What is the connection between CLP & The Peak Tram?
These two iconic companies in Hong Kong share a bond!
Me Jamie, your host, I am English and I have lived in Hong Kong for 53 years - I know the place.
I have personally completed 2,300+ Private Tours and Experiences (over 6,000+ guests) since April 2011 and I am considered one of the finest Private Tour Guides in Asia.
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What is the connection between CLP & The Peak Tram?
These two iconic companies in Hong Kong share a bond!
CLP Pulse Building Hong Kong
click on the image to enlarge
CLP Power Hong Kong Ltd
“CLP Power Hong Kong Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CLP Holdings Limited, a listed company in Hong Kong. We are one of the largest investor-owned power businesses in Asia. As a vertically integrated power utility, we cover:
Power generation;
Power transmission and distribution; and
Customer service.
Our success is built on strong business principles and ethics. These define our vision, mission and values. We are committed to sustainable development that meets the needs of current and future generations. Find out more about our Value Framework.
Our energy vision encompasses closer energy integration with the Mainland, moving to cleaner fuels, and encouraging greater energy efficiency. For the future of Hong Kong, we believe securing CLP’s energy vision is an important step on the road to a more sustainable energy future.”
The Peak Tram
OVER 130 YEARS OF TRAMWAYS EXCELLENCE
“The Peak, Hong Kong's most popular attraction is more than just stunning vistas or great shopping and dining. It's an amazing collection of unique must-visit attractions, providing you with a diverse fun-filled experience of Hong Kong's living culture.
Getting to the Peak by the Peak Tram is an unforgettable experience. One of the world's oldest and most famous funicular railways, the tram rises to 396 metres (about 1,300 feet) above sea level. It is so steep that the buildings you pass look like they are leaning a gradient of between 4 to 25.7 degrees! Whether you are going up or coming down, you will love this trip”
5th Generation Peak Tram on display at CLP Pulse in Hong Kong
click on the image to enlarge
click on the image to enlarge
click on the image to enlarge
I am not a naturally gifted writer, I am not like a journalist, I find it difficult to string together short paragraphs but frequent blogging has sharpened my skills somewhat and I now actively search out “stories” which enables me to share what it is like living in Hong Kong.
For this blog post, my thanks go out to my great friend Bill who is also a Private Tour Guide and I might add a “proper” photographer, he operates as The Streets Of Hong Kong Private Walking and Photography Tours. He is out and about with his camera’s all the time, much like me and he sent some images today of the CLP Pulse Building in Ho Man Tin in Kowloon with some comments which set of a few light bulbs in my head, it has been over 10 years since I was last at the CLP Headquarters Building in Kowloon which is home to one of the few remaining clock towers in Hong Kong which is now a listed heritage building.
So, the picture of the CLP clock tower is one I took in 2014 and the image of the old Peak Tram was taken by Bill, today May 9th 2025
I should point out that I have been getting an electricity bill every 2 months from CLP Power for decades now!
So CLP moved to new headquarters in the Kai Tak district in Hong Kong and the old headquarters in Ho Man Tin District was turned into CLP Pulse which is a museum and exhibition of sorts and highlights the the Kadoorie Family.
That ladies and gentleman is the link between CLP Power and the Peak Tram and I am guessing that this is not widely known in Hong Kong but as a Private Tour Guide you have to know a lot of stuff about a lot of stuff.
Yes, the Kadoorie Family is an iconic family in Hong Kong and they arrived in Hong Kong over 160 years ago and are one of the most successful business people in Hong Kong with many fingers in many pies.
Really the title of the blog post should read as
What is the connection between CLP Power, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels, The Peninsula Hotel Group and The Peak Tram | Peak Tower in Hong Kong?
My blog template does not allow for such as long title!!
The Kadoorie family and it’s proxies have controlling share holding in CLP Power and Sir Michael Kadoorie is the chairman and has been for a very long time.
The Kadoorie family and it’s proxies have controlling share holding in the Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels and Sir Michael Kadoorie and his son Philip are the co - chairman (s)
The Peninsula Hotel Group is owned by Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels and the Peak Tram and Peak Tower are owned by Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels.
