U⋅P⋅S⋅E⋅A'd: December 2008

This brief tour goes along the 中環碼頭 (Central Piers) and walks briefly along the shoreline of Hong Kong Island. There are nine piers in the Central Piers, split up with ferry service to the outlying islands serviced by piers 2-6, and ferry service to 九龍 (Kowloon) via piers 7 and 8. Pier 9 is a public pier with no regular ferry service and Pier 1 is used by the government.

The first thing to point out is that the shoreline of Hong Kong has steadily crept forward, consuming up the harbor. The next time you pass by the location it will most likely be built up.

Going to the far eastern edge of the piers is Pier 9. This is a public pier, which is usually full of people fishing. Some boats, run by restaurants in Lamma for example, dock here.

This is the 180+ degree view from the end of the pier.

The next pier is Pier 8, which is the Star Ferry pier to go to 紅磡 (Hung Hom).

Piers 7 and 8 are the most recognizable piers and are used by Star Ferry. Currently, is it the fourth ferry building for Star Ferry and was built in 2006.

This is the view inside Pier 8's public observation deck.

You can also look out and see the other "half" of the ferry building. The half-built building on the opposite shore is the 環球貿易廣場 (International Commerce Centre, aka ICC).

Here is the view right in front between piers 7 and 8:

The next pier is Pier 7, which is the Star Ferry pier to go to 尖沙咀 (Tsim Sha Tsui).

While there is technically a public observation deck on Pier 7, you have to walk through the restaurant, Watermark, before you can reach the public space.

Walking out of the ferry building and continuing along the shoreline, to your left you will see the footbridge that links the piers with the main part of Hong Kong.

You are now walking towards the piers that have ferries to take you out to the Outlying Islands.

Here are the islands that are serviced by the ferries on piers 2 through 6.

On the opposite side between Pier 7 and Pier 6 is a bus stop for Route 15C that will take you to the Peak Tram station. There is a less touristy way to go up to The Peak instead of the Peak Tram - take Route 15 instead.

The next pier is Pier 6, which goes to 梅窩 (Mui Wo) and 坪洲 (Peng Chau).

Mui Wo is on 大嶼山 (Lantau Island), which has a number of tourist attractions such as 天壇大佛 (the Big Buddha), 大澳 (Tai O), and 香港迪士尼樂園 (Hong Kong Disneyland). If you flew in to Hong Kong, 赤鱲角機場 (Chek Lap Kok Airport) is also on Lantau.

Moving on, here is a panoramic of the area between piers 6 and 5.

The next pier is Pier 5, which goes to 長洲 (Cheung Chau).

The area between piers 5 and 4 looks like this:

The next pier is Pier 4, which goes to 南丫島 (Lamma Island).

If you notice, there are two different ports that you can go to on Lamma Island: 榕樹灣 (Yung Shue Wan) and 索罟灣 (Sok Kwu Wan). There is a hiking trail that links the two ports so you can arrive on one and leave on the other. Also in the middle of the hike is a place to get some really good 豆花 (Douhua). Update: More information (and pictures) here.

Continuing on, walk along the shoreline.

You'll see signs warning about being careful when fishing. Turns out there's quite a few people who are out there fishing.

The next pier is Pier 3, which goes to Discovery Bay, which is a planned community that is popular with ex-pats and families.

You'll notice in your walks about Hong Kong that there are a number of signs directing you to Pier 3. There is even a walkway connecting IFC with Pier 3.

Atop Pier 3 is a garden which gives a pretty close view of the Hong Kong skyline.

And yes, there is still the usual collection of limitations.

The last public pier is Pier 2, which goes to 珀麗灣 (Park Island) - another planned community similar to Discovery Bay.

After you walk past Pier 2, there's usually a collection of fishermen.

That's about it. As you can see, that's all the piers for our walking tour. You can continue on down this path towards 西港城 (Western Market) and 上環 (Sheung Wan)

One last thing to note, if you do continue along the shoreline, you'll reach the ferries to Macau. You'll go up a set of stairs and will lead to the Macau piers. The picture below shows the Macau boats to your left and Pier 1 to your right.