You're at the Star Ferry pier, home of the ferry that links Hong Kong Island with Kowloon. For almost a century it was the main way to cross the harbour, until the first tunnel under the water opened in 1972. Today it still carries tens of thousands of passengers every day.

1A Parsi merchant and a poem

The company was born in 1888 as the Kowloon Ferry Company, founded by Dorabjee Naorojee Mithaiwala, a Parsi merchant from India. His first boats were called Morning Star and Evening Star, and since 1898 the company has been called the Star Ferry. The name is said to come from his love of Tennyson's poem «Crossing the Bar», which opens with «Sunset and evening star». Every boat still has «Star» in its name.

2Five cents that changed history

In 1966 the company raised the first-class fare by five cents. A 27-year-old went on hunger strike at the old Edinburgh Place pier; his arrest sparked the 1966 riots. That pier, with its clock tower, was demolished in 2006 amid protests, and this Edwardian-style Pier 7 replaced it.

When the boat docks, one sailor still throws the rope and another catches it with a boathook, just as in the 19th century.

3What to look for

  • The green and white boats, with their star names.
  • The mooring manoeuvre, with rope and boathook.
  • Victoria Peak, behind you above the skyscrapers: it isn't on this walk, but it deserves a visit of its own.
A green and white Star Ferry crossing Victoria Harbour with the island's skyscrapers behind
A Star Ferry crosses Victoria Harbour.

Documented

The company was founded in 1888 as the Kowloon Ferry Company and took the name Star Ferry in 1898; the 1966 fare rise preceded that year's riots, and the current pier opened in 2006.

Oral tradition

The link between the name and Tennyson's poem is the explanation passed down by the company itself.

Sources and credits

The «Star» Ferry Company, «History» (official website); Transport Department, ferry franchise records; John Carroll, «A Concise History of Hong Kong» (2007).

Photos:

  • The Star Ferry piers in Central seen from the water, with pale green roofs and skyscrapers behind: 圍棋一級, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • A green and white Star Ferry crossing Victoria Harbour with the island's skyscrapers behind: Alexkom000, CC BY 4.0.

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