Jun 03 2009
A day tour in Macau
On our first visit to Hong Kong, we went to Shenzhen, China for a day tour. This time, it will be Macau, China. Macau is an hour away from Hong Kong and can be reached by ferry or “catamarans”. From HK Taisan Guesthouse, we walked along Haiphong Road to get to the China Ferry Terminal in TST where the First Ferry is located. The First Ferry runs from 7 am until midnight and ticket prices range from HKD 150-180 depending on the days (weekdays and holiday prices vary) and time. If you’re coming from Hong Kong island, you can ride the Turbojet from the Shun Tak in Sheung Wan. No visa is required when travelling to Macau. Hong Kong dollars are widely accepted in Macau, in fact, it has an almost 1:1 ratio. Macau casinos only accept Hong Kong dollars while shops and transportation systems like buses and taxis accept Pataca or Hong Kong dollars.
Macau Tower
Upon arriving the ferry terminal in Macau a little past 8 am, a Filipina approached me and asked if I plan to tour Macau and I said yes. She offered to accompany us in Macau and be our free tour guide for the day. So what’s the catch? Well, the only request she wants is for us to avail of a free membership in Wynn Macau and Star World casino, and she’ll get whatever winnings in the two casinos. After making sure that she’ll be our tour guide for free, we agreed as we are completely clueless about Macau and we don’t want to waste our precious time getting lost in Macau.
ferry terminal in Macau, China
Surprisingly, just near the ferry terminal are various hotel shuttle buses that takes you to different casinos for free. You can go casino-hopping without spending a dime just by riding those shuttle buses. But we walked past the shuttle buses to head to the Fisherman’s Wharf first, just a good 5-minute walk from the ferry terminal. Sands casino is also nearby.
Roman Colloseum in Fisherman's Wharf
free shuttle buses at the ferry terminal
We walked back to the ferry terminal to ride the shuttle bus going to Wynn Macau. Aside from gaming, Wynn Macau also provides entertainment for guests with the Tree of Prosperity and the Golden Dragon.
Golden Dragon show at Wynn Macau
Golden Dragon (Wynn Macau)
Tree of Prosperity at Wynn Macau
Just across the Wynn Macau is the Star World Casino, but after claiming the free coupon at the reception area, we headed to the nearest bus stop going to Senado Square. This is the only time we spent for transportation since there’s no shuttle bus going directly to Senado Square. Senado Square or Largo de Senado is a cobblestoned street teeming with tourists and locals alike. Portuguese-inspired building were preserved which added to the old-world charm of the place. Don’t forget to appreciate the Portuguese Pavement at the Senado Square, I never paid attention on it until I googled it after. Senado Square reminds me of Calle Crisologo in Vigan, Ilocos Sur.
Senado Square / Largo de Senado
Portuguese Pavement
We walked towards the north part of the square leading us to Rua de Felicidade or Happiness Street or the food street. It is a very narrow street surrounded by old buildings, but this is one of the happiest part of the tour because of lots of food tastings along the way. Sample every food you want at Pastelaria Koi Kei, Macau’s largest bakery, from dried meats, candies, cookies and egg tarts. Rua da Felicidade is the best place to buy pasalubongs, I recommend their Almond Cookies, beef jerky and Portuguese egg tarts. You will finish treading this street with a full stomach because in Macau, you get to have a free lunch, haha…
Pastelaria Koi Kei
yummy Portuguese egg tarts
At the end of the narrow street, you’ll find the Ruins of St. Paul. What’s left of the St. Paul Cathedral or SaoPaulo Cathedral is its ornate facade after being destroyed by fire in 1835.
Ruins of St. Paul
From Senado Square, we walked towards the Grand Lisboa to catch the shuttle bus back to the ferry terminal. From here, we transferred to the Venetian Macau shuttle and head to Cotai Strip. The Venetian Macau is a tourist attraction on its own. With its Venetian-inspired structure and canals and Renaissance-inspired paintings, one will be left in awe with the beauty of the place.
Renaissance paintings inside the Venetian Macau
The Venetian Macau has a food court that offers affordable meals for its visitors. Dine at the food court and experience eating al fresco because of its faux Venetian sky.
food court in Venetian Macau
The canals in Venice were also mimicked in the Venetian Macau along with its singing gondoliers.
Venetian canals
After touring the whole Venetian Macau, you can also watch Zaia by Cirque de Soleil, a one-hour show but we skipped this due to a hefty ticket price.
Zaia by Cirque de Soleil
At 6 pm, with our aching feet, we rode the shuttle bus from the Venetian Macau to get to the ferry terminal and catch the First Ferry going back to Hong Kong.
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Hi.. i am wondering if I can for your help. I am planning a trip for my friend’s family.. I just have few questions to ask because the itinerary will be HK, Singapore, Macau. I heard that Macau is a great place to visit!
Thanks..
cyramiles’s last blog post..Reasons Not To Multitask
hi ,thanks sa pag tour sa amin…tru pix ^_^
nice places and ang gaganda ng pics!
meryl’s last blog post..WEEKEND-WATCHING MOVIE AND DINNER AT GREAT WALL CHINESE SUPER BUFFET
Whoow! Waa badets ang saya naman, gusto ko din jan! Whhaa
Ada’s last blog post..McDonald’s Free Gift Certificate HOAX
awesome pictures.. looks like you saw a lot of beautiful things on your trip !
Janelle’s last blog post..Digital Back Up
Wow sis you really made the most out of this trip. Good job. Macau is so colorful…it looks like a wonderful place to be at.
Jade’s last blog post..A dilemma: Massage or a Facial?
Oh by the way, thanks for adding my two blogs ha. I’ll add you too, is this your only blog? Let me know;) Ohhh can you add my other blogs too sweetie ( doing the beautiful eyes) ?
Jade’s last blog post..A dilemma: Massage or a Facial?
macau o macau, how much am i going to prepare if i want to get there for a tour
nice pic.
hmm.. think some day can go there..
OMG! hahaha your post made me feel like we were together when we visited macau! hahaha~ I WENT EXACTLY TO THE SAME PLACES and took the SAME pictures, but your pictures look much nicer! ah~ kinda miss macau now. and, i also bought my hippie band in H&M in HK! LOL! but after i lost it LA, i couldn’t find it in the H&M of LA……weird
zuuchini’s last blog post..I’m back from my 1 month vacation!
hi, may i know the name of the filipina who approached you? we have a scheduled trip to macau this comimg september and it will be our first time to visit the place. i’m planning to get in touch with the lady who accompanied you for free. is it a good idea to hire her? what do you think?
also, i don’t quite understand the catch of getting afree membership in exchange of the free tour, how does it work? hope you could enlighten me. thanks
Sis, binalikan ko tong post mo kasi we will be going there in a few weeks.
So this filipina accompanied you the whole day sa Macau?
Jade´s last blog ..Family Favorite: Mashed Potato Recipe
Sis, where can i get in touched with your filipina guide. . me and my family will be going there first week of november. .help naman oh. .how can I find means of transportation to go around macau. .i searched for tours but very expensive. .thanks a lot
[...] Macau. They even watched Zaia. I will definitely watch the episodes this week to reminisce my Macau Day Tour last May. Jan Di with her luggage at The Venetian [...]