Causeway Bay hot spots of the moment are the computer games cafes, including Sniper, Cybercafe and Cyberzone.

Sniper opened a new branch in Jaffe Road this summer.

'The age range of most of our customers is 16 to 28, and roughly about seven in 10 are male,' said branch manager Dick Lee Pak-cheong.

'The most popular game right now is Rainbow Six, an action strategy game based on the novel by Tom Clancy,' Mr Lee said.

In the game, players have to lead an elite multinational strike force battling deadly terrorists. Exciting stuff, and definitely not for the faint-hearted.

About 30,000 people are now members of this and the Mongkok branch. The one in Causeway Bay has 160 computers, some in cosy booths, others with Formula One-style racing car seats. It is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Lee Ka-wang, 19, said: 'Maybe people wonder why Causeway Bay is more popular with teenagers than Central. It's because of the convenient transport and cheaper prices, and it's full of energy, with loads of shops, restaurants and entertainment.'

Marissa Tse Sau-ming, 16, said: 'I like shopping in Causeway Bay because there are two big Japanese department stores and Toys'R'Us.

'Causeway Bay and Wan Chai are more up to date than TST [Tsim Sha Tsui] and Central. Wan Chai is definitely the best place to buy CDs.'

The World Trade Centre has a game arcade on level five, where friends can race each other on horses, in Formula One cars or even as babies in Come On Baby, a game where contestants crawl to the finish line wearing nappies. Highly entertaining.

Teen pop icons often make promotional appearances in front of the building on Saturdays. Recently, Canto-pop stars Twins were there signing autographs.

Although Times Square, the shopping colossus in Causeway Bay, caters mostly to a slightly older crowd with its boutiques and designer clothes stores, it too hosts an arcade game centre and several eateries of appeal to a younger crowd, for example Genki Sushi and Hagen-Daaz.

'If I go out to eat with friends, it is at McDonald's and when we have money, Pizza Hut,' said Sau-ming.

For sports buffs, Causeway Bay has Victoria Park, which offers tennis courts and basketball, roller-blading and soccer areas. All are open to the public as is the swimming pool.

Southorn Playground in Wan Chai is where urban-style basketball is played. There are pick-up games on the four courts, and a seven-a-side soccer pitch. Facilities can be booked on an hourly basis between 7 am and 11 pm. Outside these hours the facilities are open to the public for casual use.

Of course, no place can claim to be a real teenage hang-out without the backdrop of skateboarders ducking and diving around and off benches and railings, and the area in front of Immigration Tower in Wan Chai is just the place.