The sixth generation of the “Peak Tram”, created in 1888, entered service this weekend. But foreign travelers are still rare due to restrictions linked to Covid-19.
The famous funicular that takes you to Victoria Peak, offering a breathtaking view of Hong Kong, reopened this Saturday, August 27 after a year of work, although tourists have still not returned due to measures to combat the Covid. The funicular, which opened in 1888, once drew more than six million visitors a year, according to its operator. This facelift, worth $102 million, provides a more spacious funicular that can accommodate 210 passengers, and a renovated terminus in the heart of Hong Kong’s business district.
The funicular stopped running in June 2021, when strict border controls in Hong Kong, aimed at curbing the Covid pandemic, put an end to all tourist traffic.
The price of the ticket increases by 70%
A return ticket for an adult now costs HK$88 ($11.20), up almost 70% from the pre-renovation period. “I hope all visitors will find this price worth itsaid May Tsang, chief executive of operator Peak Complex, on Wednesday. Tourists were absent on Saturday, Hong Kong having registered only 134,000 visitors over a year, compared to 65 million in 2018.
This sixth-generation funicular is a far cry from the sedan chairs that transported visitors to Victoria Peak at the start of British colonization. Located at 396 meters, the peak, which was once an enclave reserved for the wealthy and influential Hong Kongers, is an easily accessible place for locals and tourists to enjoy a magnificent view of the famous skyscrapers and the city harbour.
At the height of the epidemic, the Asian city-state applied restrictions among the strictest in the world, in particular towards international tourists. In early August, the authorities shortened the quarantine imposed on tourists, now three days instead of seven. Following this isolation in one of the hotels designated by the government, travelers are allowed to visit Hong Kong but are subject to a four-day medical self-monitoring during which access to certain places (bars, restaurants, etc.) is restricted.
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