A detailed Macau fun guide with a Macau casino hotels review, a look at child- friendly hotels, dining, cool bars, nightlife and some luxury shopping. CITY GUIDEA grab- bag of Macau hotels and casinos - fun guide to swank beds and gaming options with a peek at heritage walks, inns, luxury shopping, nightlife, and egg tarts. Amy Fabris- Shiwith additional reviews and photography by Vijay Verghese. SEE ALSOHongkong fun guide Hong Kong shopping Hong Kong business hotels Beijing guide Shanghai guide Taipei spas Asian casino hotels.

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JUMP TOGetting to Macau Vanishing heritage Casino hotels review Taipa, Cotai Strip casinos, Coloane resorts Dining guide and Portuguese flavours Macau nightlife and bars Museums Shopping Historial Macau Walks Hotel Contacts. Glittering casino neon begins to loom over old Macau where life proceeds at a slower pace, winding through historic walks, churches, cobbled streets and past aromatic egg tart shops. The casino action is mainly in Cotai. ONCE upon a time, travellers flocked to Macau to nibble egg tarts on the crumbling steps of St Paul’s ruins and marvel at the entwined Chinese and Portuguese culture in the city’s historic quarter. St Francis Xavier's Chapel in Coloane/ photo: Vijay Verghese. Latter day adventurers drove sputtering open- top 'Mokes' carting wailing kids from Macau to Taipa and Coloane across thin chicken- neck causeways that flooded in the monsoons. Crowds dodged firecrackers at the A- Ma Temple before heading off to feast on Macanese salted cod balls in cosy European- style taverns.

It was merry mayhem, unpredictable, absurd, absorbing, languorous, and fun. Then came the casinos and Muscle MICE (a silly acronym for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions).

Suddenly, the limelight shifted from this UNESCO World Heritage Site to spinning roulette wheels, Italian gondolas and hallucinogenic neon, while one survivor, Lord Stow's Bakery (that made Macau famous for its egg tarts), determinedly hung on, even expanding from its Coloane base to The Venetian hotel and elsewhere. Hurrah! The showy extravagance of this flamboyant Special Administrative Region (SAR) didn’t stop there. Soon came the fiery Dragon’s Treasure in the world's largest special effects projection dome, followed by a Michael Jackson museum, the 3.

House of Dancing Water and an onslaught of pro boxers and Biebsters. Many have shunned Hong Kong in favour of Macau’s swanky venues, where dancing sirens, Dreamworks characters and digital mermaids join in the fun. Slide Show. E- mail Page.

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Print. Hotel Contacts. Las Vegas saw Macau looming large in its rearview mirror and by the end of 2. In 2. 01. 3, gambling revenue in Macau hit a staggering US$4. Las Vegas Strip. This once sleepy enclave has indeed woken up – fast. Old world Senado Square is a selfie magnet/ photo/ Vijay Verghese. Alas, Macau has also been dealt some dud cards.

A China government crackdown on extravagant spending by officials had a huge impact on Macau’s high- rolling revenues in 2. Resort operators were required by law to diversify from majority casino- focused offerings to embrace Vegas- style family entertainment. After a stubborn start, this begun to change as Macau is forced to consider new markets, and family travel becomes an important target. Enter Kungfu Panda and other Dreamworks characters at Sheraton Grand, a waterslide fun park and vintage carousel at The Parisian and the first- ever 4.

D Batman flight simulation ride at Studio City Macau, plus countless family themed packages and child- friendly guestrooms luring Chinese extended families which, aside from Hainan Island, have few choices when it comes to world- class integrated resort destinations in China. Perhaps not surprisingly, shopping in Macau has also become a major attraction for Chinese visitors with luxury retail arcades and high- street stores a feature of most resort developments. Despite two years of successive monthly losses until mid- 2. Macau is still the top gaming market in the world – around five to six times larger than its nearest rival Las Vegas, and its fortunes appear to be growing once again.

Bets are definitely still on for this fun- filled Asian holiday destination. Before we leap into our Macau fun guide and Macau casino hotels review, a quick geography lesson to help you get your bearings. Macau (also Macao), which returned to China in 1. Portuguese rule, is located on the western bank of the Pearl River Delta in southern China. The 2. 9. 5sq km enclave includes the Macau Peninsula, the islands of Taipa and Coloane and the 5.

Cotai, now linking Taipa and Coloane. Two bridges connect the Macau Peninsula with Taipa. Of the around 5. 55,0. Chinese. The rest are of Portuguese or other European descent, or from elsewhere in Asia.▲ top.

Getting to Macau – a ferry tale come true. St Paul's church facade/ photo: Vijay Verghese.

Zooming into Macau for a weekend from Hong Kong, chances are you’ll arrive by high- speed Turbojet ferry (tel: [8. It is about 1. 50 patacas (or Hong Kong dollars) one way.

The price varies on the time of sailing and also the day (weekend ferries and night sailings may be more expensive). The Macau pataca (MOP) is common rated with the Hong Kong dollar (US$1=HK$7. Hong Kong dollars circulate freely everywhere from taxis to shops and casinos.

Increasingly, Chinese renminbi (Rmb) is also accepted at venues around Macau at the same rate as Macau and Hong Kong currency. Any Macau guide will say you can buy ferry tickets on the day of your departure, but it’s best to pre- book as there can be long stand- by lines to get onto ferries, particularly on weekends and public holidays. Be sure to leave enough time for customs procedures at either end.

Send us your Feedback / Letter to the Editor Historial Macau Walks. Turbojet also offers services between the Sky. Pier at Hong Kong International Airport and Macau, plus services between Macau and both Shenzhen and Guangzhou in southern China. Another option is the Cotai Strip Cotai.

Jet (tel: [8. 52] 2. Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal to Cotai – the fast developing casino area. Again, expect to pay more for a ticket on weekends.

First Ferry (www. Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong and Macau. An average one- way midweek fare is around HK$1. HK$1. 50 for weekend evening services.

The new Taipa Island ferry terminal arrives late 2. Macau will be joined by bridge to Hong Kong and the Chinese border city of Zhuhai. For now you can still enjoy that first glimpse of Macau’s kooky skyline and dramatic flyover bridges as you gently rock into port. Watch American Outlaws 4Shared. Old canon looks over Macau's old quarter from Mong- Ha Fort/ photo: Vijay Verghese.

You can also enter Macau from China, through the Cotai frontier post or the “Barrier Gate” on the northern border of Macau. Money to burn? Fly in by helicopter (a 1. Hong Kong; one- way ticket from HK$3,7. The helipad is at the ferry terminal. You can also catch flights to a range of destinations from Macau International Airport. Apart from Air Macau (en. Chinese carriers from major cities across the country, a growing number of low- cost airlines, including Air.

Asia (www. airasia. Tiger. Air (www. tigerair.

Viet. Jet Air (from Danang, www. Cebu Pacific (www. Macau linking up places like Bangkok, Singapore, Manila, Japan and South Korea. Erstwhile local budget airline Viva Macau, alas, did not survive the initial stampede and folded its wings after a short stint in the low cost skies. Outside the terminals, look for the line of Macau hotel shuttle buses (most hotels have regular free services to the ferry and airport), or grab a taxi. First flagfall is MOP1.

It should cost you about MOP2. A journey to the farthest point on Coloane Island is between MOP7. MOP1. 00, depending on the traffic. It can be a frustrating ordeal to come by a taxi between 5pm and 7pm, when traffic is at its most congested and taxi drivers switch shifts.

If all else fails, you can always hail a pedi- cab (tricycle rickshaw). Not a cheap option, but a bit of an old- fashioned thrill.

Blogposts The Guardian.