[Bronwynyu]

I am looking to buy an aquarium tank for my flat. Being a beginner, I would like to start with something small and manageable. I went to the Aquarium Plaza near Taikoo Shing today, but was dissapointed. I want something that looks quite nice and modern to fit in with the decor of my flat, but what I saw today was quite basic. I know Mongkok has a street with some 200 shops, but to save me spending hours looking for it, can anyone recommend any shops which sell more upmarket tanks?

[Stoob]

I would recommend having a walk up/down Tung Choi street in Mong Kok (Prince Edward MTR, Exit B2)

Cannot recommend a single shop based on my interpretation of your requirments but I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for in one of the many shops.

[CarterTG]

As Stoob mentioned, the spot as shown on Google Maps:

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=2...&t=h&z=18&om=0

Make sure to roam around the district until the aquarium shops thin out. You'll never know if there might be a better item in the next shop.

I was amazed at some of the things this district carried... like tiny inch-long baby snapping turtles!

[wtbhotia]

B & Q in Kowloon Bay sell some nice ones.

[luvyanxx]

We first got into corals and salt water aquariums/fish about 2.5 yrs ago. If you're a biginner you definately do not want to get a small one, small tanks are much harder to control the water and it takes a long time, a lot of money and a lot of fish to get the water right in the tank. Lots of chemical problems, nitrites, nitrates etc.

You'd want to get a fairly large tank if you're really serious about getting into this hobby, probably one that's at least 3ft x 2ft x 2 ft if not bigger.

You really need to go to "Goldfish Street" (Tung Choi Street) and look around, you'll be able to find everything you need, but you will need to be prepared to spend a fair amount of money to begin with as this hobby is all about learning from your mistakes, unless you have a friend that can "start" up your tank for you.

For what it's worth we think it's really worth all the effort and the fish and corals are really beuatiful and it's always a talking point when people come to our house.

[Lammarite]

Where do you get your coral from and how do you extract it?

[luvyanxx]

It is illegal to extract coral from local shores.

The coral we purchase from Goldfish Street is flown in every couple of days, usually from the Philippines or from Japan. The more rarer and expensive fish/coral come from places like Sri Lanka and the US.

We have snorkelled in HK waters particularly, Hoi Ha and a couple of other beaches in Sai Kung. There is a lot to see but none compared to Goldfish Street!...unfortunatley.