The Kadoorie family are Jewish and I do Jewish Heritage Tours so I have a soft spot for the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong, I just love been in the lobby talking about the Kadoorie Family and there very deep connections with Hong Kong, I do NOT have a soft spot for the Peak Tram and the Peak Tower, if you read my blog posts, well I have written many articles about the Peak Tram and by extension the Peak Tower - i mean seriously you cannot beat the history of the Peak Tram going all the way back to 1888 but these days it is in many respects a tourist trap, it carries 7+ million people up and down from Victoria Peak every year but long lines these days are out of control and a recent major overhaul of the Peak Tram which was completed in 2022 and included new trams with a capacity of 210 people up from 120 people has perversely made the situation much worse rather then remedy a long standing issue despite comments from the management that paint a rosy picture.
I have a feeling that if Sir Michael or his son Philip went to the Peak Tram on a weekend or holiday they would be shocked by the out of control crowds at both the Tram and the Peak Tower and these days even normal week days have an issue with long lines.
Knowing what I know about CLP and the Peninsula Hotel (and other properties they own in Hong Kong) it does not make sense that they would tolerate all the negative press and reviews about the Peak Tram and Peak Tower, it seems that perhaps they take a hands off approach and allow management a lot of latitude to make decisions, well I suspect management seem to think that the Peak Tram and the Peak Tower are cash cows, they are a victim of their own success given that the Peak Tram is world famous and iconic and every pricing decision they make screams of gouging an adoring public.
It came to a head in early May 2025 when 2 hour waiting times every day all day were the norm.
As you can imagine this generated a lot of negative press reporting and as usual NO comment from management, they give the impression that they simply do not care and these days I image they get a lot of bookings for tickets online and once the money is in the till so to speak…..
This is a long standing problem for well over 15 years now and yet to me there is a very simple solution.
The Peak Tram has 2 problems
long lines from mid morning onwards, going up and down and it gets worse the longer the day goes on
it is also subject to weather conditions. people go on the Tram simply to get to Victoria Peak for the worlds greatest city views but if it is cloudy, foggy or rainy then there are no views to be had, so why go up there and most people go the Peak Tower Sky Terrace 428 and pay a lot of money for the view.
This is why Management are not getting it right, they need to find a way to get people to go earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon in other words spread the load, most people like to go there from around 10am onwards! and to be fair to the public they have no way of knowing how long the line is at the Garden Road Terminus in Central to go up to Victoria Peak, it is quite a walk uphill from the nearest subway station and once there, well they do not really have a choice particularly if they have pre booked and pre paid the ticket cost
Quite simply what they should do as a public service and smooth out the waiting time is install cameras with a live feed of the Peak Tram Terminus at Garden Road (going up) and the Peak Tower Terminus (going down) this will enable people to decide if they should go when there are huge lines, I can guarantee that most people will simply go earlier (if they research in advance) or go later.
There are also weather cam links on the Peak Tram website hidden away in the FAQ section, I have the links on my website and it takes a few seconds to get a snapshot on the viability of the view if weather conditions are poor
To me it makes no sense for the Peak Tram to ignore these simple solutions, at least then people will appreciate the opportunity to change their plans and if they choose to stand in a long line or have no view then that cannot be pinned on the Peak Tram or Peak Tower Management.
There is still one problem and that is a lot of Tour Companies in Hong Kong who handle Mainland Chinese Tourists will still go to Victoria Peak on a coach or on the tram (one way) regardless of the lines or poor weather and the poor tourists have no choice.
Myself and my friends who run Private Tours are full of solutions when it comes to getting to Victoria Peak!
…. and I am honestly surprised that the Hong Kong Government has NOT put up cameras near the Garden Road Peak Tram Terminus with a live video feed so you can identify if queueing is going to be an issue but frankly it should really be done by the Peak Tram Company, surely it is in their interests to offer a great public service?
So there you go, if you like you can go to my website menu and click on the link Victoria Peak HK a lot of blog posts covering this iconic place and lots of comments about the Peak Tram and the Peak Tower.
ps and the CLP Pulse is absolutely worth a visit!
© Jamie Lloyd | J3 Consultants Hong Kong | J3 Private Tours Hong Kong |
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