The following list highlights some of the best places to visiting in Macau. So if you are in Macau, I recommend visiting the following:
- Flora Garden, Sao Lazaro, Macau
- A-Ma Temple, Sao Lazaro, Macau
- Ruins Of St. Paul’s, Santo Antonio, Macau
- Hac Sa Beach, Coloane, Macau
- Senado Square, Se, Macau
- Fisherman’s Wharf, Se, Macau
- Guia Fortress, Sao Lazaro, Macau
- Macau Tower, Se, Macau
- Kun Iam Statue, Nossa Senhora de Fatima, Macau
- Fortaleza do Monte, Santo Antonio, Macau
- Skycab Cable Car, Cotai, Macau
- Nam Van Lake, Se, Macau
- Macau Giant Panda Pavilion, Coloane, Macau
- Cheoc Van Beach, Coloane, Macau
- Lou Lim Ieoc Garden, São Lazaro, Macau
1. Flora Garden, Sao Lazaro
The Jardim Da Flora is a beautiful garden that stretches from Avenida de Sidonio Pais to the top of Guia Hill. There is an aviary, a petting zoo and paths winding downhill with many steps and nooks and crannies. They are often inhabited by locals playing sports, practising tai chi or just sitting and reading. These paths lead to the top of the hill, where there is a sports field with free public toilets). From the top, it is a short daily walk to the other side of the hill, where the fortress and the Guia lighthouse are located. Another way up Gia Hill is to take the cable car from the Flora Garden entrance. It only takes a few minutes and has a great view of the park.
2. A-Ma Temple, Sao Lazaro
One of the oldest temples in the city, it was even built before the birth of Macau! It is said to have been built by Chinese fishermen to honour and worship the goddess A-Ma, the goddess of Heaven who protected the fishermen. It has several pavilions, each dedicated to the worship of a Chinese deity. Admission is free. This Buddhist shrine, which is part of Macau’s UNESCO historical site, is one of the city’s most elemental religious sites and is well worth a visit.
3. Ruins Of St. Paul’s, Santo Antonio
All that remains of St Paul’s Cathedral, once considered the finest Christian building in the Far East, is its imposing Renaissance façade, a Macau landmark at the top of a wide flight of granite steps. The church was destroyed by a typhoon and fire in 1835, but its remaining façade still shows a little of the cathedral’s former glory. Notable features include an inscription above the door dedicating the church to the Mother of God; figures of Jesuit saints; and a profusion of relief decorations, ranging from a figure of the Virgin Mary to dragons, skeletons and a variety of motifs, both European and Asian.
4. Hac Sa Beach, Coloane
Hac Sa Beach is located on the eastern side of Coloane Island. Part of Parque Coloane with its Chinese pavilions and tropical flora, the beach area includes a recreation complex with facilities for swimming, tennis, mini-golf and other fun entertainment. This is the more rural part of Macau where you can get away from the chaos and casinos.
5. Senado Square, Se
In the historic centre of Macau, Senate Square is a fascinating pedestrianised area and where you are likely to start your visit to Macau. Highlights include the striking old Senate building, currently inhabited by the City Council and generously regarded as the finest example of Portuguese colonial architecture and design in Macau. The square is also a great place for shopping and dining in restaurants serving Chinese and European cuisine. It is also home to a number of other tourist sites, such as the beautiful 17th century Church of Santo Domingo.
6. Fisherman’s Wharf, Se
Macau Fisherman’s Wharf (Doca dos Pescadores) is a fun theme park located in the excellent Maritime Museum that encompasses numerous shops, restaurants and promenades built to resemble such famous seaside towns as Amsterdam and Venice. You’ll see where the border between Macau and China runs, where you’ll spot a reworked Chinese dragon boat, a sampan, a flower canoe and fishing areas used by visitors.
7. Guia Fortress, Sao Lazaro
Located on the highest hill in Macau, it stands 94 m high and was erected between 1637 and 1638 by order of the Portuguese artillery captain António Ribeiro. Within its 6-metre-high walled perimeter stands a whitewashed lighthouse and chapel. The 15-metre-high lighthouse, built between 1864 and 1865, is the oldest lighthouse on the southern coast of the Asian giant. It is open from Wednesday to Monday, from 09:00 to 17:30.
