Mui Wo Day Trip: Silvermine Bay, the Waterfall & Lantau's Quiet Ferry Town
A Mui Wo day trip is the one for anyone who wants Lantau without the Big Buddha crowds: a 35-40 minute ferry from Central, a beach town with a waterfall walk behind it, and a bike rental shop right at the pier. No queue for a cable car, no tour group. Here is how the day actually works, with real fares and distances.
Getting to Mui Wo
Sun Ferry runs the fast ferry from Central Pier 6 to Mui Wo, taking about 35-40 minutes depending on harbour traffic. A weekday adult fare is HK$33.50 (senior/child HK$16.70); on Sundays and public holidays it rises to HK$48.50 (senior/child HK$24.20). Both cash and Octopus card are accepted at the pier, with change given, so there's no need to have exact coins ready. Sailings run roughly every 20-30 minutes through the day, with the last ferry back to Central at around 11:30pm, so there's no need to rush off before dinner. For how this route compares with the other outlying-island ferries, see our guide to Hong Kong's outlying-island ferries.
The Silvermine Waterfall and the sealed cave
The Silvermine Waterfall path starts less than 2km from the pier and takes about an hour at a leisurely pace, passing three sets of falls known locally as the Lower Falls, Pearl Falls and Main Falls. Partway up, signposted paths lead to the old Silvermine Cave, a 19th-century silver mine that gives the bay its name. The entrance has been sealed since around 2009 for safety and to protect a bat colony inside, so there's nothing to go inside and see, but you can still walk up to the blocked entrance as part of the same loop.
Silvermine Bay Beach
The beach is a short walk from both the pier and the bus terminus, making it an easy stop before or after anything else on the itinerary. It's not a swimming destination on the level of Cheung Sha further down the coast, but at low tide it's known for clam digging, and it's a fine spot to sit with a drink and watch the ferries come in.
Renting a bike
The Friendly Bicycle Shop sits right by the ferry pier, open from around 10am and closed on Tuesdays. Ordinary bikes for riding the flat coastal path run roughly HK$30 to HK$90 a day depending on the shop and bike type; these are cash businesses with no online booking, so on a busy weekend you may need to try more than one shop. If you're after something more serious, Mui Wo also has a dedicated mountain bike park on the hillside above town, where full mountain-bike and gear rental runs closer to HK$300 to HK$500 for the day: a different product from the casual town bikes, aimed at riders who want the trails rather than the flat coastal loop.
The hike to Pui O
For a longer day, Lantau Trail Section 12 connects Mui Wo to Pui O along the coast: roughly 8 to 9km, taking most people 2.5 to 3 hours at an easy-to-moderate pace, with the reward of passing Lantau's free-roaming water buffalo along the way. It's mostly flat with gentle rises, not the exposed hard hiking you'd find on Lantau Peak, and it ends at Pui O's beach, from where buses run back toward Mui Wo or on to Tung Chung.
Food in Mui Wo
The town has more café and restaurant options than most outlying islands. The Kitchen does pasta from around HK$118 and pizza from around HK$129; Caffe Paradiso is the spot for an all-day breakfast; and Village Bakery bakes fresh bread daily. It's enough for a proper lunch stop without having to plan around a single restaurant's opening hours.
Planning your day
A half-day covers the waterfall walk and the beach comfortably; add the bike ride or the Pui O hike and it becomes a full day. Mui Wo is worth keeping separate in your head from the rest of Lantau: our Lantau Island day trip guide covers the Big Buddha, Ngong Ping cable car and Tai O side of the island, a different day out reached from a different pier. If you'd rather compare it against another quiet, low-key island, our Peng Chau day trip runs at a similar unhurried pace and is also reached by a short ferry, minus the mine and the mountain-bike park.
Quick answers
Is Mui Wo worth visiting? Yes, if you want a quieter, more local Lantau day than the Big Buddha circuit: a short ferry ride, a real beach town, a waterfall walk and bike rental all within walking distance of the pier.
What is there to do in Mui Wo? The Silvermine Waterfall walk, the sealed Silvermine Cave, Silvermine Bay Beach, bike rental for the flat coastal path or the hillside mountain bike park, and the longer hike to Pui O along Lantau Trail Section 12.
How long is the hike from Mui Wo to Pui O? Roughly 8 to 9km, taking most people about 2.5 to 3 hours along Lantau Trail Section 12, an easy-to-moderate coastal route that passes Lantau's water buffalo.
How do I get to Mui Wo? Sun Ferry's fast ferry from Central Pier 6, taking about 35-40 minutes. Weekday adult fare is HK$33.50; it rises to HK$48.50 on Sundays and public holidays. Cash and Octopus are both accepted at the pier.
