Am I crazy wanting to live in the Mid-Levels with a 6 month old?

E

eebee

Registered User
Hi all,

My husband has recently landed a 2-year secondment opportunity to Hong Kong and we are moving in November with our 6 month old baby boy.

We visited for 1 week recently and looked at various areas around HK Island to live (Southside, Pok Fu Lam, Peak, Mid-Levels) but this only left me feeling more confused about where would be best for us to move!

Our budget is around 55-60k and my husband does not want more than a 30 minute commute to work each day. We want somewhere where it will be easy to meet other mums with babies and be able to join in activities (playgroup etc).

The mid-levels seems to tick all the boxes with it just seems SO steep and hard to get around with a stroller! How do people get around with kids in HK? Would I just jump in a cab whenever I want to head into Central? The advice I've been given by most people I've spoken to is that it's mostly young singles and couples in the Mid-Levels and when a baby arrives they move out.

Any other suggestions? We didn't look at Happy Valley on our visit but have heard this can be a good area.

We're living in a serviced apartment for up to a month when we arrive so have time to do some more looking around.
 
you could also look at discovery bay. it is EXTREMELY baby/mum friendly, a 25 minute air-conditioned, comfortable ferry ride to central, slightly cleaner air, no private vehicles (only 500 golf buggies). it is a fantastic place for families with young kids. with your budget, you'd probably be able to get a nice, large place (low-rise) with a garden, too!

happy valley is good, too. mid-levels? hundreds of thousands of people live there, many with young kids, so it can't be that bad.

best bet, use your 1 month in the service apt. DON'T rush into anything. REALLY look around different areas AND different flats in each area, so you can get an idea of what's available in your price range.
 
Agree with Cara. I lived in Midlevels for 5 years and moved to Discovery Bay in January when with our 2 year old and newborn. Very family friendly with parks etc and a club (you have to join) with pools and indoor playroom for summer and winter. For that amount of money you will def get a nice apartment there and meeting other mums would be easy without even trying hard as you'll see heaps at the playroom and pools.

On the commute from there - I'd say realistically it is more than 25 mins though. Yes, a 25 min ferry but that is assuming you are living at the plaza and working at IFC. For me, it is about 50 mins by the time I walk out the door of my apartment, catch the bus to the plaza in DB then 25 min ferry then 10-15 min walk to my office. SO it will depend on where your husband's work is located.

Having said all of that, moving out of Midlevels and into DB was the right move for us. Much easier to entertain a little one in DB and just generally move around with a stroller.
 
it used to take me about 42 minutes (i know because i would watch a tv show on my ipod video) from la vista to:
walk down the hill, catch the ferry, then walk to my office in sheung wan. it was almost timed exactly. one entire episode per trip.

we moved from db to sai kung 3+ years ago and i still miss DB terribly! i found it so fantastic for kids. we needed more space for less money, though, and sadly could not get that in DB, so we moved out to the boonies into sai kung country park...
 
Agree also with Cara about taking your time to look - and since you were more focused on HK Island, I can't help myself, have to also suggest you take a look at Kowloon Station, since you have a good sized budget. Much more of a 'planned community', but a great outdoor playground, a very tiny park (hardly qualifies as a park but it does have a nice patch of grass, which is hard to find in HK), and ample living options. There are 4 different complexes (each with several towers, and all post year 2000 construction) and all of them have nice clubhouses with indoor children areas, pools and planned activities for residents. Plus, Elements Mall is downstairs, and if you don't mind paying more for organic food, your grocery shopping is a breeze at the 360 grocery store, you have a movie theater, ice skating rink, tons of restaurants, etc. Also downstairs is the Airport Express and the MTR. It's 1 stop/3 min ride to Central, although it's the IFC station so to get to places like the Landmark it's a short walk through the linked subway stations once you exit the train.

I realize I sound like an ad but we've just been so happy with where we live and met so many nice people, so just wanted to throw out the suggestion as we never considered Kowloon when we first got to HK, but are happy we did.
 