8. Macau Tower, Se
This spectacular tower is among the most fantastic places to see in Macau, and the best thing is that you can see it from almost anywhere in the city, as its height reaches 338 metres. Both its curious façade and its internal spaces are an ode to modernity and development. Its spaces combine multiple tourist activities, conference centres, a cinema, games machines and a spectacular revolving restaurant from which the whole city can be seen. For adventure lovers, the Macau Tower is also home to the world’s highest bungy jump.
9. Kun Iam Statue, Nossa Senhora de Fatima
Dedicated to the goddess of mercy, the present Kun Iam temple was built in 1627, although references to a temple on the site date back to the Yuan dynasty of the 13th and 14th centuries. In the entrance hall there are three Buddha figures representing the Past, Present and Future, while another hall contains a figure of the goddess of mercy flanked on each side by nine Buddhas. Also noteworthy is the temple’s beautifully landscaped courtyard. Other notable features include porcelain reliefs and ceiling turrets with figures dating from the Ming period, and a unique gilded Buddha statue that resembles the famous Venetian, Marco Polo. Behind the temple is a large Chinese garden with its tree of loving couples where young lovers offer prayers for good fortune in their future lives.
10. Fortaleza do Monte, Santo Antonio
Built in 1626, Fortaleza del Monte was for several years the headquarters of the Portuguese military force in China, and later served as the governor’s residence until 1749. Today, this ancient fortress houses the 3-level Macau Museum. It is dedicated to the archaeology and science of Macau with a focus on how the Chinese, Portuguese and Macanese managed to live and work together. Also worth a visit is the Mount Fortress Garden, a delightful respite with its lovely flowering pond, and Moorish-style sites.
11. Skycab Cable Car, Cotai
The Skycab ascends above Performance Lake and, if you do it right, you can see the dancing fountains in all their majesty. A narration, complete with music, explains the views as you glide along. The most dramatic time to ride the Skycab is at night, when the neon lights of the Coati Strip are at their brightest. Be sure to keep an eye out for the giant dragon and its glowing red eyes as the ride takes a sudden turn. The ride lasts about five minutes and ends inside the hotel. You can ride as many times as you like, but you’ll have to queue each time. The ultra-modern Sky Cabs seat up to six people and are air-conditioned.
12. Nam Van Lake, Se
It is located at the southern tip of the Macau peninsula and is one of the two largest artificial lakes in Macau. Nam Van means South Bay in Chinese. A large part of the land in the southwestern part of the bay was formed by landfills. The lake is divided by the Governador Nobre de Carvalho Bridge or the Macau-Taipa Bridge. There are four artificial islands in Lake Nanwan. Together with Sai Wan Lake, these two artificial lakes cover an area of 80 hectares. Today, the lake is used for a variety of water sports, such as speed kayaking, rowing and dragon boat racing.
13. Macau Giant Panda Pavilion, Coloane
The most exotic of the native Chinese fauna is present in the Giant Panda Pavilion, a place that you cannot leave out in your list of destinations to see in Macau. It is a zoo located in the Coloane area, which stands as a natural park. It is home to the most beautiful species of animals, including gorillas, monkeys and chimpanzees. But, unsurprisingly, pandas are the main attraction here. The zoo is arranged in such a way as to reproduce the animals’ natural habitat. In its spaces you will also find rest areas and various services.
14. Cheoc Van Beach, Coloane
Sometimes known as Bamboo Bay it is smaller than the popular Hac Sa beach, but with golden sand and is cleaner and more picturesque. It’s tucked away in a lovely little bay, surrounded by forest-covered hills, just around the corner from Coloane Village. It is a fairly serene beach and is a great place to take a stroll. This beach is popular with swimmers all year round and there is a cordoned off area reserved for swimmers. There is also a large public swimming pool on the beach open from May to October.
15. Lou Lim Ieoc Garden, São Lazaro
The Lou Lim Ieoc Garden is undoubtedly the most Chinese of Macau’s gardens. It was part of the residence of a wealthy Chinese merchant. It is in the Suzhou style with pavilions, a pond and a bridge in the shape of a dragon’s tail. Inside there is also a Victorian mansion. Today Lou Lim Ieoc Garden, an exception surrounded by unaesthetic buildings crowded together, is a favourite place for locals to go out in the mornings to do tai chi, practice fan dancing or sing folk songs or even Chinese opera. Right next door is the Macau Cultural Tea House, in a beautiful yellow building that blends European lines with an authentic Chinese-style tiled roof. Inside, exhibitions on tea culture are held not only in Macau but also in China and other countries around the world.
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