How to Hong Kong During Art Basel 2025

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What are the best exhibitions, bars, restaurants and distractions in Hong Kong right now? Whether you’re travelling to Art Basel Hong Kong to buy, sell, mingle or meander, Ocula has your extracurricular itinerary covered. We tapped our community of local curators, artists, writers, musicians, and poets to bring you the best of Hong Kong.

Ysabelle Cheung

I love the alternative art space, Current Plans, run by my dear friend, curator Eunice Tsang. On any given day there might be a spontaneous outdoor feast, an experimental exhibition, or performances. On 26 and 27 March, they are hosting Sonic Dialogues, a performance by Jakarta-based musician Wahono and artist Ye Hui, as well as a rave with local music project Panic Library and the club, Cakeshop Seoul.

When I’m in need of a drink, I go to either Bound or Terrible Baby at Eaton HK, over on the Kowloon side, where I often run into friends. If I want a quiet moment to myself, I like to browse through zines and books at the independently run ACO Books. The bookstore is located in Foo Tak Building, a place that has hosted emerging artists and artist-run spaces since 2003.

Ysabelle Cheung is a writer and co-founder of PHD Group, the rooftop clubhouse that transformed into a contemporary art gallery in 2021.

Diana d’Arenberg

I’ll be heading to Picasso for Asia: A Conversation at M+, where a diverse selection of great Asian artists, including those I love—like Luis Chan, Wifredo Lam, and Firenze Lai—engage in dialogue with Picasso’s works.

“For a late night drink and snacks, I head to Mizunara: The Library, a Japanese whisky bar hidden away in Wanchai

I’m likely skipping crowded after-parties in favour of gatherings with friends—life’s too short for hangovers from bad wine. In Sheung Wan, the restaurant Blue Supreme is fun for an evening bite and craft beer: it’s laid-back, has a good vibe and good music, and you can have random chats with locals. For a late night drink and snacks, I head to Mizunara: The Library, a Japanese whisky bar hidden away in Wanchai—it has a fantastic selection of whisky, and watching my cocktails being expertly mixed is a real delight. And when I want live jazz with my cocktails, I book a table at Foxglove.

As a bibliophile who loves first editions and rare books, I go to Lok Man Rare Books in Pedder Building. Waka Artisans in Sheung Wan has beautiful handmade pottery and art pieces made by Japanese and local artisans and artists.

Diana d’Arenberg is a Hong Kong-based writer and musician.

Daniel Szehin Ho

Once a fixture of the Hong Kong art scene, Adrian Wong makes a long-awaited return, transforming Oi! into a surreal soap opera set with his exhibition With Love from Hong Kong. Over at Tai Kwun, my former stomping ground, Maeve Brennan’s Records traces the tangled routes of looted antiquities and tomb raiders. At a time when the art market is in full swing, a forensic look at its underbelly feels like the perfect counterpoint.

Meanwhile, Thai artist Chulayarnnon Siriphol‘s ‘The Golden Snail’ series at Tomorrow Maybe, Eaton HK, promises a delirious blend of mythology, sci-fi, and video pastiche.

Hong Kong rewards those willing to meander and get a little lost. The Fruit Market in Jordan (conveniently near Eaton HK) is, for instance, a hypnotic mess of crates, shouting vendors, and rolling trolleys—best experienced in the dead of night, ideally after a drink or three.

“Hong Kong’s ferries aren’t just for that Star Ferry selfie. The North Point to Kowloon City route offers a grittier, workaday glimpse of the inner harbour

Bishop Hill, on the other hand, is an entirely different kind of urban improvisation: locals have hauled up ping pong tables, gym equipment, and plastic chairs, transforming forgotten infrastructure into a makeshift gathering space, anchored by a recently rediscovered century-old water cistern.

For fresh air rather than urban grit, Hong Kong offers hiking trails, hidden beaches, and offshore islands. The obvious choices are Hong Kong Island’s Big Wave Bay, Lamma’s Turtle Beach, and, of course, Tai Long Wan out in Sai Kung, a taxi-hop and speedboat away.

