The grand dame of Tsim Sha Tsui, across from the Star Ferry pier. The lobby still has the famous afternoon tea, and the harbour view from the upper floors is the best in the district.
The Peninsula opened in 1928 and remains Hong Kong’s address of record: the colonial facade on Salisbury Road, the harbour-view rooms in the tower behind, the fleet of green Rolls-Royces at the door and the rooftop helipad above. Service culture here is the benchmark the city’s newer hotels still measure against.
The food programme runs from the legendary lobby afternoon tea (queues form daily) through Cantonese fine dining to Felix, the rooftop bar with the harbour view.
Inside the property
Practical notes
Harbour-view categories in the tower are the stay; garden-view rooms trade the view for heritage charm at a lower rate. The Star Ferry and Tsim Sha Tsui promenade are across the street. The afternoon tea is bookable in sittings — reserve ahead rather than joining the queue.
A coastal route that works because the two ends are so different. Xiamen is soft, subtropical and slow; Hong Kong is hard, vertical and fast. Five days with a good flight between them is exactly right.
Two cities on either side of one river, with a border crossing that takes eleven minutes. Four days lets you use Shenzhen as a base for a Hong Kong visit, which flips the usual order and cuts the cost considerably.
Above the Landmark shopping arcade in Central, with the Mid-Levels escalator and the Peak Tram two minutes away. The most convenient base for a first Hong Kong visit.