Classroom lesson · The Star Ferry · 🇭🇰 Hong Kong

The Star Ferry

A bright green-and-white ferry crossing that has linked two shores since 1888

A green-and-white Star Ferry boat crossing Victoria Harbour

Photo · Wikimedia Commons

What is it?

The Star Ferry is a fleet of old-fashioned green-and-white boats that have been crossing Victoria Harbour since 1888. They go back and forth between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, carrying passengers across the water in just a few minutes. Taking the Star Ferry is one of the most loved things to do in all of Hong Kong.

Tell me more

The boats are very distinctive - painted bright white and green, with an upper deck and a lower deck. As they cross the harbour, you can sit outside and feel the breeze and watch the famous skyline go past on both sides. Millions of people use the ferry every year.

Each boat in the Star Ferry fleet is named after a star - Shining Star, Meridian Star, Morning Star. The ferries have been part of life in Hong Kong for so long that they feel like old friends to the people who use them.

The crossing takes about eight minutes. For the price of a small coin, you get one of the most spectacular city views in the world. Many people say it is the best value ferry ride on Earth.

Before underwater tunnels were built, the Star Ferry was the only way to cross the harbour without going on a long detour. Today, even though tunnels and trains cross the harbour too, many people choose the ferry simply because they love the journey.

In the classroom

Walk your class through this in 15 minutes.

Talk together

Discussion prompts

  1. 01Why might people still choose the ferry when faster options like tunnels and trains exist?
  2. 02If you had to name a boat after a star, what would you call it and why?
  3. 03The Star Ferry has connected two parts of a city for over 130 years. What else connects places?
Try this

Classroom activity

Design your own ferry. What colour would it be? How many decks? What would you name it and why? Draw it crossing a body of water between two very different places. Label the two shores and write one sentence about each.