Hong Kong Star Ferry
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Province:Hong Kong (Chinese: 香港 , Pinyin: Xiang Gang)
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Population :7,026,400
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Area :1,104square km (426 square mile)
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Overview:The contrasts in Hong Kong are extremely fascinating, of more than 7 million people in habiting here most are Chinese but many Pakistanis, Indians, Europeans and many other nationalities call Hong Kong their home. Hong Kong, is really the area of playing Amongst Skyscrapers.
The Star Ferry with a history of more than one hundred years , it is not only as the vehicle but also as one of the most popular tourist attractions in Hong Kong. The ferries of the the Star Ferry have been shuttling busily between Hong Kong and Kowloon since it came into existence around 1898. The National Geographic of Traveler praised a crossing of Victoria Harbour on a Star Ferry as one of the "fifty places of a lifetime".
At present, the Star Ferry owns twelve double-deck ferries and each ferry has a cabin on the upper deck that is equipped with air conditioning. There are four routs are operated now that carrying more than 70,000 passengers a day or 26 million a year.
Even if there are also other ways to cross the harbour, The Star Ferry continue to provide the most efficient, the most popular and the most cheapest mode of crossing the harbour. There are four routes are operated now, which between Wanchai and Tsim Sha Tsui, Central and Tsim Sha Tsui, Central and Hung Hom, and Hung Hom and Wanchai. The mian route is between the Central and Tsim Sha Tsui , that is what most people mean by "the Star Ferry" in common parlance.
People would cross the harbour in sampans before the steam ferry was created. A man, named Grant Smith had brought a twin-screw wooden-hulled boat from England in 1870 and started running it across the harbour, at irregular intervals.
The Star Ferry company was originally founded in 1888 as the "Kowloon Ferry Company", and it was founded by Parsee merchant Dorabjee Nowrojee. Nowrojee bought Smith's boat, and later acquired the steam vessels Morning Star and Evening Star from a Mr. Buxoo.
It is said that a regular service to the public was started in the mid-to-late 1870, and this means of transport are became very popular, which lead him successfully to own four vessels less than ten years later, named Rising Star, Guiding Star, Morning Star and Evening Star.
Each boat with a capacity of one hundred passengers, and the boats averaged 147 crossings every day. In 1898, he incorporated the business into the "Star Ferry Co Ltd" before his retirement to India.
Star Ferry provides an unforttable and scenic boat trip across one of the most-photographed harbours in the world !
