Yim Tin Tsai, Island in Sai Kung District, Hong Kong.
Yim Tin Tsai is a 24-hectare island in Port Shelter featuring salt pans, traditional buildings, and a chapel designed in Italian Romanesque style, all surrounded by subtropical vegetation. Walking through the site reveals an organized system of water channels and restored structures that reflect how salt production and daily life once functioned here.
The Hakka Chan family settled on the island during the 19th century and developed salt production as their main livelihood. This activity shaped the land and community for over a hundred years before operations gradually ended in recent times.
St Joseph's Chapel, built in 1890, reflects the deep Catholic faith of the island's residents and shapes how people gather and celebrate together. The building stands at the heart of community life, showing how faith became woven into daily routines across generations.
You can reach the island by ferry from Sai Kung's New Public Pier, with services running throughout the day. It helps to check the ferry schedule beforehand so you can plan how long to spend exploring the site.
The restored salt pans earned a UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation in 2015 because they show visitors how this traditional craft once worked. Today they serve as a learning space where you can understand the techniques and effort that went into the work.
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