Tourism in Macau

[1] Macau is known as the “Monte Carlo of the Orient” and the “Las Vegas of the East”, which is attributed to the large volume of casinos that are found within the city.

[2] Further to this, Macau also boasts a huge number of hotels, from budget to luxury, along with which comes a myriad of food options, activities and historical sights to explore.

[1] Evident from its name, Cotai is located between Taipa and Coloane, created by infilling marsh in-between the two islands.

Coloane is also home to the popular Chapel of St. Francis Xavier, Macao Giant Panda Pavilion, and A-Ma Temple.

Other popular places in Macau Peninsula include Ruins of Saint Paul's, Lou Lim Ieoc Garden, and Guia Fortress.

[7] As a city, Macau caters to the various needs and budgets of visitors; offering 5-star luxury accommodation, affordable hostels, and guesthouses.

Cotai boasts a collection of large, brand-new casino hotels, many of which offer weekday deals for visitors.

Atop of remaining structure is a dove, which symbolises the Holy Spirit, encompassed by stone carvings of the moon, stars and sun.

[7] Inspired by a multitude of different belief systems, including Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, A-Ma Temple is a representation of Chinese culture; considered "unique" in its inclusion of various pavilions dedicated to the worship of a variety of deities within one complex.

Macau has also been home to large scale live productions, such as Cirque du Soleil's Zaia which closed in 2012,[7] and City of Dreams' current The House of Dancing Water.

[9] US$250 million was invested into the production of this show, which claims to appeal to the Chinese market as a "modern East-meets-West fable".

[12] Gaming tax contributes to a large portion of the Macau SAR's total fiscal revenue.

[13] With over 30 major brick-and-mortar casinos, Macau includes both the "traditional gambling stalwarts from [its] glittery past and the new resorts that have appeared from western companies".

[13] As Macau relies heavily on the gaming industry for revenue, it "has been striving to diversify its economy" with business owners blaming "visitors lack of interest in anything apart from gambling".

[15] Tourists should take note that the local tender in Macau is the Hong Kong Dollar, not the Macanese Pataca.

[20] The bridge was built with the intention of meeting increasing demands for passengers travelling between Hong Kong, Mainland China and Macau via the establishment of a new transportation link between the East and West banks of the Pearl River Delta.