The Dancing Circus Traveller

By the time I arrived in Hong Kong I had been on the road for 50 days and had yet lay my hands on any aerial equipment. Needless to say I was desperate to get to Aerial Arts Academy and get back into the swing!

Aerial Arts Academy

You can find them on their website here. It is a professional and informative website that instantly instilled confidence that this was a reputable studio. It is super easy to find and was the first result when searching ‘aerial classes hong kong’ on Google.

They also have a Facebook, Youtube and an Instagram!

Classes On Offer

They have a very wide range of classes available!

• Pole levels 1 – 7
• Hoop levels 1 – 7
• Silks levels 1 – 7
• Aerial Hammock
• Dance Trapeze
• A variety of dance, strength and contortion classes.

However, as is the nature of many studios you are required to sign up to a 4 week course for many of these. I think these may fill up quite quickly, as I was unable to join one of these courses.

And of course, if you are not in Hong Kong for the full four weeks, these courses would not be very cost effective.

However, there is a set of drop-in classes available if the courses don’t work for you! There are many dance and pole options, but less hoop and silks. I found that the majority of classes were a beginner level which might have out me off if I wasn’t so out of practice.

It’s worth noting that despite the beginner level I found some classes to be challenging enough. However, when they were not the teachers were very able to tailor my experience and adapt their class to make it harder for me.

Price

I did find that these classes were quite expensive, however, it is in central Hong Kong so it is to be expected.

Aerial classes count as 3 credits and floor classes count as 2 credits. 1 credit is worth 100 HK$ which is the equivalent of about £10. However, there are credit packages you can buy ranging from 6 for 570 HK$ to 48 for 3600 HK$. So the more you buy the cheaper they are per class!

They also offer a 20 class pass that lasts a month which is fantastic value at $1900, which would work if you were around for 2 – 4 weeks and were looking to train intensively. The month long, unlimited lunch pass is cheaper but obviously gives you less choice.

Of course you can also save money by booking a 4 week course but that won’t be workable for a shorter stay.

There is also an option for complete new comers to take a class for 100 HK$! You can do 2 different classes within 1 week for 5 within 2 weeks, so thats a really great option!

See a full price list, including studio hire, here.

Locations

There are three different locations all over Hong Kong Island.

Central is, you guessed it, right next to Central MTR station, so very accessible. I did find this quite hard to find as the entrance isn’t very obvious. I’d give yourself a couple of extra minutes to search for it as I nearly missed my class. This studio is quite small and hot. The ceilings are low which slightly hindered those with longer limbs but overall not a big problem. I still enjoyed taking class in this studio.

Wong Chuk Hang is quite a bit further south, therefore harder to get to dependent on where you’re coming from. However, I found it much easier to find as it was sign posted within the bottom of the building. This studio has much higher ceilings and a wider range of facilities. Although, it did appear to be sharing space with a fitness gym too. I really like this studio, it was light and airy and well equipped.

Causeway Bay is quite close to Central, on the northern side of the island. However, I found the walk from the MTR to be the longest of the three locations. Not an unpleasant walk though as there are plenty of places to pick up a drink or snack before class. I really liked this studio, the ceilings were lower than Wong Chuk Hang but higher than Central. The floors were sprung and mirrors covering most of the walls.

My Experience

I experienced class in all three studios, taking a range of classes!

I took an Aerial Hoop class and Contortion class at the Central Studio. They were both lunchtime classes with Nataliia Birkmullina.Find her Instagram here.

Aerial Hoop

Aerial Hoop was levels 1-3, which is technically beginner, however I felt very challenged by the session. The conditioning was difficult with inverts, pull ups and leg raises to name a few. I was pleased to learn Nataliia was quite a strict teacher and pushed us all to complete the reps. A onerous task for me, being I was so out of touch with training. The moves we performed were tough but within all of our reach and undeniably beautiful! I came away feeling accomplished, if slightly exhausted.

Contortion

Contortion was strenuous activity. I found it very hard on my body since I had not stretched in a while. I had also neglected to have a proper breakfast so had to sit out for parts due to dizziness. Despite this, I took away many exercises to continue to practice in my own time. Nataliia was knowledgable and rigorous in her teaching. It was a tough class but I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I took Aerial silks with Elicia Mira at Wong Chuk Hang, find her Instagram here.

Aerial Silks

This was my first time back at Silks after over 2 months off. I was super excited but also super nervous even though it was a beginners class. Elicia was so lovely and friendly. She started chatting immediately and was keen to know about me and my background in aerial. She quickly ascertained that the class was going to be too simple for my experience level and set about ensuring I learned something new. Not only did she give me difficult conditioning exercises, she also got me doing a totally different routine. I absolutely loved it and wrote the whole sequence down for a later date. It was so lush, I wish I had taken a video.

I took Aerial Silks and Hoop with Nicholas Tang at the Causeway Bay Studio. You can find his Instagram here.

Aerial Hoop & Silks

Both of these classes were of a similar set up. I loved that the warm ups reminded me of a jazz dance class or something. We did lots of strength and stretching which really set us up for the class and got me going. Nicholas’s energy was fantastic! I had been feeling tired before class but felt motivated to get through two hour long sessions.

The silks class was quite split in that there were a few complete beginners and then me. Nicholas was amazing and gave me some harder moves to try which really challenged me. The ceiling was quite low for silks but he was able to create a really nice short sequence for me despite this.

In hoop we learned a short routine in easy bite sized chunks. At the end of class we put them all together in a beautiful routine to music. Easily my favourite class I have taken with this studio.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed the classes I took at the Aerial Arts Academy. The teachers were knowledgeable and professional; classes varied and interesting; and the studio spaces clean and well provisioned.

It was quite pricey and possibly not sustainable for long term travel. However, there is a reason it is expensive and thats due to it’s location and quality. It is still certainly affordable if you’re looking to only do one or two classes though.

What do you think?

Let me know in the comments section!

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