Taikoo Shing or Tai Koo Shing (), is a private residential development in

Quarry Bay Quarry Bay is an List of buildings, sites, and areas in Hong Kong, area beneath Mount Parker (Hong Kong), Mount Parker in the Eastern District, Hong Kong, Eastern District of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. The western portion of the area was al ...

, in the eastern part of

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

. It is a part of

Swire Swire Group () is a Hong Kong- and London-based British conglomerate. Many of its core businesses can be found within the Asia Pacific region, where traditionally Swire's operations have centred on Hong Kong and mainland China. Within Asia, ...

's property business, along with

Taikoo Place Taikoo Place () is a commercial building complex located in Quarry Bay, east Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It comprises grade A office towers, car parking, clubs, office apartment, parks, and shops to meet the needs from business people worldwide. ...

, the adjacent

Cityplaza Cityplaza () is an office and shopping development, developed by Swire Properties, at 18 Taikoo Shing Road, Taikoo Shing, Hong Kong. It is adjacent to Taikoo Place, another office complex developed by Swire. The six-level shopping c ...

retail and office complex and EAST, a lifestyle business hotel.

Etymology

Taikoo is the Cantonese pronunciation of

's Chinese name, while Shing can be literally translated as City. Thus, Taikoo Shing can be loosely translated as Swire City. According to Swire, its Chinese name Taikoo was chosen by Thomas Taylor Meadow, the British Consul in Shanghai when Swire's Shanghai office opened in 1866.

Area

The entire Taikoo Shing estate covers 21.5

hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...

(53

acres The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

), and consists of 61 residential towers, with a total of 12,698 apartment flats that ranges anywhere between to .

History

The Taikoo Shing estate was once the site of

Taikoo Dockyard Taikoo Dockyard and Engineering Company () was a dockyard in what is now Taikoo Shing, MTR Tai Koo station and part of Taikoo Place of Quarry Bay on the Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. History The idea that John Swire and Sons should have their ...

, whose foundation stone now lies beside Cityplaza. The dockyard moved to United Dockyards at the west shore of the

Tsing Yi Island Tsing Yi, sometimes referred to as Tsing Yi Island, is an island in the urban area of Hong Kong, to the northwest of Hong Kong Island and south of Tsuen Wan. With an area of , the island has extended drastically by reclamation along almost all ...

in the late 1970s, and Taikoo Shing was constructed over the site in stages, with constructions of all main residential buildings complete by the early 1990s. As part of the business strategy,

Swire Properties Swire Properties Limited () is a property developer, owner and operator of mixed-use, principally commercial properties in Hong Kong and Mainland China. Founded and headquartered in Hong Kong in 1972, Swire Properties is a major property d ...

was established in 1972 immediately after the closing of the dockyard. Taikoo Shing became one of Hong Kong's first major

private housing estates Private housing estate is a term used in Hong Kong for private mass housing – a housing estate developed by a private developer, as opposed to a public housing estate built by the Hong Kong Housing Authority or the Hong Kong Housing Socie ...

. Completing in 1986, Swire immediately became one of the largest property companies doing the construction themselves. The area was designed to maximise middle-class residential capacity. Development of commercial areas still continues today. After the completion of Cityplaza 3 and 4 as office buildings, the original Cityplaza 1 was demolished in the mid-90s for redevelopment. As of 2007, the food market that was originally constructed was demolished to make room for a hotel.

Population and demographics

In the 2011 census, Taikoo Shing recorded 36,796 residents. The median monthly rent among rental households was $18,000. Apartment flats in Taikoo Shing are popular amongst buyers and speculators, and for a significant time in the 1980s and 1990s, Taikoo Shing's housing price is a general indicator of the Hong Kong's housing market health in general. Although in recent years, newer housing developments have eroded a bit of Taikoo Shing's once prominent status. The estate is also a very sought-after place to live for the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

communities in Hong Kong, most of which are staffed in multinational corporations based in Hong Kong. As a result of this significant Korean and Japanese settlement, the area has many Korean and Japanese-themed service establishments.