We've lived in mid levels for 6 years and I have two young kids and no helper! Personally we love it! Buses are easy and cabs are plenty. The walk into Central is easy ... once you discover the routes where sidewalks don't suddenly end or you encounter stairs!! And there are lots of families, and depending where you are in Midlevels there are parks around and you can get that "community" feeling.

Definitly research though ... what someone loves about one place is what another can't stand about it!! Good luck with the move!
 
We were in the mid levels until our first baby could walk, then moved to Pokfulam. I love it here and it only takes me 15 mins to get to work at IFC (that is by cab, public transport is a much slower). Lots of open space, good for strollers, parks/grass, low rise buildings, school, other families, good supermarkets and a playroom (wise kids). 55-60k will get you a pretty big place.
 
i dont live in mid-levels but i have tons of friends with kids who do. you can find kid-friendly properties in mid-levels in your budget - robinson place, bamboo grove etc. also, midlevels has many playgroup / activities options once yr baby is around 9-10 months. apart from that hk park, botanical gardens are easy to access.
 
Thanks so much for your responses everyone - very helpful. Does anyone live at Hillsborough Court? It's one of the places we looked at and liked, but it seems the only way to walk out of there is down a near vertical road! (Old Peak Rd). Comments?
 
Thanks for your reply ssheng. I've had a bit of a look online at Kowloon Station and it does seem to fit our needs nicely. Which complex do you live in? Which would you suggest has the best facilities for a baby/young child (eg. indoor and outdoor playground, pool etc)? Any further advice would be much appreciated.
 
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Your budget is sizeable, so you will have a lot of choices. I personally dont like mid levels and have settled in Happy Valley with 3 kids. For your budget, I would suggest you take a good look at Leighton Hill (newer and more expensive) as well as Ventris Place (older less expensive). Both have decent facilities but the real nice thing about both is the Valley itself. You have access to multiple playgrounds (indoor and outdoor) as well as the big racetrack. There are a large number of families with kids as well as excellent transport links and only few minutes walk to Causewaybay.

HC
 
I think mid-levels is great! We lived on the southside and realized there are positives and negatives for all areas in and @ HK island. For us, southside was extremely family friendly and less pollution, but the major drawback was commute for my husband into Central. We now live in Singapore and if we were to move back to HK, we would strongly consider moving to mid-levels so that my husband's commute would be shorter and he could get home quicker to us. Transportation is not really an issues - there are blding shuttles, buses and taxis that are everywhere. It's really what fits your budget and family best.
 
Hi,
I recently moved to HK and am six months pregnant....another alternative is the Kowloon side above Elements Shopping Centre. We've chosen to live at the Harbourside Apartments which are new and fresh, there is a pool, clubroom with amazing kids room and cafe....the train station is literally below the building and one stop to Central (2 minutes.) It's flat and there is plenty of walking space....shops and restaurants in close proximity without going far and without feeling like you are closed in..Cheers, Nicole
 
it really comes down to your preferences. when i first came to hk, back in 1995, i wanted to be in the thick of things. i loved high-rise living, convenience etc. after 15 years here, i HATE the hustle and bustle of the city and you'd have to pay me pretty handsomely to live in the mid-levels. not my cup of tea. to each his own.
 
Hi all!

I'm new to HK, just arrived 3 weeks ago. Currently staying at the HK Parkview.

Eebee: I also looked at Goldsborough, Fairlane, Bamboo Grove which were all in the Mid Levels. I think location-wise it is really good if your husband works in Central. And I recall Bamboo Grove was the kids-friendliest of the lot!

For me, we chose to stay in Parkview due to the slightly fresher air, good playrooms for our daughter and there is a pre-school within the complex (1 min walk!) The only downside is that you tend to feel slightly isolated from the rest of the island! Even though its a 20 min cab ride to Central!

Cara: Are you at HK Parkview too?

Nwebb: May I ask how much is the rental for a 2-bedroom in Harbourside Kowloon?

