Travel to Macau: See, sleep and eat your way through Macau’s top tourist spots

by Jenny Block on

This piece was written by Red Room contributor Jenny Block.




Macau, it’s not your modern-day Las Vegas. Yes, Macau does have a number of casinos from the classic Lisboa to the enormous and glamorous Venetian. And, yes, it has gobs of neon, killer entertainment, great shopping, and over-the-top hotels. But that’s just a glimpse of what really comprises Macau. There are also serene temples, busy shopping alleys, and street food from basic to extreme.

Although once a Portuguese Colony, Macau is now a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China. The delight of Macau, however, is that from moment to moment you can’t tell if you’re in Europe or China – from the food to the architecture to the street signs, there’s a confliction of countries in every direction. It’s a strangely surreal and singular experience to eat Portuguese food in front of a Buddhist Temple, with smells of incense and ocean air wafting on the breeze and strains of English, Portuguese, and Chinese filling your ears.

To be in Macau is to be in many cultures all at once. Although you can spend your time in Macua gambling, you can also spend days on end exploring the sites, tasting the delicacies, enjoying the beaches, and pursuing adventures without ever setting foot in a casino at all.

The choices are endless, so here are a few hot spots and tricks of travel for your next visit.

[Photo credit: Flickr, Yong Shimin]To sleep

Mandarin Oriental Macau: The latest hotel to open this year. It’s the first property of its kind in Macau without a casino. If you go, be sure to book a Spices of Portugal Journey treatment in their spa.
Address: Avenida Dr Sun Yat Sen, NAPE
Telephone: 853 8805 8888
Email: momac-reservations@mohg.com
Five Star hotel with 25 meter heated, outdoor pool and fitness center
Rates: Starting at $243.00

Pousada de Sao Tiago: A former Portuguese Fortress that is now a 5-Star Boutique Hotel. Regardless of if you stay here, stop by and visit their restaurant bar at sunset for a spectacular view.
Address: Avenida da República, Fortaleza de São Tiago da Barra
Telephone: 853 2837 8111
Email: reservation@saotiago.com.mo
Five Stay hotel with outdoor swimming pool and terrace
Rates: Starting at $230 a night

Grand Hyatt at City of Dreams in the COTAI Area: High-end digs for those looking to experience the “new” Macau. Because the Grand Hyatt is part of the City of Dreams urban resort, entertainment, dining and shopping options are on the property.
Address: Estrada do Istmo, Cotai
Telephone: 853 8868 1234
Email: macau.grand@hyatt.com
Five star hotel with 40m lap swimming pool and fitness center
Rates: Starting at $143.00 a night

To survey

A-Ma Temple: From which Macau gets its name. Here you can truly get a taste of old Macau and be witness to what the first Portuguese sailors saw when they arrived in Macau almost 500 years ago.
Rua de S. Tiago da Barra, Macau
Admission: Free

St. Paul’s Church: Key to understanding Macau’s Portuguese legacy, St Paul’s is the first Jesuit Church in China and houses a rich collection of relics from Asia’s first missionaries.
Rua de Sao Paulo, Macau
Admission: Free

Senado Square: The feel of a European city…in Asia! For centuries, locals and visitors alike have flocked to the square to celebrate Macau’s major holidays. You can feel the past in your feet as you wander the square.

Around the Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro
Admission: Free

To savor

Antonio’s: Nestled in Taipa Island, Antonio’s is home to local celebrity chef, Antonio, whose big personality is in complete contrast to the tiny restaurant. Order steak cooked on hot stones or desserts that are flambéed, both of which are cooked right in front of your eyes. If you ask nicely and order a bottle of champagne, Antonio himself will saber it for you. Now, that is a sight not to be missed.
Address: António, Rua dos Negociantes No. 3, Old Taipa Village, Taipa
Telephone: 853 2899 9998
Email: reservations@antoniomacau.com
Entrees: From $13.00 – $23.00

O Porto Interior: Located in Macau’s old harbour area, Porto Interior can give you a taste of the city’s juiciest African chicken (a local delicacy) and of Macau’s abundant history. You’ll find a variety of Portugeuse specialties here as well as stuffed crab Macau, which is well worth the visit.
Address: 259B Rua do Almirante Sergio, Macau Peninsula
Telephone: 853 2896 7770
Entrees: From $9.75 – $23.00

Fat Siu Lau: Over 100 years old, Fat Siu Lau is Macau’s oldest restaurant and serves classic Macanese cuisine. Their signature dish, roasted pigeon, is not to be missed. Although, you can hardly go wrong in a restaurant whose dishes and atmosphere have lasted a century.
Address: Rua da Felicidade No.64
Telephone: 853 2857 3580
Email: fsl1903@macau.ctm.net
Entrees: From $11:00 – $23.00

