A day trip to Zhongshan from Hong Kong, from how to get there to what to do in the city

With a new road link, Zhongshan in Guangdong is a popular destination for sightseeing, food and shopping – we went for a day to check it out

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The mural that greets visitors as they enter Zhongshan City Museum. Hong Kong residents looking for a day-trip destination in mainland China should consider Zhongshan, now that a new road link from Shenzhen, including bridges across the Pearl River, have made it more accessible. Photo: Joanne Yau

Published: 7:15am, 26 Jul 2024Updated: 7:43am, 26 Jul 2024

With post-pandemic travel to mainland China growing, many Hong Kong residents are on the lookout for weekend getaway options.

Zhongshan, renamed from Xiangshan in 1925 to honour the “Father of Modern China” Sun Yat-sen (who is better known in China as Sun Zhongshan), has many 19th century buildings, parks and memorials. In recent years, the city has become a popular destination for sightseeing, dining and shopping.

The new Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link, made up of two bridges over and a tunnel under the Pearl River, makes travel between the two cities faster and more convenient, and is likely to make the city a travel hotspot in the Greater Bay Area.

So how easy is it to get to Zhongshan and is there much to do once you are there? We went on a day trip from Hong Kong to find out.

The Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link is expected to shorten journey times between the two cities. Photo: Joanne Yau

Morning

One way to get to Zhongshan is by coach. At 9am, we departed from the Wan Chai branch of the China Travel Service travel agency for the Shenzhen Bay Immigration Control Point. We bought two single tickets at the counter for HK$60 (US$7.70) each; coaches leave every 20-35 minutes.

The entrance to the Zhongshan City Museum. Photo: Joanne Yau