Checkerboard Hill: An Easy, Historic City Hike

Kamal Mirwani

Published

September 14, 2024

Type: Historical/Cultural

Type: City Views

Difficulty: Easy

District: Kowloon

Essential Information
Hike Highlights
Google Route Map and GPX
How to Get There
Quick Route Summary
From Lok Fu Station to the Hike Start Point
Climbing to Fu On Street
Shortest Route to the Checkerboard Pattern
The Longer Route to the Checkerboard Pattern
The Trigonometrical Point and the Checkerboard Pattern
Views of Checkerboard Hill
Back to Fu On Street
Getting Back

Essential Checkerboard Hill Hike Details

District: Kowloon
Duration: 1 hour to and from Lok Fu MTR Station
Distance: 2.8km
Highest Elevation: 98 meters
Difficulty: 1.5/5
Facilities: None. Bring water and snacks as you need

Why Hike Checkerboard Hill?

Get up close and personal with a classic piece of Hong Kong's aviation history

On the off chance you're a Hong Kong Water Works fan, there's some great HKWW history here, too!

You'll get some pretty unique views of Kowloon

You'll get some pretty unique views over some less popular parts of Kowloon

There's a running path/ football field/ whatever grass thingy at the top!

Lion Rock also makes a cameo on the hike!

Plane landing in Kai Tak Airport with Checkerboard Hill in the backdrop. Photo by Daryl Chapman

Having grown up in Hong Kong in the 1990s, I still remember the roaring sound of jet engines passing overhead as my little school bus used to take me to primary school at 7:30am every weekday.

I'd rush to the window to try and catch a glimpse of the monster sized jets banking impossibly close to the buildings of Kowloon before making a final descent into Kai Tak International Airport.

It was only recently that I discovered one of the key markers used by pilots was the iconic red and white checks of Checkerboard Hill to indicate when they should begin banking for a safe landing into what was one of the most unique, if not dangerous, airports in the world to touch down in.

With that history in mind, hiking lovers who don't fancy a huge, tiring blast up one of Hong Kong's taller mountains can give this trail a shot. Checkerboard Hill is less than 100 meters tall, meaning you'll be able to reach the summit in 20 or so minutes.

What's more, you'll get to witness the red and white checkerboard pattern for yourself, while still enjoying some stellar views across Kowloon!

Google Route Map and GPX

Checkerboard Hill Hike GPX File

How to Get to Checkerboard Hill

Take the MTR to Lok Fu Station. The hiking guide begins directly from the station.

Quick Route Summary

Take the MTR to Lok Fu Station and leave through Exit B
Once outside Exit B, head through the park on the right and take the stairs up to Junction Road
Turn left on Junction Road and look for the green and white Arts and Technology Education Centre
Take the stairs beside the Arts and Technology Education Centre and keep climbing upward until you arrive at Fu On Street
If you want to head directly to the checkerboard patterns, go left and take the stairs downward from Fu On Street
For the full hike, turn right and go past the Water Works building
You'll see a small set of 3 fat stairs that you climb up before heading downward
Follow the fence until its end and take the makeshift stairs upward
Follow the dirt trail and you'll arrive at the black and white trigonometrical point, which indicates you've reached the highest point of Checkerboard Hill
Follow the dirt trail behind the trigonometrical point and you'll arrive at the checkerboard patterns of Checkerboard Hill
Head down (below the lowest checkered wall) and take the path left
Climb the stairs to arrive at Fu On Street, where you can just retrace your steps back to Lok Fu Station

From Lok Fu Station to the Hike Start Point

Take the MTR to Lok Fu and leave through Exit B

Walk straight through the bus terminus

When you reach the park (on the right) take the stairs up

There are a few different ways to get through the park. Just pick any and you'll be fine

Final stairs leading to Junction Road

Eventually, you'll arrive at Junction Road. Follow the pink signs left

When you see this building, you'll want to get to the staircase under the tree to the right

After heading out of Exit B at Lok Fu MTR Station, head into the park on the right and climb some stairs to get to Junction Road.

Head left and cross the street when you can. You'll want to keep a lookout for the big, green Arts and Technology Education Centre building. Just beside it is a narrow set of stairs that marks the start of the hike.

Climbing to Fu On Street

These are the stairs you'll want to climb to begin the hike

Look for the yellow markings on the stairs

Take the stairs with yellow markings to the right

It's quite green and shaded as you get into your climbing stride

There are a few steep staircases, but nothing too intense if you're used to hiking

This is Fu On Street, easily identified by the barbed wire fence that runs along it

The climb from the bottom of the stairs to Fu On Street took just under 10 minutes. Give yourself extra time if needed, but rest assured this isn't a particularly long ascent. As long as you follow the stairs with yellow markings on them, you'll make it to the top and won't get lost.

When you get to Fu On Street, you will have two options of how to proceed.

