Hong Kong Photo Gallery - Choi Hung Estate

Wong Tai Sin District is one of the 18 administrative districts in Hong Kong and takes its name from the famous Wong Tai Sin Temple, a landmark of the district. Over the years, Wong Tai Sin has been transformed from a plain and simple rural village to a district with well-developed public housing estates and a population of 440,000.
Choi Hung Estate opened in 1962 and consists of 11 public housing blocks with 7400 rental flats. Taller buildings lined the periphery while the interior towers are shorter.
This is one of the city's first large-scale public housing estates that accommodated a large influx of migrants from mainland China after World War II. Designed by Palmer & Turner, a local architecture firm, the approach followed international modernist principles with a self-contained community featuring shops, schools, services, and green space. However, it was also one of the world's most dense public housing developments at the time.
It was important enough to be visited by foreign dignitaries such as Richard Nixon in 1964 and Princess Margaret in 1966.
The towers were originally grey outside, despite the name "choi hung" meaning rainbow in Cantonese. They were only given their current rainbow colours in the late 1980s.
In 2024, the government announced a redevelopment plan to demolish the estate and rebuild it to provide 9200 units. This is a fairly common approach to increase the density of the older estates amidst a public housing shortage, and the phased project is expected to finish by 2049.
Shops are arranged on the ground floors of several buildings along protected arcades. Today, it looks like time has stood still as little has changed.

The estate's towers vary in height, a design to improve circulation amidst the hot and humid tropical climate.

In recent years, the estate has become a popular social media photography location, attracting visitors especially to the playground above a parking lot that is ablaze in rainbow colours.

With varying heights, views from the upper floors are quite decent.

There is a small exhibition area in one of the emptied shops with a few boards about the estate's history and redevelopment plans.


Wong Tai Sin District is one of the 18 administrative districts in Hong Kong and takes its name from the famous Wong Tai Sin Temple, a landmark of the district. Over the years, Wong Tai Sin has been transformed from a plain and simple rural village to a district with well-developed public housing estates and a population of 440,000. Choi Hung Estate opened in 1962 and consists of 11 public housing blocks with 7400 rental flats. Taller buildings lined the periphery while the interior towers are shorter. This is one of the city's first large-scale public housing estates that accommodated a large influx of migrants from mainland China after World War II. Designed by Palmer & Turner, a local architecture firm, the approach followed international modernist principles with a self-contained community featuring shops, schools, services, and green space. However, it was also one of the world's most dense public housing developments at the time. It was important enough to be visited by foreign dignitaries such as Richard Nixon in 1964 and Princess Margaret in 1966. The towers were originally grey outside, despite the name "choi hung" meaning rainbow in Cantonese. They were only given their current rainbow colours in the late 1980s. In 2024, the government announced a redevelopment plan to demolish the estate and rebuild it to provide 9200 units. This is a fairly common approach to increase the density of the older estates amidst a public housing shortage, and the phased project is expected to finish by 2049. Shops are arranged on the ground floors of several buildings along protected arcades. Today, it looks like time has stood still as little has changed. The estate's towers vary in height, a design to improve circulation amidst the hot and humid tropical climate. In recent years, the estate has become a popular social media photography location, attracting visitors especially to the playground above a parking lot that is ablaze in rainbow colours. With varying heights, views from the upper floors are quite decent. There is a small exhibition area in one of the emptied shops with a few boards about the estate's history and redevelopment plans.

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