Day: January 23, 2025

Hong Kong may not boast many beaches, but we have an incredible array of pool facilities. These wonderful pools range from those inside luxury hotels to public ones and all deserve to be visited, not only to cool off but for their breathtaking scenes as well.

Hong Kong summers can be hot and muggy, making swimming pools the ideal place to escape the heat and ease stress. Here are three beautiful Hong Kong pools offering some of the best views around.

Victoria Harbour Swimming Pool is one of the city’s most beloved public swimming pools. It’s no secret why, with stunning waterfront views, an expansive terrace, and state-of-the-art amenities that include 50m main pool lap swimming lanes, diving capabilities training tanks and two kiddie pools with waterslides and other attractions for children to play in.

If you’re visiting The Fullerton this summer, don’t miss the chance to relax by their serene infinity pool with views over Southside of Hong Kong and Victoria Harbour. Take time out from sipping on your drink to take in this breathtaking vista; don’t forget to snap a selfie near one of their poolside cabanas; it will surely look amazing on Instagram.

If you live in a large development with several towers, chances are high that it has its own pool. Swimming pools provide a perfect way to spend lazy afternoons or meet other residents; and are particularly useful when parents want their children out and moving and burning off some excess energy.

There are also pools in residential developments and private clubs. Swimming can be an excellent way to stay fit while having some fun – they often cost less than gym membership!

Swimming offers many health advantages, from relieving stress to weight loss and mood boosting – so next time you need an escape from daily life why not treat yourself to an enjoyable swim at one of Hong Kong’s pools?

Now that coronavirus restrictions have eased, some public swimming pools in Hong Kong have resumed operations; others remain closed while the Leisure and Cultural Services Department conducts filtration and sterilisation processes. Here are 10 great public pools you should visit this summer.

Every year, prizes are awarded by the Singapore Prize Selection Committee – an independent group of experts appointed by the government – as a result of rigorous evaluation of research output from both public and private institutions of higher learning, with strong impact and relevance to society. This ensures that the awards reflect high-quality research that meets society needs and has lasting value.

This year’s winners included the inaugural award presented solely to works focusing on Singaporean history: the 2024 NUS Singapore History Prize with its cash prize of up to $20,000. Wesley Leon Aroozoo’s The Punkhawala and the Prostitute was shortlisted in this inaugural competition; books about Singaporean history competed alongside fiction and non-fiction works rather than poetry and prose works.

Kishore Mahbubani, former ambassador and now chair of the NUS Singapore History Prize jury panel, commented that it is vital for societies to share in a common narrative through history as it unifies. Mahbubani highlighted this idea when speaking at an NUS Singapore History Prize event earlier this month: it “serves as a timely reminder of nations as imagined communities; having shared history knowledge helps form the bedrock for society.”

“The NUS Singapore History Prize honours scholarship’s role in shaping national identity and culture – it helps us gain greater insight into our past so that we may make wiser choices about our future, while simultaneously highlighting the value of humanities in Singapore.”

Lecturer in English department Yong Shu Hoong also won big in this year’s Singapore Literature Prize: his English creative nonfiction book Anatomy of a Wave was awarded first prize. This marks Yong’s third victory – previously winning awards for Frottage and The Viewing Party; making him the only individual ever shortlisted for three categories throughout its 30 year run!

Organisers say this prize’s main theme is celebrating writers from diverse backgrounds and ages, representing Singapore’s multiculturalism. Five writers were shortlisted in multiple categories this year with two receiving multiple awards at an award ceremony to take place on 27 May at the National Museum of Singapore.

The Singapore Prize, established by the National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS) and offering up to $20,000 cash prizes for published works written in any of Singapore’s four official languages: Chinese, English, Malay or Tamil is presented each year by NBDCS and winners are notified via email shortly afterwards and then receive their prize at a later date. In addition to a top prize awarding up to $20,000 cash prizes there are eight runners-up who each will receive an engraved trophy as well as 12-month subscription to StoryTel subscriptions; entry deadline is January 28 and more information can be found by visiting NBDCS’ website