Shortest Route to the Checkerboard Pattern

For the fastest route, head left at Fu On Street

Go past the park entrance (do not enter the park)

Look for the little dirt trail beside the park entrance and follow it. (You'll be going downward. I just took this picture while returning to the park)

Go down this long staircase. (I was heading up when this photo was taken)

Follow this long path at the bottom of the stairs and Checkerboard Hill will be to your right

You'll have to climb up another set of stairs to reach the checkerboard pattern though

This route is the quickest way to get to to the checkerboard patterns on Checkerboard Hill. It'll save you a bunch of time, but you'll miss some of the other interesting views along the hike.

That being said, if you're on a time crunch, or don't really care about the other stuff, just take this route and you can shave off a good 15 minutes from your journey.

The Longer Route to the Checkerboard Pattern

Turn right on Fu On Street for the longer route

This is what it looks like behind the barbed wire fence

You'll have quite a nice view of Lion Rock as you meander along Fu On Street

There's a really cool Hong Kong Water Works structure along the way

That's Suicide Cliff there, on the far right!

Once you see these stone brick walls, it's time to look out for a very specific detour

Don't miss these stairs, or else you'll just be wandering off in the wrong direction!

Walk down the flight of stairs here and skirt the perimeter of the fencing below

You'll be right beside the fencing if you're going the right way

Hey, that's Beacon Hill over there!

Anyway, turn the corner and continue along the fencing

At the end of the fence, you'll see some makeshift stone steps

This route is much longer and a little trickier to navigate, so I will split it into a few sections. The first section has you following Fu On Street until you come to some stone walls. When you see these, you'll want to look for three large steps on your left.

Once you find the large steps, take the longer staircase downward behind them. The long staircase leads to a path that goes around the perimeter of more barbed wire fencing. At the end of that path, you'll find some stone steps.

The Trigonometrical Point and the Checkerboard Pattern

Climb up the stone staircase

At the top, you'll arrive at another fenced-off area

Take the dirt trail just beside the fence

Follow the path and enjoy views of the random little grassy park thingy below

Welcome to the highest point of Checkerboard Hill! This is called a trigonometrical station

Welcome to the highest point of Checkerboard Hill! This is called a trigonometrical point

To continue on to the checkerboard pattern, take the stone stairs just beside the trigonometrical point

Walk between these cool boulders

You'll get your first glimpse of the iconic red and white checkered pattern behind...yep, more fencing!

Next, go through another pair of boulders

You'll be in a pretty neat jungle trail for a short time

When you arrive at this epic viewpoint, you're right above the checkerboard pattern

This section initially involves a short climb to the trigonometrical point. Once there, you'll take a small set of stairs down into a jungle area where you'll actually get your first glimpse of the checkerboard pattern.

Just keep following the trail until you arrive at a open area with a really amazing view across the inner part of Kowloon!

Views of Checkerboard Hill

If you look downward from the earlier viewpoint, you'll see one side of the famous checkerboard pattern

Here's what it looks like with Kowloon in the backdrop

To actually get to the checkerboard markings, you'll need to head through this door and climb downward

There are two walls painted with red and white squares. This wall is less maintained

You can see that there's a bit of neglect here, but it's still cool nonetheless

In some sections, the paint is even covered by moss and greenery

The side of the wall that faces the city is much cleaner

Unless you have a drone, it's hard to get a shot of the wall and the city since the trees block most of the view

You can really see how much more vibrant the colors are here

I wonder what it would have been like to stand here back in the day and watch planes landing in Kai Tak Airport

When you arrive at the actual checkerboard pattern, there are actually two different walls that are painted.

The first one you'll encounter is much more neglected with the paint having faded over the years. Moss and other types of flora seem to be making it their mission to reclaim this side of Checkerboard Hill with a vengeance.

The side of the hill that faces the city, however, is much cleaner and better maintained. The paint here is still vibrant and vivid, making it the best spot for photos.

Back to Fu On Street

You'll want to go one level lower than the lowest checkerboard marks on the clean wall

You'll see a tennis court below if you're headed in the right direction

Head left along this long path all the way to its end

Climb this staircase

At the top of the stairs, continue up along the little dirt path

Continue along the fence

You will then arrive at the entrance of the field thing

It seems like a great place for a secluded run

Just beside the park entrance is Fu On Street. Follow it downward to reach the stairs that take you back down toward street level

When heading back down, just follow the yellow patterned stairs and you'll be good

When you're ready to head back, climb down one level below the lowest checkerboard pattern on the clean wall.

Turn left and follow the trail all the way to its end before climbing up a long staircase. At the top of the staircase, you'll follow a little dirt trail upward until you arrive back at Fu On Street.

You can check out that park/field/thingy and then walk a few meters downward back to the yellow marking stairs.

Retrace your steps back to Lok Fu MTR Station to end the hike.

Getting Back

From Lok Fu Station, you can take the MTR or any of the buses in the bus terminus beside the station.