Hotel Hopping in Macau

We went to Macau on our second day. We only spent a day tour since it was just a side trip from our Hong Kong trip. We didn’t exchange our money to MOP anymore since HKD (Hong Kong Dollars) is acceptable in Macau; though MOP isn’t acceptable in Hong Kong.

How to go to Macau from Hong Kong ?

Macau is situated 60 kilometers (37 mi) southwest of Hong Kong and can be reached by ferry from Hong Kong. From our guesthouse in Mirador Mansion, we walked approximately 10 minutes to get to the China – Hong Kong City Ferry Terminal at Tsim Sha Tsui.

The ferry terminal in Hong Kong appears to be fixed and organized compared to what I’ve been used to. There are lots of passengers which terminal used to be. We purchased our one way ferry ticket to Macau at Cotai Jet for HKD 151.00. Cotai Jet sails directly between the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal, Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal, Hong Kong Airport Skypier, Macau Temporary Taipa Ferry Terminal and Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal. We chose Cotai Jet because I think its the only ferry company (so far) who sails directly to Macau Temporary Taipa Ferry terminal in Taipa Island, where the Venetian Macao is nearer compared to the other terminal.

After passing through check in counters and immigration, we boarded the ferry and left Hong Kong at around 9:00 AM. Travel time is 1 hour.

We arrived in Macau past 10:00 AM. Upon getting off the ferry we quickly walked towards the terminal to avoid the number of people who line up in the immigration counter. It was an easy immigration process after all.

Visiting the Hotels in Macau

It was cloudy and windy, maybe because we’re close to the sea. Upon getting off, we looked for the free Venetian Macao shuttle bus. It was our first hotel destination so we boarded the bus and waited for it to be full then off to go to Venetian Macao.

While on our way to the hotel, I noticed that there were only few people can be seen on the streets. And I only saw few residential areas in the island. Most are hotels and buildings in construction. It didn’t take us long to get to the hotel.

Venetian Macao

We entered the hotel and this elegant lobby of hotel welcomed us.

The Venetian Macao is a hotel and casino resort in Macau owned by the Las Vegas Sands corporation.

The hallway is so awesome. The structure and design is very elegant. I’ve never seen a hotel as magnificent as this one.

The hotel has its shopping area too, the Grand Canal. It is Asia’s most unique shopping experience with world’s finest brands. We strolled around walkways. They also have gondola ride.

I was impressed on how they did it. The cloud like ceiling, the structured facades, and the man made lagoon. It was like Venice! We can’t help but be impressed.

We then moved on and went to our next hotel destination.

City of Dreams

We crossed the street to get to the City of Dreams. It is located directly opposite The Venetian Macao. It is in the style of a podium, with four towers: the Hard Rock Hotel, Crown Towers Hotel, and the Grand Hyatt Macau (with 2 towers). I’ve learned about their Bubble show prior to this trip so I asked if where it was. Sadly it has a fee so we just decided not to watch it and spent our time instead watching these fantastic sea creature, mermaids. This work or idea really impressed me.

After taking some pictures, we then proceeded to our next destination. We went outside the hotel and boarded the free shuttle bus going to MGM Macau.

MGM Macau

The MGM Macau is a 35-story, 600-room luxury casino resort located in Macau Island. We crossed the bridge which connects Taipa Island and Macau Island. It took us about 20 minutes to get to the hotel. We didn’t enter the hotel anymore. We just took pictures from the outside.

L Arc Hotel

Located on the side of MGM is the L Arc Hotel.

Wynn Macau

Just located at the back of MGM is the Wynn Hotel. It is a luxury integrated resort combined with an elegant hotel, restaurants, designer shops, spa, and a “Performance Lake”. I’ll tell more about this on my next post. It is said to be the first Las Vegas-style integrated resort in Asia.

We took a rest for awhile in one of the benches. Then we had some photo ops. It was getting tiring hopping from one hotel to another. After awhile we moved on and walked on to our next hotel destination.

Grand Lisboa

The Grand Lisboa is the tallest building in Macau and the 118th Tallest Building in the World (by architectural structure). The hotel is just across the street from where we came from, Wynn Macau. The hotel structure looks like a pine apple.

We didn’t go inside the hotel anymore as it was past noon and we’re already feeling hungry. Instead, we walked towards the Senado Square and looked for a place to eat.

It is said that Macau is the Las Vegas of Asia. I’m not fond of calling a place in such way because I believe each has its own distinction. True enough, Macau is distinct from places I’ve been to. Macau has its elegant hotels and casino to boost its tourism. But aside from that Macau has its own culture. The people may not seem to be fluent in English but the officials are very accommodating and helpful. I found Macau mellow yet very chic and artistic country.

Trip Tips:

• HKD is acceptable in Macau though MOP isn’t acceptable in Hong Kong.
• Most hotels in Macau provide free shuttle buses from/to. We didn’t pay for our transportation during our day tour (except for the Ferry).
• There are free drinks in hotel’s casino area.
• Know the Chinese and/or Portuguese name of the structures or attractions you’re going to visit