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As mentioned in my blog post on Ways to Waste Money in Hong Kong, the shopping paradise that is Hong Kong lends itself to squandering your cash on unoriginal souvenirs. There are, however, a ton of gifts you can bring back with you that go beyond a silly lucky cat supposed to make you rich or a corny t-shirt. Why not bring back some delicious delicacies instead? Or an original piece of kitsch? Or something quirky and useful at the same time? The choices are near endless.

Tea

In case you didn’t know already – I am an absolute foodie. So, for me, one of the major attractions in ANY place is always the local specialties. And, when those yummy things are simple to transport and don’t spoil easily, they make amazing souvenirs.

One iconic ingestible that Hong Kong (and all of China, actually) is famous for, is of course tea. In a nice box, it makes for a practical yet pretty gift for your loved ones at home. Check out Mingcha for good quality tea that will not break the bank.

Soy Milk

Another popular drink in Hong Kong is soy milk. The brand Vitasoy (quite popular in Europe) is actually from there, so if you have any friends or family members who are allergic to dairy, vegan or even just adventurous enough to enjoy some good plant-based drinks, bring them some Vitasoy.

Cookies

What goes with milk (well, ersatz-milk)? Cookies! Hong Kong’s most famous home-grown brand for anything made from grains is Garden. Especially popular are their biscuits, and incidentally, those are the easiest to transport as well. The good thing? Both Vitasoy and Garden biscuits are available at almost any supermarket, so those are gifts you can buy at the last minute. If, for instance, you totally forgot you were supposed to even bring any stuff back. This might have happened to me a time or two…

Egg Rolls & Pineapple Shortcake

For the slightly better organized, raid Kee Wah Bakery for Hong Kong baked treats such as egg rolls or pineapple shortcake. The egg rolls are NOT what you know from your local Chinese restaurant, but a flaky sweet pastry shaped like a cigarette that melts on your tongue. And the pineapple shortcake comes prettily packaged and in different flavors. Both highly recommended!

Shrimp Paste

If tea, soymilk and biscuits or other snacks sound too mundane to you, you could also bring back a different Hong Kong food staple – shrimp paste. This extremely salty, fishy-smelling paste is used in a large number of Cantonese dishes and the locals mix it under anything and everything they can get away with. Not for the faint of heart, and not to be ingested raw, this is nonetheless a good gift for your foodie friends who will want to try their hand at cooking Cantonese cuisine.

McDull & McMug

If all this talk of food is making you hungry and you’d like to change gears, or if you simply are a more traditional souvenir giver, Hong Kong themed knickknacks might be more your cup of tea. How about a stuffed animal, maybe? Hong Kong’s own McDull and McMug come in all get ups and sizes. These cute piggies started out their lives in comic strips featuring social and cultural aspects of Hong Kong, but the franchise has since branched out. So now, many malls and department stores carry all sorts of paraphernalia with the most famous porcine residents of Hong Kong.

G.O.D.

If this is too tenuous a connection to Hong Kong, you might want to go for anything and everything available at G.O.D. The kitschier the idea, the more likely you are to find it at his local label. G.O.D. stands for goods of desire and their stuff is gaudy, tongue-in-cheek and quintessentially Hong Kong. From candles shaped like the double happiness sign indispensable to a Chinese wedding to a Chinese zodiac mug lid, if you can dream it up, G.O.D. probably has it. They have several stores across the city, 3 in Central (one at the In-Town Check-in at the Airport Express, one at 48, Hollywood Road, and one at the PMQ, 35, Aberdeen Street) alone, as well as one each in Causeway Bay, Sai Kung, Stanley, Admiralty, and the HK airport.

Temple Charms

Another fun thing to bring back (for yourself or for a friend or family member) is a temple charm. While Hong Kong is not as well known for its Buddhist temples as other parts of China or Asia, the temples nonetheless form an important part of the cityscape. Every temple will sell charms for devotees to hang, wishing for luck, success in exams, health, longevity and other boons. These charms look, well, quite charming (forgive the pun), and make for lovely souvenirs. You can, for instance, hang them from the rearview mirror of your car. There, they will remind you of your trip and calm you down whenever you are wont to lose patience in rush hour traffic.

Clothing from GraphicAirlines

The more practical-minded soul, who does not care for such bric-a-bracs, would be better off getting more useful souvenirs instead. Like a t-shirt, which you can wear and reminisce about the time spent in Hong Kong. But not one of those dime a dozen ones with “I ♥ HK” or a picture of the subway map on it. Why not go for an artier version, such as from GraphicAirlines. They have tees with allover prints of their mascot, a chubby-faced figure that is as grotesque as it is funny. And pants. And fabric pencil cases. And rings of chubby cheeks’ head. You can find their goods in a variety of stores and you can definitely find their graffiti all over town. Their merchandise is also available on their website.

Chocolate Rain

Are you into learning something new while on vacation (who isn’t?) and like DIY projects? Then a DIY kit by Chocolate Rain or one of their workshops that results in a primo present for those left behind at home might be a good option for you. This Hong Kong label describes itself as design “inspired by childhood dreams and adventure”. Their trade mark character is Fatina, a doll that dreams itself to life and saves the world one dream at a time. You can visit them at one of the Chocolate Rain stores or contact them about a workshop.

I hope this has given you some ideas what to buy as a souvenir for yourself or someone you like while you explore the streets of the exciting city that is Hong Kong. Let me know in the comments what you would like to buy or what souvenirs you have bought in the past!