In this paper, an effective strategy using potassium dichromate lotion to activate surfaces of commercial carbon papers leading to enhanced electrochemical capacitances was reported. It is revealed that surfaces of activated carbon papers became rougher and their specific surface areas enlarged after treatment. Further, surface hydrophilicity of the treated carbon papers enhanced due to the generation of hydrophilic groups such as hydroxyl (-OH), carbonyl ( > C=O) and carboxyl (-COOH) and they act as strong polar sites to absorb water molecules. With the synergistic effect of enlarged specific surface area and enhanced surface hydrophilicity, the activated carbon papers provide high areal capacitances. In general, this strategy offers a feasible pathway to make commercial carbon paper a promising candidate for practical supercapacitors and is expected to extend to other carbon based electrode materials. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.