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Since the 1960s Hong Kong's waves have been surfed by a sprinkling of expatriate residents and visitors. Though the waves are very basic and functional compared to many in the region, the presence of the expats has, through the decades, given rise to a surfing community — one which has boomed in the past few years with more and more local Hong Kong ChiŽnese joining in.

To accommodate this boom and in order to give the sport some direction and power, the Hong Kong Surfing Association (HKSA) was formed 995 by a core group of "old-time" Kong surfers. There are now members of the HKSA. The next crucial step to promoting the sport was the first Hong Kong Surfing Cup held at Big Wave Bay in DeŽcember 1997.

Surfing in Hong Kong breaks down into two main locations: Big Wave Bay in Shek’0 and Tai Long Wan ("Big Wave Bay" in Cantonese!) in Sai Kung. Both are beach breaks and rely on the northeast monsoon for most of the swells. Sometimes summer typhoons can produce exciting breaks, but the northeast monŽsoons of winter produce the best waves. You won't find any G-Land or Majestics-style breaks here, but you can certainly catch waves in the world's most crowded city.

Some adventurous local surfers have begun scouting along the China coast for new breaks. Some travel to Shangchuan Island, to the west of Hong Kong, but it's Hainan Island that reputedly has some point breaks that are "out of this world". The search continues.