Tsim Sha Tsui Clock Tower

Stepping off the ferry, you're greeted by this 44-metre red-brick tower. It is the only remnant of the old Kowloon station, terminus of the Kowloon-Canton Railway. Until 1975, travellers arriving from China got off the train right here, a few steps from the ferry that carried them on to the island.

1A station by the water

Kowloon came under British rule in 1860, after the Second Opium War, and in 1898 Britain leased the New Territories for 99 years. The railway to Canton opened in 1910. The tower was completed in 1915, but the First World War delayed the materials, and the clocks didn't start running until 22 March 1921.

During the Japanese occupation it was painted camouflage grey and the bell fell silent. You can still make out marks from the 1941 fighting on its walls.

2The station that vanished

In 1975 the trains moved to the new Hung Hom station. The station building was demolished despite protests, and only the tower was saved. In its place came the Cultural Centre, the Space Museum and the Museum of Art. The tower, saved as a compromise after that campaign, has been a declared monument since 1990.

Since 2021 its bell has been ringing every hour again.

3What to look for

• The four clocks, one on each face.
• The war scars on the lower part of the walls.
• The dome and the seven-metre lightning rod crowning it.