Housing

The housing in Taikoo Shing was developed in stages, with the Tsui Woo Terrace being the first ones constructed. In all, the estate's housing complexes are broken down into 6 terraces and 2 gardens, each with a special naming scheme. It is important to note that those mansions under the "garden" group are considered to be premium housing, and more expensive than those that fall under the "terrace" category.

Tsui Woo Terrace

Tsui Woo Terrace (, literally: "Terrace of the Jade Lake"); all of the mansions on this terrace are named after famous lakes in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. The terrace consists of three mansions. *Tung Ting Mansion () Note: name is a reference to

Dongting Lake Dongting Lake () is a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan Province, China. It is a flood basin of the Yangtze River, so its volume depends on the season. The provinces of Hubei and Hunan are named after their location relative to the la ...

. *Po Yang Mansion () Note: name is a reference to Poyang Lake. *Tai Woo Mansion () Note: name is a reference to

Lake Tai Taihu (), also known as Lake Tai or Lake Taihu, is a lake in the Yangtze Delta and one of the largest freshwater lakes in China. The lake is in Jiangsu province and a significant part of its southern shore forms its border with Zhejiang. Wi ...

Ko Shan Terrace

Ko Shan Terrace (, literally: "Terrace of the High Mountain"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Mountain" (山) as the second character of the building's name. A couple of the mansion's names also corresponds to famous mountains in

. The terrace consists of 13 mansions. *Tung Shan Mansion () *Tien Shan Mansion () *Tai Shan Mansion () *Lo Shan Mansion () *Nam Shan Mansion () *Po Shan Mansion () *Heng Shan Mansion () *Wah Shan Mansion () *Loong Shan Mansion () *Foong Shan Mansion () *Yee Shan Mansion () *Kam Shan Mansion () *Fu Shan Mansion ()

Kam Din Terrace

Kam Din Terrace (, literally: "Terrace of the Golden Palace"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Palace" (宮) as the second character of the building's name. In addition, all of the mansions names' first character corresponds to various political dynasties in

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

history. The terrace consists of 8 mansions. *Tang Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

. *Yen Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to a rebel dynasty in ancient China. *Yuan Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fifth ...

. *Ming Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. *Hsia Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Xia dynasty The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradi ...

. *Han Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

. *Chai Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the Qi dynasty. *Tsui Kung Mansion () Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...

On Shing Terrace

On Shing Terrace (, literally: "Terrace of Peace and Prosperity"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Peace" (安) as the second character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 6 mansions. *Ning On Mansion () *Po On Mansion () *Shun On Mansion () *Hing On Mansion () *Kin On Mansion () *Ko On Mansion ()

Harbour View Gardens

Harbour View Gardens (); all of the mansions in this area are named after flora. The area consists of 11 mansions. *Pine Mansion () *Banyan Mansion () *Willow Mansion () *Oak Mansion () *Maple Mansion () *Juniper Mansion () *Marigold Mansion () *Begonia Mansion () *Lotus Mansion () *Wisteria Mansion () *Primrose Mansion ()

Kwun Hoi Terrace

Kwun Hoi Terrace (, literally: "Terrace for Ocean Viewing"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Ocean" (海) as the second character of the building's name, and a cardinal direction as the first character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 3 mansions. *Pak Hoi Mansion () *Tung Hoi Mansion () *Nam Hoi Mansion ()

Sing Fai Terrace

Sing Fai Terrace (, literally: "Terrace of the Stars"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "star" (星) as the second character of the building's name. Some of the building names are similar to Chinese names for planets within the

Solar System The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar S ...

