William Chan, 35, who runs an education company, was among those who made the trek and even took the time to paint the scenery in watercolours.

“My job requires me to be in town during this period,” he said. “But this is a great way to spend Christmas.

“It’s very peaceful to be away from the crowds and tourists in urban areas, and I enjoy sharing this beautiful scenery with everyone here.”

Amy Chiu and her husband Donald, both in their sixties and retired, said they often hiked on weekends and had chosen the route after they heard about the scenery from friends.

Hongkongers revel in Christmas Eve pyrotechnics show to beat the chill

“The breeze is nice, even though there aren’t as many red leaves as we thought there would be,” she said. “Christmas in Hong Kong is special and the atmosphere is great. We will have dinner with our kids and grandchildren tonight.”

Catherine Rosimo, 42, a domestic helper, also took advantage of her extended weekend break to go with friends to admire the winter scenery.

“Christmas is a big holiday in the Philippines,” she said. “We can’t go home this year, so I have come with friends.”

Over at the Central harbourfront, hundreds of people were lining up to enter the AIA Carnival just after 2pm.

Among those who decided to spend Christmas there was teacher Kian Li, who brought his wife and two daughters, saying he believed his children would enjoy the games and rides.

“We had plans to travel before and after Christmas, so we didn’t have any special plans for Christmas,” he said.

The 38-year-old added that the family of four recently returned from a trip to Taiwan, and planned to visit Japan over Lunar New Year.

Others at the carnival included 50-year-old Peggy Lau and her husband, who also stayed in the city for the holiday.

“We just went to Japan two weeks ago, and we also frequently go to mainland China, but we didn’t want to go during Christmas as we were afraid there would be a lot of people,” she said.

Besides the carnival, Lau planned to head to the Christmas market at the West Kowloon Cultural District.

In the early hours of Christmas Day, Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan celebrated midnight mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, during which he called on society to reflect on the possible dangers of populist forces.

Chow said past abuse of power by monarchs had spurred the development of democracy, but he cast doubt on whether modern versions of the democratic system safeguarded human dignity.

He then urged residents to reflect on populism, warning that it could drive people to succumb to their emotions, leading to polarisation and “less room to communicate”.

At the West Kowloon Cultural District, hundreds gathered hours before the 8pm fireworks at Victoria Harbour.

Among those waiting was YK Li, who had been saving a spot since 3pm with his family.

“This is the first year that everything has been reopened after the pandemic, our children have also never celebrated Christmas with so many people, so we want them to feel the atmosphere,” said the 48-year-old, noting that the venue had many facilities and amenities.

The father of two said they decided not to travel as he and his family had just returned from a seven-day trip to Macau, adding that the holiday mood in Hong Kong was similar to other destinations and it was cheaper to stay in the city.

Macy Sung, 27, and her mother, had also come early and saved a spot since 4pm.

“The major reason that I’m here is because I was dragged here by my mum, so this is a mother-daughter activity,” Sung said with a laugh.

Sung, who will stay in the city for three months after returning from working overseas in Australia, said she decided to come back for the holidays as Hong Kong was her home and other destinations were too cold.

Hong Kong shopping malls shun one-size-fits-all strategy over Christmas holiday

“I think that Hong Kong has a relatively better holiday mood, as it is my home, so I want to stay here for Christmas,” she said.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu also wished Hongkongers a merry Christmas and posted a video of him and his wife welcoming youth groups to Government House two days ago as part of the celebrations.

“This special day reminds us to care for individuals from different backgrounds and with different needs,” he wrote on social media. “It encourages us to spread messages of love and work together to build a society that is filled with warmth and kindness.”

Lee on Saturday listened to a festive performance by students from the Ebenezer School and Home for the Visually Impaired, later giving the group Christmas cards written in Braille.

His wife, Janet Lee Lam Lai-sim, made Christmas biscuits with youngsters taking part in the Strive and Shine mentorship programme, part of government efforts to give teenagers from underprivileged families more opportunities.

She also teamed up with students from the Vocational Training Council’s Hotel and Tourism Institute to whip up a batch of festive drinks. Lee said they made the holiday season “even sweeter”.

Students from the Chinese Culinary Institute and International Culinary Institute also showed the couple how to create lifelike fruit replicas using flour.

The city leader created a star and placed it on top of a tree made from fruit replicas and said: “Merry Christmas and may you be blessed by an auspicious star!”

The Immigration Department earlier estimated the city’s border checkpoints would handle more than 9.03 million trips over the Christmas period.

The department said it had recorded 394,727 inbound trips and 446,081 departures on Monday as of 9pm, a net outflow of 51,354.