My Hong Kong escape

At 06.30 on Friday mornings, Rory Hunter can often be found on Stanley Beach gearing up to go surf-skiing. The Aussie entrepreneur fell in love with the sport after participating in a competition in New Zealand some years ago.

He decided to bring this alternative form of wave-riding back to his home city of Hong Kong despite the relatively calm currents. “There’s a very small community of surf-skiers here,” he says as he rinses sand and saltwater off his black-and-white boat before storing it at a nearby surf shop.

Hunter and his wife Melita are the owners of Song Saa Collective, an eco-conscious resort spread across two islands in Cambodia’s Koh Rong archipelago. The couple purchased the islands in 2005 but had absolutely no intention of setting up a hospitality business. Now, 14 years later, they have established a marine reserve and several non-profit foundations – and are currently working on a new sustainable resort in Siem Reap.

Hong Kong felt like the natural city to base a growing business that is marketed at intrepid global travellers. Their young children also informed the decision, as all three attend international schools in the city. Hunter leaves the beach at 07.30 to get his children ready before heading to his office in Wong Chuk Hang. “It’s tricky to find a minute to yourself as an entrepreneur,” he says.

“Being by the sea is a complete de-stressor,” says Claudia Shaw as she sits in the sand at Deep Water Bay. Head buyer at Chanel Asia Pacific for more than two decades, she is as comfortable walking around Central in her tweed jacket as she is diving into the South China Sea in her Eres swimsuit.

When Shaw isn’t flying to Paris she stays grounded by walking the promenade connecting Shouson Hill to Repulse Bay. “There a palpable energy that we can get from the earth but we don’t spend enough time outside.”

Ask about the small, end-of-the-road village of Shek O, located in the southeastern corner of Hong Kong Island, and most will mention its sandy beach. But arrive early enough on a Saturday or Sunday morning and it will resemble a stage of the Tour de France.

Shek O serves as a halfway pit-stop for the city’s growing peleton of road racers and hill climbers, who head out at sunrise to share the quiet roads with classic-car enthusiasts. Bicycle racks are full by 08.00 and lycra-clad bums occupy most of the seats at Lulu’s and Ming’s – two popular cafés at the entrance to Shek O.

Paul Smitton will be among the riders on most weekends, dressed head-to-toe in black atop a German-made Canyon Ultimate. The 50-year-old New Zealander moved to Hong Kong with his two children last year to become CEO of Asia Miles, a loyalty programme owned by Hong Kong’s de facto flag-carrier Cathay Pacific. “It’s a wonderful way of clearing my head after a busy week at work,” says Smitton, who cycles to Shek O from his home in the hills above North Point.

He usually meets up with a dozen or so other riders just before 07.00. The group then heads up and down Stubbs Road to the Peak before cycling along the south of Hong Kong Island, passing by Repulse Bay, Stanley and Tai Tam Reservoir towards Shek O. “It’s very social,” he says, while sipping an iced coffee at Lulu’s. “I’ve got heaps of friends who do it.”

Smitton says he can complete the 70km route before his children are even out of bed. He is currently on his second stint in Hong Kong; his two teenage sons were born during his first posting. The aviation and loyalty programme veteran previously lived in Sydney and has also worked in Europe and the US. Returning to Hong Kong has enabled him to appreciate what he admits he previously took for granted. “When you come back to a place it’s by choice,” he says. “How many places are there in the world where you can be in a tiny beach town and still be only 20 minutes away from a major international city?”