Location
Stanley Market is located in the southern part of Hong Kong Island.
 
History
Stanley's Chinese name is Chek Chu, and it was the largest settlement on Hong Kong Island when the British arrived in the mid-19th century .A census in 1841 recorded 4,350 people living on HK Island (at least 2,000 more lived on boats) – and around 2,000 of them were Stanley residents. At that time, too, there was a "very good bazaar", though it evidently supplied seafaring people; large fleets of fishing boats berthed at Chek Chu. Like the sailing junks on many a market stall painting, Stanley's fishing boats are long gone. The busy market has always attracted people but now you don't go there to buy fish, but to get t-shirts and other tourist souvenirs. But you can find echoes of the old fishing village, and even enjoy relative tranquility on busy days, by exploring away from the main visitor areas.
 
Attractions
The small road in Stanley Market soon plunges into the market, where stalls are crammed close together, and are themselves crammed with goods: paintings, clothes, Chinese ornaments, toys shoes and boots, raingear (and down-filled jackets), camping equipment, etc. There's a waterfront road lined with restaurants. Down the road is a small shopping center plus a historical building that was moved there stone by stone. The rustic building, Murray House, is now home to a few fine restaurants. Some even have live music every night - a trio singing from table to table. The adjacent Stanley Beach is the location of dragon boat races during the Dragon Boat Festival. Drawing participants from both the local fishermen and the corporate expatriates, it becomes quite a party.