. The terrace consists of 8 mansions. *Hang Sing Mansion () *Tien Sing Mansion () *Hoi Sing Mansion () *Wai Sing Mansion () *Yiu Sing Mansion () *Chi Sing Mansion () *Kam Sing Mansion () *Ngan Sing Mansion ()

Horizon Garden

Horizon Garden (); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "sky" (天) as the second character of the building's name. The area consists of 9 mansions. *Kai Tien Mansion () *Hoi Tien Mansion () *Fu Tien Mansion () *Choi Tien Mansion () *Heng Tien Mansion () *Kwun Tien Mansion () *Yat Tien Mansion () *Nam Tien Mansion () *King Tien Mansion ()

Amenities

Some terraces - Horizon Gardens, Kam Din Terrace, Sing Fai Terrace, and Kao Shan Terrace - have podiums that provide a public space for their residents, often including a children's playground. Elderly residents may practice

t'ai chi Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. ...

in the mornings. There are also shops and learning centres on these podiums such as

Kumon Kumon Institute Education Co. Ltd. is an educational network based in Japan, created by Toru Kumon which uses his Kumon Method to teach mathematics and reading primarily for young students. History Kumon was founded by Toru Kumon, a Japanese ...

. In addition, Harbour View Gardens, Horizon Gardens and Kwun Hoi Terrace all have access to swimming pools. In Kao Shan Terrace, there are badminton courts and tennis courts for residents to use.

Education

There are a few kindergartens in the vicinity of Tai Koo Shing, as well as the international school

Delia School of Canada DSC International School () (formerly known as Delia School of Canada) is a Canadian international private school in Hong Kong. The school was founded in 1986 which offers Ontario curriculum (registered in the province of Ontario as an interna ...

. Taikoo Shing is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 14. Within the school net are multiple aided schools (operated independently but funded with government money) and North Point Government Primary School.

Car parks

All terraces have indoor car parks, providing parking spaces on monthly lease. There are parking spaces available for visitors on hourly rate in the car parks at Cityplaza and Sing Fai Terrace.

Transportation

The estate is served by MTR Tai Koo station of the

Island line Island Line or Island line may refer to: * Island line (MTR), one of the lines of the MTR metro system in Hong Kong * Island Line, Isle of Wight, a railway line on the Isle of Wight, England ** Island Line (brand) Island Line is a brand of the ...

, as well as various bus lines, served by

New World First Bus New World First Bus Services Limited (NWFB) is the third-largest bus operator in Hong Kong. Established by NWS Holdings and FirstGroup in September 1998, it took over 88 China Motor Bus services in Hong Kong Island. Since 2020 it has been a s ...

and the

Kowloon Motor Bus The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited (KMB) is a bus company operating franchised services in Hong Kong. It is the largest bus company in Hong Kong by fleet size and number of bus routes. It is a subsidiary of Transport International. ...

Shau Kei Wan Shau Kei Wan or Shaukiwan is a neighborhood in the Eastern District of Hong Kong Island. The area is bordered by Chai Wan to the east, Mount Parker to the south, Sai Wan Ho to the west, and Victoria Harbour to the north. Shau Kei Wan is cons ...

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

Sheung Wan Sheung Wan is an area in Hong Kong, located in the north-west of Hong Kong Island, between Central and Sai Ying Pun. Administratively, it is part of the Central and Western District. The name can be variously interpreted as ''Upper Dist ...

Tsim Sha Tsui Tsim Sha Tsui, often abbreviated as TST, is an list of areas of Hong Kong, urban area in southern Kowloon, Hong Kong. The area is administratively part of the Yau Tsim Mong District. Tsim Sha Tsui East is a piece of land reclaimed from the Hu ...

and

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

. As it is a private estate, all roads were owned by Swire Properties. However, most roads were returned to the Government except for those near Cityplaza. In practice, public traffic is generally allowed to pass freely, but admission may be denied.

References

External links

Satellite image of Taikoo Shing and its vicinity from Google MapsEmporis - details of individual buildings
* S.K. Hui, A. Cheung, J. Pang
"A Hierarchical Bayesian Approach for Residential Property Valuation:Application to Hong Kong Housing Market"
''International Real Estate Review'', 2010 Vol. 13 No.1: pp. 1 – 29 {{coord, 22.286335, N, 114.217644, E, type:city_region:HK, display=title Swire Group Quarry Bay Private housing estates in Hong Kong