[Laowai79]

Hello all,

Does New Town Plaza in Shatin drive anybody else nuts?? I've been in Shatin for a year and a few months. When I first came, the crowds were reasonable and the stores decent. Now, it's absolute chaos. All of the less expensive clothing shops and restaurants have disappeared to be replaced by high-end ones.

Now, you could tell me to avoid it (which I do..like the plague), but I have to walk through there to get groceries and to get to the KCR.

On a related note, I've noticed that Shatin is becoming more and more 'Shenzhen-ish' every day. I lived in Shenzhen and had fun, but there's a reason I moved to Hong Kong. I find that I'm encountering less people who speak English at restaurants (I can get by with a smattering of Cantonese, but still!) and am really getting annoyed with every man, woman and child hauling around their plastic-wrapped tartan luggage on a trolley. And the noise level has gone up significantly as well.

I think Hong Kong is an awesome place but I also think the quality of certain 'districts' is going downhill. I used to think my local (HK born) colleagues were exaggerating. Now, I'm not so sure.

[KnowItAll]

>> All of the less expensive clothing shops and restaurants
>> have disappeared to be replaced by high-end ones.

Seeing this all over Hong Kong...

[discobay]

I would say that shopping in New Town Plaza has never been an enjoyable experience. Too many (window) shoppers. A victim of its own success - I think not. Rather a problem caused by poor town planning where a single shopping centre has to cater for a new town development containing a quarter of the population (slight exaggeration). Recent renovations have made little difference to improve things. I never take my children there at the weekends - I also boycott Causeway Bay too (they'll thank me when they get older!).

[Sleuth]

We also try to avoid it on weekends, when moving through the place resembles rugby.
I think the malls are becoming very American--same stores over and over and over. Soon the only thing in malls will be women's clothing stores and shoes.

[banang]

Yup, it's happening in other district too. Small town mall being "upgraded" to fancy Pacific Place style. After the new version upgrade, landlord raises the rent and small enterprises move out. Major chain stores move in and every mall now look more or less the same. Well, the HK govt could have done something about it by putting up more land for sale. It would make a better HK with cheaper land, wouldn't it?

[dwoo]

I live in the Shatin Center and I agree that New Town Plaza is an over-priced, over-crowded shopping mall that is resembling mainland China, with all of the mainland shoppers visiting, particularly on the weekends. If you don't like crowds and soulless consumption, avoid it, especially, again, on the weekends.

The only reason why I live in Shatin is because it is the best running area in Hong Kong, in my opinion. Ironically, the paths along the Shing Mun River are perhaps the least crowded running lanes in the city!

[Pekkerhead]

I think this is just an indication of where HK is going. The Govt are desperately trying to come up with a way to compete for tourists and they have (mistakenly in my view) settled on the shopping aspect. The mainland is their biggest market so they are gradually changing things to attract more of them. Hence the designer shops and extremely tacky tourist sites (Disneyland or Avenue of Stars anyone?). Honestly, all you have to do to make a tourist site appeal to Mainlanders is make something out of brightly coloured plastic and let them take photos in front of it. The Govt really missed out with Tiger Balm Gardens it would have been Mainlander Mecca :-)

[youngjediboy]

Not to mention that Shatin is easily accessible on the KCR for the mainlanders who hop on over from Lo Wu and just go straight to the expensive shops.

If you want cheaper stores though... they're pretty much SURROUNDING the proper New Town Plaza spots right off the KCR station... so all you simply need to do is make your way through the mall maze hell... easy. :P

Besides... if you want more English speakers, HK Island and the usual expat districts are where you'll want to be... not NT.

Also, on a Sunday, while I'd also avoid New Town Plaza... I would never EVER go to Causeway Bay again... or Central... or Wan Chai or any place on HK Island with wide footbridges... Are there no loitering laws in HK?

[Sleuth]

Originally Posted by youngjediboy

Also, on a Sunday, while I'd also avoid New Town Plaza... I would never EVER go to Causeway Bay again... or Central... or Wan Chai or any place on HK Island with wide footbridges... Are there no loitering laws in HK?

It's their one day off.

[esque]

where exactly are they supposed to go?

but getting back to the original topic - yes, sha tin is CRAZY. I didn't realise there was the mainland factor at work. Not a relaxing place to shop. And pit toilets - ugh.