Good luck with the househunting!@
 
Hi HKnewbie,
The apartments at The Harbourside, Kowloon range from around $38,000 to $55,000 (for a harbour view)...Cheers, Nicole :)
 
We live in the Waterfront, and for your budget you could probably get a 1350+ sq ft place with a clean view of the water on a mid to high floor (facing the W hotel and Cullinan, which are attractive glass buildings). In contrast, you can also get a view of Central and the harbour through the gaps in the Arch and Harbourside in an 1200 sq ft place for about 35K. We used to live in the later, and now moved to the former, which I prefer because it has better light, even though I can't see the fireworks anymore.

The facilities at the Waterfront are great - we probably have the biggest kid's playroom in the area and are refurbishing it with new playmats and equipment, and the pool is great, although it can get crowded. Waterfront was constructed early 2000s. I think with your budget you might want to go for something even newer, and a lot of people like the Harbourside and the Arch which were finished in the last few years. The Arch has pretty stunning facilities and common areas, although their kids playarea is a bit more suited to 1 year+, with an activity center and computers (I think...I was invited by a friend once but I might be mixed it up with the Sorrento). The Sorrento I think is on par, although because it caters less to high-end due to not having the view of Central (but does have nice waterviews on certain floors/angles), the average size of units is smaller, so there are a lot more people living there and sharing the common areas.

PIPs Kowloon, which is the pre-school and kindergarten, has baby groups like Kindermusik from basically birth onwards, with their more formal playgroup starting at age 1. I read mixed things about it, but given we live here, it's a wonderful option. Plus I checked it out and I think their curriculum sounds just right for our daughter. On top of PIPs is a great playground for toddlers - slides, climbing stations, teeter totters, etc, all on soft outdoor mats.

Anyway, I read the other suggestions and I agree it's totally a personal fit. Some people have told me they do not like the 'planned' nature of Kowloon Station, whereas that is exactly what we like. It's a controlled environment and super convenient, with a lot of nice families around. Others who enjoy nightlife in mid-levels complain it is not practical to go out at night there and come home to Kowloon, which is not entirely true but would make your taxi costs higher. I'm not a mom who kept up with the nightlife before or after having the baby, so that's not a personal concern for me! :)
 
i couldn't imagine paying $55,000 for 1300'...that is ridiculous to me. but on the other hand, i understand that others may like the convenience of it. personally, i still prefer my45 minute commute to central (life doesn't revolve around that area for us as hubby works from home and i work out of tsing yi) and my 2100' house with garden and less than $20k rent....

so much of a lifestyle choice...

basically, with your budget, you could live virtually everywhere in hk, it will all come down to YOUR personal choices and preferences.
 
We live near the Hillsbourough (we are on May Road) with an 18 month old and a 4 year old. We occasionally head over to that building to play with some friends in that large playroom. Overall I wouldn't say this area is swarming with kids, but there are quite a few (most of the International school buses run their routes through here).

We occasionally walk down to the Zoo off of Old Peak Road, but primarily we take a taxi, which is one of our small complaints about this area. We are somewhat car dependent for a number of things, such as going out to dinner or shopping at anyplace beyond the very tiny Welcome on May Road. There are a few minibuses on irregular schedules and if we time it right we do take the building shuttle, but our taxi cab budget is quite a bit higher than we thought when planning our move. Walking with a stroller down Old Peak and on these narrow sidewalked other streets can be a bit daunting.

Overall this part of Midlevels is relatively quiet. The trees on the Peak help clear the air a tiny bit but it is also extremely humid up here at times. We picked this area as a halfway between our schools up on the Peak and work down in Admiralty.

If you are here in HK seeking more of a night life environment (i.e. walk out the door and have Thai food) than you might want to look a bit further west towards the escalator (though the trade off is worse traffic/noise/pollution) or consider Kowloon Station where your budget would get you a breathtaking view of the Skyline one station away from IFC and lots of other kids in the buildings nearby.

We moved from your standard US 3,000 sq foot place to our 1,300 sq foot (1000 usable) here in HK and surprisingly, we really don't miss the extra space. We do feel a bit tight sometimes but overall we've adjusted to the downsizing and have found a few benefits even (for example it is hard to lose a toy in a place this small).
 
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