Tai O is home to the Tanka people, a community of fisher folk who’ve built their houses on stilts above the tidal flats of Lantau Island for generations. These unusual structures are interconnected, forming a tightly-knit community that literally lives on the water. Their enchanting world is a photographer's paradise.

A new manually operated drawbridge spans the narrow creek that divides the town, replacing an old-fashioned rope-drawn ‘ferry’ that operated for over 85 years. Currently the fishing lifestyle is dying out. While many residents continue to fish, it barely provides a subsistence income. There is a public school on the island and most young people move away when they come of age. In 2000 a large fire broke out destroying many residences. The village is now mostly squatters huts and dilapidated stilt houses.

Also known as the "Venice of Hong Kong", Tai O is also a hot tourist spot for both foreigners and residents of other parts of Hong Kong, despite damage by a fire in July 2000. The pang uks, a kind of stilt house, built right over the waterway are still quite scenic.

The traditional salted fish and shrimp paste fills storefronts at Tai O. For a small fee, some residents will take tourists out on their boats along the river and for short jaunts into the sea. Many tourists come to Tai O specifically to take these trips to see Chinese white dolphins. It is also a good place to see the sunset.

The market is a feast for the eyes, perhaps not the nose, but make some time to stroll through the stalls and alleys and check out the live seafood tanks, the vast array of dried seafoods and vegetables, some you may or may not recognize, knick knacks, and souvenirs.