Hong Kong welcomes visitors with an iconic skyline, a legendary kitchen, and lush, protected nature where rare birds and colorful traditions thrive.
Peak Tram
This cable-hauled funicular railway has been scaling the 396m ascent to the highest point on Hong Kong Island since 1888. A ride on this clanking tram is a classic Hong Kong experience, with vertiginous views over the city as you ascend the steep mountainside. It's become so popular that the whole experience was upgraded with larger trams and a bigger lower terminus in 2021.
The Peak Tram runs every 10 to 15 minutes from 7:30am to 11pm; booking in advance or using an Octopus card to pay for the ticket will help reduce your queuing time. Note that the ticket office will push the fare that includes entry to the Sky Terrace 428 viewing deck (HK$122/148 per one way/return). Be sure to sit on the righthand side going up for the best views.
Victoria Peak
Standing at 552m, Victoria Peak is the highest point on Hong Kong Island. It is also one of the most visited spots by tourists, and it’s not hard to see why. Sweeping views of the metropolis, verdant woods and easy but spectacular walks are all reachable in just eight minutes from Central via Hong Kong’s 125-year-old, gravity-defying Peak Tram. Predictably, it's become a money-making circus with restaurants and two shopping malls, but there's still magic up here if you can get past that.
The Peak Tram's upper terminus spits you out at the Peak Tower. Ascend to Level 5 and you'll reach the Sky Terrace 428, so named because it stands at 428 metres above sea level. In Hong Kong terms, this is the top of the world and you'll be greeted with panoramic 360-degree views of Hong Kong's forest of skyscrapers, the harbour and Kowloon beyond (if you can dodge the Instagrammers and official photographer touting for business in front of the best framed view).
If you're not bothered about the highest point, and even if you are, it's worth seeking out the Lions View Point Pavilion – a far more charming lookout with a cute Chinese pagoda and gate, bristling with lion statues. This is where elderly locals come to sit and enjoy the view. It's a signposted two-minute walk from the tram's upper terminus.
Some 500m to the northwest of the upper terminus, up steep Mt Austin Rd, is the site of the old governor’s summer lodge, which was burned to the ground by Japanese soldiers during WWII. The beautiful gardens still remain, however, and have been refurbished with faux-Victorian gazebos, sundials, benches and stone pillars. They are open to the public; it takes about 30 minutes to get up here and your reward is that it's blissfully peaceful. Head past the gardens and you'll find a second lookout point with island and sea views.
For longer walks, including the 3.5km Morning Trail, pick up maps from the Hong Kong Visitor Centre in the disused tram beside the Peak Tower, or download the Enjoy Hiking Hong Kong app.
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Man Mo Temple
One of Hong Kong’s oldest temples and a declared monument, atmospheric Man Mo Temple is dedicated to the gods of literature (‘Man’), holding a writing brush, and of war (‘Mo’), wielding a sword. Built in 1847 during the Qing dynasty by wealthy Chinese merchants, it was, besides a place of worship, a court of arbitration for local disputes when trust was thin between the Chinese and the colonialists.
Oaths taken at this Taoist temple (often accompanied by the ritual beheading of a rooster) were accepted by the colonial government.
Outside the main entrance are four gilt plaques on poles that used to be carried around at processions. Two describe the gods being worshipped inside, one requests silence and a show of respect within the temple’s grounds, and the last warns menstruating women to keep out of the main hall. Inside the temple are two 19th-century sedan chairs with elaborate carvings, that used to carry the two gods during festivals.
Lending the temple its beguiling and smoky air are rows of large earth-coloured spirals suspended from the roof, like overgrown fungi in an upside-down garden. These are incense coils burned as offerings by worshippers.
Off to the side is Lit Shing Kung, the ‘saints’ palace’, a place of worship for other Buddhist and Taoist deities. Another hall, Kung Sor (‘public meeting place’), used to serve as a court of justice to settle disputes among the Chinese community before the modern judicial system was introduced. A couplet at the entrance urges those entering to leave their selfish interests and prejudices outside. Fortune tellers beckon from inside.
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HSBC Building
This remarkable building, designed by British architect Sir Norman Foster in 1985, has stood the test of time – more than 30 years on, its magnetism can still be felt in Central. On completion it was the world’s most expensive building and considered an engineering marvel, reflecting Foster's wish to break the mould of previous bank architecture. The ground floor is an inviting two-storey walk-through public space, housing an exhibition of HSBC's Hong Kong history and architecture.
Underfoot, look out for the illuminated street map of Central Hong Kong, which shows how land reclamation has changed the blueprint of this area; when HSBC's new headquarters opened in 1986 it stood on the waterfront.
Don't miss the pair of bronze lions guarding the harbourside entrance of the building. Called Stephen (left) and Stitt (right), they're named after HSBC managers from the 1920s. Both bear shrapnel scars from the Battle of Hong Kong. Rub their paws for luck.
Hong Kong Chinese, irreverent as always, call the 52-storey glass and aluminium structure the ‘Robot Building’. From the ground floor, escalators rise to the main banking hall. This level is more ordinary than you might expect, but it's worth ascending to gaze at the cathedral-like atrium and the natural light filtering through its windows.
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St John’s Cathedral
Services have been held at this Anglican cathedral since it opened in 1849, with the exception of 1944, when the Japanese army used it as a social club. It suffered heavy damage during WWII, and the front doors were subsequently remade using timber salvaged from HMS Tamar, a British warship that guarded Victoria Harbour. You walk on sacred ground in more ways than one here: it is the only piece of freehold land in Hong Kong. Enter from Battery Path.
The cathedral has many unusual features, including row upon row of ceiling fans and pew seating made of cane wicker. Note the stained-glass windows to the left after you enter, which show scenes of vernacular Hong Kong life, such as a fisherwoman holding a net. Note also the tattered regimental flags hanging from the ceiling in St Michael's Chapel; these were buried during WWII to hide them from the Japanese.
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