Hong Kong is home to magnificent skyscrapers and historical buildings. But amidst the bustling cityscape also lies terrifying locations with a spooky past. From a decaying mansion to an abandoned school, these are the most haunted places in Hong Kong.
Our city is known for its great food, combination of modern and historical sites, and shopping. But probably unbeknownst to many, it also has its fair share of creepy and eerie places. Some of these have earned notoriety among thrill-seekers and ghost hunters, even rivalling the fame of other places internationally.
As you can expect with any haunted place, these locations have a disturbing past whether as a former mental institution, a site of massacre, or home to mysterious deaths. Residents and passersby have reported supernatural sightings and ghostly encounters. And while these locations are mostly accessible to the public, some of them are also private properties. So, you may not want to trespass these areas (and stay safe) during your spooky adventure during Halloween, the Hungry Ghost Festival, or any day of the year. Find out what the most haunted places in Hong Kong are so you know what to avoid — or not.
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These are the most haunted places in Hong Kong
There are many abandoned schools in Hong Kong but Tat Tak School in Yuen Long earned the reputation of being the most haunted one. The school was originally in the Yu Kiu ancestral hall in Ping Shan from 1931 to 1961. That is until the students were evicted by British forces. As with most sites during that time, the school was also a victim of the Japanese occupation and the site of massacres. In 1974, the school moved to its current location but the ghosts of its past also followed. The facility eventually closed in 1998.
It’s believed that the principal committed suicide by hanging in one of the bathrooms while wearing a red dress. The school is now a prime location for ghostly sightings. In fact, it was reported that when a group of students explored the site, one of them turned hysterical and started biting her friends until authorities arrived.
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- Address Tat Tak School, Ping Shan, Yuen Long, Hong Kong
Dragon Lodge might just be the most famous and desired property on The Peak but it’s not for the right reasons… The abandoned mansion in one of the city’s richest neighbourhoods has had several owners throughout the years. One went bankrupt while another died in the house. Then, it was occupied by the Japanese military. While there had been renovation efforts over the years, many of the workers reported ghostly encounters. The mansion gained notoriety for being haunted and it’s become a popular spot for ghost hunters that site owners had to increase security despite the fact the site is already abandoned. I guess you could say, it’s a sight to behold.
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- Address Dragon Lodge, 32 Lugard Road, The Peak, Hong Kong
You’ve seen it in horror movies and in a season of American Horror Story. As cliche as it may be, former mental institutions are sites for supernatural encounters. The Sai Ying Pun Community Complex is no exception. In fact, due to its haunted nature, it’s now referred to as the High Street Ghost House. It was the nurses’ quarters after World War II and was converted into a psychiatric facility. It began operations in 1974 and at that time, it was the first and largest psychiatric facility of its kind.
And you can already predict how the story goes… The hospital suffered from overcrowding and at that time, mental illness was still largely stigmatised with doctors having little understanding of the patients’ conditions. It was eventually abandoned in the 1970s and suffered from two fires. The building survived with its granite facade intact until today. But even before becoming a psychiatric facility, it’s already believed that soldiers during the war tortured and executed people there. It certainly holds a morbid history.
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- Address 2 High Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong
Nam Koo Terrace might look great on the outside, even declared a Grade I historic building, but this site holds a haunted past. Built in 1915 by a wealthy family from Shanghai, the site was seized by Japanese forces and used as a military brothel during the war. But it wasn’t until owner To Chak-man died of unknown causes inside the mansion that people started believing the place was haunted. In 1993, Hopewell Holdings had plans to demolish the site to build a hotel. But that never came to light. Instead, what remained were the screams of its former occupants as told by urban explorers and passersby.
Image credit: fong_manson/Flickr
- Address 55 Ship Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Who would have thought that Stanley’s premier hot spot, Murray House, is actually haunted? Many consider the hotel as one of the most haunted places in Hong Kong. Its disturbing past provides some answers. It first served as British officers’ quarters of the Murray Barracks around the 1840s. However, the Japanese forces took hold of the site in 1941. They used it not only as their headquarters but also as torture chambers and prison cells. It’s believed that up to 4,000 people were executed inside the building.
The building’s haunted reputation has become so apparent that the government had asked to perform two exorcisms at the site, in 1963 and 1974. Eventually, the building was dismantled in 1982 and rebuilt to its current location in Stanley. Fewer sightings have been reported since, but the building’s haunted reputation remains to this day.
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- Address 96 Stanley Main Street, Stanley, Hong Kong
There’s so much mystery surrounding So Lo Pun that it adds further fuel to many of the ghostly rumours around the decaying village. But one thing’s for sure, the Hakka village is abandoned. And anything’s that abandoned surely attracts supernatural forces. It perhaps also ‘helps’ that the village is remote, almost buried even in the Northeastern corner of Hong Kong. Now, the reason as to why the villages left (or vanished) is still up for confirmation.
However, many report that compasses have stopped working in the area, hence its name which means “locked compass” in Chinese. This added further speculation that something disturbing may have happened to its residents. Spine-chilling theories range from an unknown illness wiping out the villages to a horrifying massacre or a terrible boat accident.
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- Address So Lo Pun, Plover Cove Country Park, Sha Tau Kok, Hong Kong
Bride’s Pool has been the talk of eerie legends and that one story you can’t omit during horror nights. There have been many rumours about the exact history of this spot. But one of the most popular ones is that a bride was heading to her groom’s village. As she was crossing the waterfall, one of her porters slipped and the bride drowned. Her spirit has been haunting the waterfall ever since, perhaps where it even got its name.
But that’s not all. In 1982, a man was found murdered on the spot. And then in 2008, four car accidents took place nearby, all in the span of a year. In 2016, a man took his own life after his business went bankrupt. With all the accidents and deaths occurring in the place, it’s no surprise that it has come to be known as one of the most haunted spots.
Image credit: Davis Kwan/Flickr
- Address Bride’s Pool, Plover Cove Country Park, Shuen Wan, New Territories, Hong Kong
Cheung Sha Wan Abattoir used to be a slaughterhouse, one of the three main ones in the city. There, tens of thousands of pigs, cows, and sheep met their demise. Today, the building remains haunted due to its dark past. The abattoir was originally supposed to be an arts compound following its closure in 1999. The plan was abandoned when the artists reported that the place was haunted. That arts compound is now the Cattle Depot Artist Village in To Kwa Wan, a far cry from being the slaughterhouse it once was. But the fate of Cheung Sha Wan Abattoir isn’t so happy as it remains abandoned and in decay today.
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- Address 757 Lai Chi Kok Road, Cheung Sha Wan, Hong Kong
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(Hero image credit: hkurbex/Facebook; featured image credit: Bergman/Flickr)
Related: 11 Of The Most Haunted Hotels In The World (Or Are They Really?)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which is the haunted waterfall in Hong Kong?
Bride’s Pool is one of the haunted waterfalls in Hong Kong.
Is there any haunted mansion in Hong Kong?
Dragon Lodge is one of the haunted mansions in Hong Kong.
Written By
Jianne Soriano
An introvert at heart, Jianne expresses herself best through her writing. Her passion lies in covering food and dining, music and entertainment, and arts and culture. When she's not writing, you can find her visiting art exhibitions, watching movies or Korean dramas, or travelling solo.
