8 out of 10 say there's no room for sex in this city

At least 28 per cent of Hongkongers have had or thought of having sex in public, according to a recent survey.

Nearly 160 of the survey's 559 respondents said they had had or considered having sex in a public pool or at a beach. Parks, private cars, toilets, offices, schools and rooftops were high on the list of canoodling spots, which also included back alleys, churches and temples, hospitals and prisons.

The main reasons for having sex outside of home was heightened pleasure and spontaneity. A third of respondents explained they lived with family, and a fifth said their living space was too small. More than 80 per cent said there was not enough space for sex in the city.

"Sex needs space," said Ng Man-lun, vice-president of the Sex Education Association. He said he was not surprised by the results and that people arrested for having sex in public should be helped, not punished. "They don't have space at home to do it and they don't have the money to go to hotels," he said.

Ng said the city was a "concrete forest" that was not built for romance. "Even holding hands is not easy in Hong Kong with such narrow pavements," he said.

Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world, with a population density of 6,620 people per square kilometre.