The Peak

Peak Tram

Over the years Hong Kong has suffered from pollution coming from mainland China. Ironically Hong Kong's energy consumption has exacerbated the issue, although in recent years steps have been taken to reduce this, lowering usage of air conditioning and much of public transport switching over to LPG.

The impact of this is haze and smog impacting visibility of the busy harbor. In recent years there have even been boat collisions. Today turned out to be pretty good for this time of year so to get an up-to-date view of the HK skyline we took a trip up to Victoria Peak, aka The Peak.

The tram ride up is a funicular rail system using a long cable in a giant loop that two trams use to ascend and descend. The gradient at times becomes super steep ~40 degrees so seats always face upwards. The result is you really lean back, facing the other way would not be good.



The peak used to be somewhere to escape the hectic busy packed streets of Hong Kong. A place of tranquility far away from the endless shopping, eateries and bars where you could relax. Not anymore, The Peak now houses a couple of shopping malls packed with shops selling inflated market junk to jewellery shops, restaurants, fast food chains, coffee shops and even a Madam Tussauds’. Bruce Lee decided to come out and pose today.



However the important attraction, the reason people really take the steep tram ride up, still remains. The view from the top is stunning. On a clear day you can see Hong Kong, Victoria Harbour, Kowloon and the New Territories all from The Peak.

Both The Peak and the Hong Kong skyline have changed significantly since my last visit. Many new skyscrapers have been added as far as the eye can see, including the monstrous 1,364ft tall IFC2 building (looks like a giant nose clipper), and new land has been reclaimed in the harbor. From here the population and available land becomes comprehensible, you can see the density of Hong Kong.