the largish variety, most places are going to be post 2000ft2, room sizes are western sized ie kids and master bedroom, quite a few have built in wardrobes and more conventionally sized bathroom/kitchens. An excellent community feel in Stanley, and a lot more expat family's with children your age, being more CEO/CFO/Capt senior career positions that can afford to live in this area. OP will love the village feel of Stanley, the little ( touristy ) market, the promenade where the locals hang out ( you'll be one of them soon ) usually around The Smugglers Inn, most weekend afternoons. Factor in great eateries like the Stanley Boathouse for a weekend brecky or brunch and so on and you'll get intothe atmosphere..

As an alternative to Stanley, have a look at Bisney Road, Pok Fu Lam, there are quite a few high end villa complexes located there, mostly post 2000ft2 that include roof terraces and include parking. Most villa's ( especially the gated secure variety ) include an attached car space or two, as these are stand alone or common wall terraces.

Upper and Lower Shouson Hill road near Ocean Park and the Hong Kong Country club would be another excellent location as its situated near the Aberdeen tunnel entrance section of the freeway, making the commute a little easier.

These area's are more than worth the commute, in my opinion, your teenage kids will love it, especially during the summer months, thanks to all of the beaches, and air conditioned malls be it the Galleria or Cyberport, it's all close at hand......

[Fiona in HKG]

you and your husband know your family best. the best thing to do is have hubby spend his "down" time scouting out the city. then he can help you cross places off of your list and add new places you may not have thought of or considered.

then, when you get here, spend a month in a serviced apartment, and you and he (along with the kids) can look at the new list that he has come up with.

that's the only way you are going to figure out what suits your family best.

I agree 100% with carang, and it's how we always handle our incoming families. You all need to be happy where you're living, the family most of all. After all, hubby goes off to work long hours every day.

[Molie]

I suggest you stay at the serviced apartments The Parkview for the first few weeks (all the school buses go there) until the whole family is in Hong Kong. From there you can get a feeling for peaceful remote living and see if it suits you as city people. And of course check out al the area's from there previously mentioned on this thread. But really, I suggest you also give Kowloon Station a good look, don't disregard Kowloon side beforehand!