The day was blessed with generous sunshine and it was extremely hot. There was quite a bit of walk to the Tai O Heritage Hotel from the bus stop, via parts of the Tai O town. I took my time, my tour would take place at 3pm, and I had time for lunch at the restaurant there. After a 20 minute walk, I made it to the Tai O Heritage Hotel.
The classic white front of the hotel scintillated brilliance under the sun. Having past noon the day ushered in its hottest hours. As I ascended the gentle incline toward the main office of the former police station, the classic structure slowly came into view, revealing a small part itself — beautifully restored, radiating an air of elegance that belongs to a bygone age in Hong Kong. Formerly the Tai O Old Police Station, the heritage became a revitalised monument and it now remade itself into a boutique heritage hotel.
The hotel was a whole lot smaller than I thought. After joining the tour, I learned that the very original structure, standing as it was in 1902, was even smaller, consisting only of what is now the hotel reception and the story above, which were the dorm rooms for the British officers. The section below the now-glass roof restaurant was an addition in the 1960s. Those rooms served various functions, including police dormitory and canteen.
A short tour taking just about 15 minutes is offered free to visitors and signup can be done at the hotel’s website. The tour guide highlighted some of the features at the heritage site that required more explanation than the display boards, or otherwise could have been easily missed.
Photo: The Tai O Old Police Station Features a Classic Veranda, a Typical Feature for Colonial Era Buildings.
Situated at the southwestern tip of Tai O and overlooking the boundary between the waters of Hong Kong and China, the former police station was the frontier station that was set up with the intention of addressing two main problems that troubled the seas of Hong Kong between the 1900s and 1950s — the presence of pirates and the influx of refugees arriving by sea. The Old Tai O Police Station began its duty in 1902. It became a part of the marine police in 1948. By 1996 the police station became merely an outpost for the Land Police. Due to the exceptionally low crime rate in Tai O, in 2002 the Old Tai Po Police Station finally stepped down from its former historic duty after nearly 100 years of service to the community.
The Searchlight
Close to the hotel’s reception one will see a beautiful searchlight, restored and preserved. This search light was a key facility for the patrolling function of the police station, providing visibility for approaching vessels, be they pirates or refugees. It is no longer in use today.
The Detention Cell
In the now-reception area one will see the charge room and the preserved former detention cell. It is actually very small but at the time it was expected to keep up to ten detainees there. The old mesh wiring was handwoven and that was preserved.
Additional Amenities for the Officers
The section where the now-reception area stands is the very original in 1902. The area that mostly serves as guest rooms now was an addition in 1962, serving the purposes of briefing room, canteen and dormitory for local officers.
The Turret — “Mosquito-feeding Watch Tower”
There were two turrets in the original Old Tai O Police Station. One was preserved and it stands next to the Tai O Lookout. It served the function of guarding and patrolling. The original watch tower was reached by climbing a ladder. There was also no large opening in its original design. One could only imagine that this was the least favorite post for the officers, due to the heat and the humid and woody environment that bred swarms of mosquitoes. The officers used to call it the “mosquito-feeding tower.”
Murder with a Gun
Rumors suggest that the Tai O Heritage Hotel is haunted, and a story seems to confirm the possibility that it is indeed so. A disgruntled Indian officer that was fired came to the constable’s office to confront his supervisor. He fired shots (and some of the bullet holes are still see in the metal window shutters), killing his supervisor. He then killed himself as well.
But that might have been the only tragedy that took place here, and only once.
Photo: The Removable Wooden Puck Indicates the Officer Who is On Duty.
In 2008, the Old Tai O Police Station underwent revitalization, thus heralding a new historic role as a part of the Tai O community that has embraced the latest trend of eco / sustainable / heritage tourism. It became the Tai O Heritage Hotel, which is run by the nonprofit enterprise of Hong Kong Heritage Conservation Foundation Limited. All profits from the hotel business go into the maintenance of the Grade 2 Historic Building. Needless to say, the revitalization had the aim of preserving some of the salient features of the Old Police Station, as discussed above.
The Tai O Lookout is the hotel restaurant of the Tai O Heritage Hotel. Before I went, I learned that its afternoon tea menu was particularly interesting. Dishes of the tea set menu feature a few of Tai O’s locally made specialties. I have heard good reviews of the pork chop bun with Tai O shrimp paste. However, when I went, I was too early for tea set. I ordered fish and chips with tartar sauce in Tai O shrimp paste instead. It was indeed delightful. I also ordered a cold drink, lemon with Tai O grown honey.
The glass roofed Tai O Lookout is an additional structure that was built specifically to serve the catering needs of the hotel patrons. The design came with sustainability features. The clear reason was that the interiors being lit by natural daylight would serve energy conservation purposes and create a hospitable ambience for the diners.
The not-so-obvious reason was that this type of structure can be taken down relatively expeditiously, should one day the hotel business fail (let’s hope not) and the property has to be restored to original conditions and be returned to the Hong Kong Government.
The Tai O Old Police Station is a wonderful window into the life of Tai O in the 20th century. In those times transportation was not as developed and a duty post out here meant that officers had to sacrifice their family time in the urban areas. The “mosquito tower” was just one aspect of the harsh conditions of being stationed in the wild.
Descriptions on site at the Tai O Heritage Hotel
Guided Tour of the Tai O Heritage Hotel
The website of the Tai O Heritage Hotel