To see

House of the Dancing Water: The latest show from Frank Dragone, House of the Dancing Water cost a billion dollars to produce and opened to rave reviews from audiences and critics alike. Think: an alternate Cirque du Soleil with water. Through the insanely ingenious use of fountains and elevators, they are able to convert the stage from a stage pool 3.7 million gallons of water (a record breaker in this category), equivalent to 5 Olympic-sized swimming pools to a solid stage surface. Be sure to book your seats early, House is one hot ticket.
Address: City of Dreams, Estrada do Istmo, Cotai
Telephone: 853 8868 6688
Email: contactcentre@cod-macau.com
Tickets: From $44.00 – $114.00

Zaia: Macau’s resident Cirque du Soleil show. Located in the Venetian, Zaia is as magical and inspiring as the Cirque shows that preceded it. Highlights include a polar bar gliding through space, a massive globe floating above and around the audience, and a miniature city built right on the stage.
Address: The Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel,
Estrada da Baía de N. Senhora da Esperança, Taipa
Telephone: 853 2882 8888
Email: inquiries@venetian.com.mo
Tickets: From $25.00 – $162.00

MGM’s Lion’s Bar: Locals and tourists flood the place on weekends and weekdays alike. The bar is known for its exceptional cover band fronted by the handsome and charismatic singer Baby Boy.
Address: Avenida Dr. Sun Yat Sen, NAPE
Telephone: 853 8802 8888

Words to the Wise

Rome wasn’t built in one day, and you can’t see Macau in one either. While some visitors think they can pop over to Macau and see it all in a few hours it’s important to remember that Macau also has two islands, Taipa and Coloane, which you don’t want to miss.

Going to Macau without having a Portuguese Egg Tart at Lord Stow for breakfast or afternoon tea is like visiting Paris without catching a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower. If you want to get a real taste of Macau, start with a tart.
Address: 1 Rua da Tassara, Coloane Island
Phone: 853 2888 2534

Free samples aren’t just for Sunday at Costco. Take a scenic stroll from historic St. Paul’s Church to Senado Square and enjoy a variety of free goodies from beef jerky to almond cookies.

If you’re looking to feel the thrill of Macau, try jumping off the Macau Tower. You can also walk along the outside of Tower’s top or, for the less fearless, walk along the tower’s glass floor and see the view below without setting your heart racing.

Did you know Macau has a Grand Prix? The third week of November is Macau’s Grand Prix races, much to the delight of car racing fans all around the world.

If you have a USA passport, no VISA is necessary to visit Macau. But, if you happen to have a VISA for China, you may want to take a stroll across the border into Zhuhai, China for a bit more shopping and dining.

Hong Kong is just a ferry ride away from Macau. Take advantage of the proximity and spend time before or after Macau visiting Hong Kong’s busy streets. Travelers tip: It can be very cost effective to fly in and out of Hong Kong and use the ferry to take you to and from Macau.

Macau is not like anywhere else in the world and is not to be missed. It’s not like Vegas, mainland China, or Portugal. Instead, it is a travel treasure that only 6,000 years and such a dramatic mix of cultures could create.

A former college English instructor, Jenny Block is a freelance writer for numerous print and online publications and the author of Open: Love, Sex, and Life in an Open Marriage. Read her blog on Red Room.

[Photo credits:
St. Paul’s Church, Macau; Flickr Les.Butcher
Macau-Hong Kong ferry; Flickr Michael McDonough]

Disguised Asian stopped in Vancouver — best disguise ever

by Grant Martin on

Remember a few years back when you watched Mission Impossible III and Tom Cruise kept pulling off layer after layer of his secret masks to reveal a different identity? That stuff was all make believe, right? Right?

Well, that technology might be closer than we all thought. Canadian authorities are investigating a recent case where a young Hong Kong citizen boarded a flight bound for Vancouver disguised as an elderly Caucasian man. He made it through security with a fake passport and mask, boarded the aircraft and got away with the whole deception, until passengers and staff got wise onboard.

Apparently, the passenger (whose motives are still unclear) visited the lav during the flight and magically transformed from an elderly white man with “very young hands” to an early-twenties Asian — at which point passengers got suspicious. Upon arrival in British Columbia he was detained by the Canadian authorities.

The fact that he got away with the entire charade is in and of itself remarkable, especially considering the advanced screening technology that airport security now employs. But looking at his photo as profiled by CNN, could you tell the difference?

Here’s a tip for next time though, would be counterfeiter: change your shirt.
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Top ten cities with best public transit systems

by Alex Robertson Textor on

These ten public transportation systems, in random rather than top-to-bottom order, are among the world’s best. The transit systems profiled here include some of the most impressively massive as well as some of the best-scaled urban transportation systems. Today’s focus is on international public transit systems; as such, the better US public transit systems (New York, Chicago, and Portland, among others) are not included.