Hong Kong’s ferries aren’t just for that Star Ferry selfie. The North Point to Kowloon City route offers a grittier, workaday glimpse of the inner harbour, while the outlying islands promise a complete shift in pace. Whether it’s a seafood feast on Cheung Chau, a lazy afternoon on Lamma, or hiking on Lantau, the ferries remain one of the city’s greatest pleasures—just be sure to check the schedule, unless you fancy a night stranded with the village dogs.

Daniel Szehin Ho is a writer and editor, who was previously editor-in-chief of Ran Dian and later oversaw publications at Tai Kwun, where he also ran BOOKED: Hong Kong Art Book Fair.

Eunice Tsang

ASMR Exhibition: Weird Sensation Feels Good at AIRSIDE’s GATE33 Gallery, curated by James Taylor-Foster with Daisy Chu, is a show that provokes so much curiosity, through sensuous, playful exhibition design and thoughtful works by artists like Tobias Bradford and Kin Lam. The thing that most took me aback was seeing Bob Ross’ original paintings!

I absolutely loved CHAT’s (Centre for Heritage Art & Textile) exhibition, Lining Revealed – A Journey Through Folk Wisdom and Contemporary Vision, a stunning display of folk wisdom and its lasting effects on artists working now. Look out for the impressive room of hand-printed fabrics from the Cultural Revolution period; the sharp colours and jolly patterns are truly eye-opening.

“The thing that most took me aback was seeing Bob Ross’ original paintings!

One of my favourite hidden gems—which I’m sure no-one will visit during Art Week—is the Aberdeen Cemetery. Set up in the 1910s, it’s a breathtaking mini-city of over 2000 beautifully crafted graves with architectural elements, facing the Aberdeen Harbour. Strolling through it is like a history lesson through materiality and portraiture.

My go-to bar is Tai Lung Fung next to the heritage Blue House—neon signs, old Hong Kong deco, dog-friendly... Happy hour there is my idea of paradise.

Eunice Tsang has been running the non-profit off space Current Plans, an experimental art space in Sham Shui Po, since 2020. She is also Associate Curator, Moving Image, at M+ Museum.

Nicholas Wong

Louise Bourgeois Soft Landscape Hauser & Wirth 25 March–10 May 2025
Hong Kong

I’m most looking forward to Louise Bourgeois’ Soft Landscape at Hauser & Wirth Hong Kong—it’s been a six-year wait since her My Own Voice Wakes Me Up opened in the city in 2019. I also recommend M+‘s Masquerades, a two-person exhibition of photography by the iconic Cindy Sherman and Yasumasa Morimura.

I’ll be checking out Michele Chu’s Kitchen at Art Basel Discoveries in the PHD Group booth: it’s an installation of artefacts animated by the artist’s ritualistic on-site performances exploring the intersection of gastronomy and grief.

Do visit the group exhibition Put On at HART Haus in Kennedy Town, particularly Doris Ng’s Project Vessel, which creates a space for intimate artist-to-participants conversations. I’d also point any visitors to Hong Kong in the direction of Para Site‘s exhibition How To Be Happy Together?, curated by Zairong Xiang.

Nicholas Wong is an award-winning poet, translator and visual artist. His work is currently on view at Supper Club 2025 in H Queen’s, and at HART Editions in HART Haus, Kennedy Town.

Leo Xu

Hu Xiaoyuan‘s solo exhibition, Veering at Tai Kwun is a must-see. For those curious about the Greater Bay Area, a visit to Nathanaëlle Herbelin‘s Feel the Pulse, a show of paintings at He Art Museum in Shunde, inspired by her residency there last year, makes for a rewarding trip.

I’ll be taking my friends to the Sham Shui Po neighbourhood to uncover archaeological gems, historic sites, and vinyl shops before heading to Ju Xing Home for seafood. For a lively reunion, I have also booked 22 Ships, which is perfect for tapas, paella, and long conversations. Finally, a stroll through Sheung Wan is a must for great coffee.

Leo Xu is a writer, researcher, and curator based in Hong Kong, and former Senior Director at David Zwirner. —[O]

Main image: Left to right: Nicolas Wong, Willem Molesworth and Ysabelle Cheung, Diana d'Arenberg, Leo Xu, Eunice Tsang, Daniel Szehin Ho.