Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum
Hong Kong
Former Residence of
A Renowned Chinese Family

Going to Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong was really due to a comment made by my mom.

The front of the Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong building

Where is Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum?

Before going further, let's give you some background about who Dr. Sun Yat-Sen was. He was the founding father of both China and Taiwan because he overthrew the Qing Dynasty, the last dynasty to rule China.

The museum is located in a busy residential area in the mid-level of Hong Kong Island, if you were not told where it is, you would never realize its existence.

In my opinion, the best way to get there is to take bus no. 23 in Admiralty. The bus station is right in front of the Pacific Place Mall . Make sure to get on the upper deck. The bus will pass by the former Governors' House. If you can find a seat on your right hand side on the upper deck, you could have a better view of it since it is not open to the public. On the way, you can also see some other buildings built during the British colonial rule.

Get off the bus at the vicinity of the Hong Kong Baptist Church at Caine Road (i.e. the stop following the one at the Caritas Centre) and walk westwards along the pavement for around 2 minutes (the same direction as your bus was traveling). As soon as you turn the corner on top of the slope, you will see Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong on your left hand side.

Dr. Sun Statue in front of the museum

The Entrance

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen statue is in front of the building. This building was called Kom Tong Hall. Kom Tong Ho was the younger brother of the Hong Kong's magnate Robert Ho Tung. The Ho's family, due to their relationship with the British during the early colonial era, received many privileges. Their descendants are still very active in Macau and Hong Kong.

Remember I said that my mom's encouragement of checking this place out. She lived in this area in her teens. Back then, the family was very poor. She always saw the bright colorful lights coming out of this building in the past. That made her curious about what it was like living there.

Just by the outlook of the Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong building, you can see the legacy of the British colonial rule. Admission fee is needed.

The exhibition follows the time line of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's history. In other words, the early history starts from the ground floor. The further up you go, the later the history of Dr. Sun's life.

Right after the admission office, you will see an indoor pool that was used for baptism before.

The First and the Second Floor

Keep going up, the further you go, the more you will appreciate the renovation in the past. You can also imagine how it would be living in this building. The doors are in traditional Chinese style with the mosaic glass and beautiful woodwork. The big balcony surrounds the front half of the building.

One more floor up, you will see an elegant big ball room. This room is the exhibition hall of Kom Tong Hall itself. Here you can see a documentary about the owner of this building, his family's collections and so forth. It will show you the life of the rich and the settlement of the British in the Western District where this building is located and how this area prospered.

I personally have not been a big fan of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen. He was educated here in Hong Kong at the Queen's College (one of the renowned high schools in Hong Kong) and the University of Hong Kong.

In my opinion, many other revolutionaries did way more than Dr Sun Yet-Sen. Even Perry, whom was not very familiar with this person's history, was a bit disappointed after going through the exhibition of Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong. But we will leave you to decide if he should be called the Founding Father after reading the history facts and watching some documentaries in the museum.

If you love history, this is the place to go, especially for the period of time before the Communist China.

Outdoor Escalator on top of the busy traffic. You can either keep walking up the hill or down towards Central.

Typical Hong Kong street view by looking down from the outdoor escalator. Residence, offices and wet markets are all in one place.

Where can you go after?

After leaving Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum Hong Kong, the best way to leave this area is to get on the outdoor escalator. It is called Central to Mid-Levels Escalator, which you may have seen when you got off the bus earlier. It is also the longest outdoor escalator in the world.

You can see the old headquarters of the Hong Kong Police, antique shopping (coming soon link to Hong Kong Antique Shopping page) and/or stop by some restaurants in the Soho area. When you get back to Central, you may want to check out the Landmark or keep walking toward the harbour and take the Star Ferry to cross the Victoria Harbour and/or shop at IFC Tower.

Things You Must Know Before the Trip

Direction: MTR Central Station Exit D2. Walk along Queen's Road Central and take the Central to Mid-Levels Escalator to Caine Road, then turn right and walk westwards for approximately five minutes.

Opening Hours: Mondays - Wednesdays; Fridays 10am - 6pm
Saturdays, Sundays & Public Holidays 10am - 7pm
Closed at 5:00 pm on Christmas Eve and Lunar New Year's Eve
Closed on Thursdays (except Public Holidays, the anniversaries of Dr Sun's birth (12 November) and death (12 March)) and on the first two days of Lunar New Year

Fee: HKD10 (check out the Museum Pass)
Free admission on Wednesday, the anniversaries of Dr Sun's birth (12 November) and death (12 March)