1. Curitiba, Brazil. The capital of Brazil’s southern Paraná province has a widely emulated public transportation system consisting exclusively of buses running on dedicated lanes, all of which utilize bus shelters (see above). The system prizes simplicity. There is a single price for tickets. The network is estimated to be used by a remarkable 85% of the population.

2. Moscow, Russia. If you take the metro to work in Moscow, you don’t really have an excuse for being late. The sheer reliability and frequency of Moscow’s metro system makes it among the world’s best. The city’s metro system also features a number of ornately beautiful stations. Some stand-out stations include Mayakovskaya, Kiyevskaya, and Kropotkinskaya.

3. Vienna, Austria. Vienna’s public transportation system is a favorite for tourists in part due to its iconic red streetcars, which have become a symbol of the city. The city’s five U-Bahn (subway) lines join 30 streetcar lines and over 80 bus lines in blanketing the city with transit options.

4. Hong Kong. The public transportation system in this crowded metropolis absorbs most of its residents’ transportation needs. Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway takes the lion’s share of traffic. Fares are paid via a smart card known as an Octopus Card, which can be used to charge transactions in all sorts of non-transit venues.

5. Munich, Germany. Bavaria’s biggest city boasts a very comprehensive multi-pronged public transportation system, which consists of an U-Bahn (subway), S-Bahn (commuter rail), an inner-city tram network, and buses. Munich’s transit systems is efficient and its range is broad.6. Seoul, South Korea. The famously user-friendly public transportation system is centered on an integrated metro-bus system. It’s very contemporary throughout and extremely useable for visitors, with English language announcements and Wi-Fi access soon to be rolled out on subway trains.

7. London, United Kingdom. The Tube is pilloried by many who ride it on a daily basis, and in fact has a number of structural problems that render certain lines slow and not particularly user-friendly. At the same time, it has an awe-inspiring range. London is also well-served by buses, a light rail, and ferries for cross-Thames travel.

8. Paris, France. Parisians benefit from a multi-level public transportation system: the Métro (subway), commuter train (RER), bus, and the tram system. The most recent addition to the transportation system is a tramway covering the city’s periphery. Paris boasts an incredible density of underground stations.

9. Copenhagen, Denmark. The Danish capital’s highly regarded public transportation system includes a driverless metro network. The metro’s two lines are fully automated and run 24 hours a day. A major metro extension is due to debut in 2018. Buses and commuter trains fill in the blanks.

10. Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo’s public transportation system includes a subway network, light rail lines, and bus lines. The system features enormous numbers of riders, high-tech displays, and remarkably user-friendly features throughout. The subway system is also incredibly clean, and as such stands apart from most other well-used public transportation systems.

(Image: xander76 / Flickr)

Zombies with passports: The Walking Dead goes worldwide

by Meg Nesterov on


In order to promote the new show The Walking Dead on AMC, swarms of zombies invaded 26 cities worldwide (including my city of Istanbul, pictured above and filmed here) earlier this week, lurching around major tourist landmarks and generally freaking out passerby. The undead began their sightseeing in Taipei and Hong Kong, then hit European capitols including London, Rome, and Athens. More arose in Buenos Aires, Sao Paolo, and Johannesburg, before going after American brains coast to coast from New York to the show’s premiere in Los Angeles. Check out more photos and video on the show’s blog and Facebook page.

Zombies would make ideal travelers: they can walk through airport security slowly and with no complaints, pack lightly, and don’t need to be fed or entertained on planes. If you can evade the attempts to gnaw on your flesh, they’d make better seatmates than a screaming baby or an armrest hoarder on a long flight. When there’s no more room in coach, we will all walk the earth.

See any zombies on your commutes or travels this week? Leave a comment below if you escaped unbitten. Want more Halloween dead-eyed fun? Our favorite British bear does his take on the zombie genre with Dawn of the Ted.

[Photo Courtesy of Fox International Channels]

Cathay Pacific wants your dessert

by Melanie Nayer on

Pastry chefs, caterers, home cooks and Mom’s packing lunches, listen up: Cathay Pacific wants your dessert to feature on their international flights.

The “Art of the Dessert” contest asks travelers to create their own Asian-inspired dessert, and submit a photo and recipe on Cathay Pacific’s Facebook page with a brief entry on why your dessert deserves to win.

Peter Ho, the Regional Catering Manager for Cathay Pacific North America for the last 43 years, will judge the entires. If your dessert passes the quality test of Mr. Ho, you could be in the running for a free business class flight to Hong Kong and your dessert will be featured on Cathay Pacific’s in-flight menu.

Need some help? Here is a list of some of the most popular Asian desserts. Add your own spin to this favorites and enter to win:

  • Steamed pears
  • Spicy coconut custard
  • Mango pudding
  • Lotus Leaf pancakes
  • Fried custard
  • Fortune cookies

Think you’ve got the sweets for this game? Enter the contest here and get baking!