7 Ways to Have a Winning Time in Macau (Without Gambling)

Planning a trip to Macau can be deceiving. For the traveler with a casual interest, a quick online search finds countless articles about Macau's colonial Portuguese charm and its metamorphosis into the Las Vegas of Asia. Most westerners come to Macau, a special Administrative Region within China, as a side trip from Hong Kong (a mere 40 miles away) looking for the intriguing blend of cultures for which Macau is historically known. Chinese and Southeast Asians come to Macau for its casinos, as it is the only place in all of Southeast Asia where gambling is legal. In 2005, nearly 39 million people gambled away $6 billion in Las Vegas, while only 17 million people spent almost just as much, $5.6 billion, in Macau's casinos. In the same year, Macau's historic center was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list. While Macau's mixed sino-lusitanian heritage fermented for 400 years, its modern gambling culture is being pushed to develop at a break-neck speed, with ever more luxury casinos and resorts to open in the coming months. Even if you have no interest in gambling, you will still find this new Macau can be a tremendously rewarding peek into the region's history and future.

The Portuguese took control of the tiny port of Macau in 1557, and it quickly became one of the most important ports within the huge Portuguese trading empire. Along with trade in spices and luxury items, Macau also served as a major gateway for Christianity to enter China. What you'll find today in Macau's old center are the restored remnants of the Portuguese infrastructure built to support the trade in goods and religion.

The stunning remains of St. Paul's Church on the Rua de São Paulo, on top of a hill, are bound to become Macau's cultural trademark. A fire destroyed the 17th century church and much of its accompanying monastery in 1835, leaving only the imposing, and improbable, free-standing façade. Before climbing to the top to have your picture taken in the window, contemplate the mix of Christian, Chinese and Japanese imagery invoked in the many carvings and statues that are still intact. The tiny Buddhist temple of Na Tcha is practically adjacent to the ruins and easily plays the role of cultural comparison to the church.

Further exploration of the old center will take you through a tangle of bustling streets filled with crumbling modern cement buildings alongside their more sturdy looking colonial counterparts. Curly wrought iron, wooden shutters and soft-hued paints contrast against the bold red lines of Chinese shop signs. Around one corner there's the entrance to a simple Buddhist temple; around another is the imposing door of a Catholic church. Whether you stick to the main, restored center or wander farther afield, Macau rewards those who walk. Colonial beauties, including graveyards, libraries, forts and an opera house, mingle with the bustle of everyday modern life on the street level. Pick up any number of informative pamphlets at the tourism office in the meticulously restored and rebuilt Senado Square for walking tour ideas.

While on your walk through old Macau, stop in one of the numerous churches that anchor the many public squares. Remember, old Macau was built like a European city -- it's not hard to find a church. While the casinos and Fisherman's Wharf (see below) attempt to recreate the splendors of Europe (and in the case of the Venetian, a copy of an American enterprise to copy Europe), these churches are the original masterworks of cultural and architectural importation. Relics of a religious power long gone, they wear their age with pride. Unlike visiting churches in Latin America, where one knows that Catholicism still exercises a considerable amount of influence amongst the people, in Macau the visitor is left with a sense of the religion's isolation in the region's history. For a few moments, though, you are truly in Europe. The Macanese, people of mixed Chinese and Portuguese descent, are a dwindling breed in Macau as thousands of Chinese move to the tiny Special Administrative Region every year. Step out of the quiet pause of the church sanctuary and back into the flow of this growing economy.

Go to Temple

After lighting a votive candle in church, burn some incense at the Temple of A-Ma, Macau's most important Buddhist/Taoist temple (Rua de S. Tiago da Barra). Legend has it that a poor girl once approached the boatmen on the mainland to get free passage to Canton. All refused but a lowly, poor fisherman. When a storm swelled and destroyed all the boats in the harbor, only the boat carrying the young girl was spared. The boat and girl washed ashore on what is known as Barra Hill, where she revealed herself to be the goddess A-Ma. Built into the hillside, her temple's highest altars give a great view of the 600 year-old religious complex and Pearl River Delta below (and unfortunately a large ring road, but such is the nature of development). And yes, that is the People's Republic of China across the water.

While a visit to the temple on a regular day will find the place subdued, a visit during a festival is just the opposite. The Chinese calendar is packed with celebrations, but the most important one for A-Ma is on the 23rd day of the 3rd moon of the year, in either late April or early May, and lasts for a few days. (This is the same festival celebrated for Tin Hau in Hong Kong; these are the same goddess, with different names and wildly different modern celebrations. What you'll find in Macau feels much more organic than the over-the-top to-do in Hong Kong.) The Temple is enveloped in a fragrant cloud as worshippers burn innumerous sticks and coils of incense in honor of the goddess of seafarers; dragon dances take place in front of the temple, as well as Cantonese operas. The clanging of gongs and symbols mixes with the smell, taste and sight of the incense, for a full sensory invocation of the goddess. Hundreds, if not thousands, of firecrackers are also set off during the day, warding off evil spirits and adding to the festive atmosphere.

Not so long ago, Macau was made up of only a small peninsula and two islands. Today, the islands, Colôane and Taipa, have been joined by landfill for the planned centerpiece of the new Macau: The Cotai Strip. Thanks to the brainstorming and business dealing of the Sands Corporation and Wynn Resorts, who already have large casino complexes in Macau proper, in 2007 the Strip will be home to a new $1.6 billion Venetian Casino & Resort (www.venetianmacao.com), just like the one in Vegas, and in later years a Four Seasons Resort and a Shangri-La, among others. For now, you're only likely to see this massive construction zone on a drive out to the beach. If you want a better view, head over to the Macau Tower, on a spit of landfill on the southern edge of the city. From 730 ft. up, you can see the construction sites and get a larger sense of just how much of modern Macau is built on reclaimed land (a good 2/3 of it).

However, it would be a shame to visit Macau without getting a taste of the opulence that tinges the gaming atmosphere. Like Las Vegas, Macau has its fair share of intriguing, if completely fabricated, cultural wonders. If you'd like to take in the world's largest chandelier, you need not wait for the Cotai strip: It's in the lobby of the Sands (Largo de Monte Carlo, No. 203; tel. 853/883-388; www.sands.com.mo), hanging in the atrium from several floors above and weighing 100,000 lbs. Imagine an upside-down, 238,000 watt, wedding cake. Or, check out the lobby of the Grand Emperor (288 Avenida Comercial De Macau; tel. 853/2888-9988; www.grandemperor.com), the brainchild of Hong Kong native son Jackie Chan. You'll know this casino and hotel by the Russian men dressed as ever-so-serious Beefeater soldiers standing guard outside and the gilded carriage waiting at the curb. Inside there are portraits of British royalty and real gold bars and splashes of diamonds embedded in the floor.

Bet Your Money on Dessert

After exploring the snarl of central Macau, catch a bus to the town square of Colôane Island, the farthest of the two islands. Casino-free and only a few miles from downtown, Colôane used to be a retreat for prominent Portuguese and Macanese families, many of whom built houses here. Colôane retains that same calm atmosphere, with the exception of one major pilgrimage site: The tiny Lord Stow's bakery (Colôane Town Square; tel. 853/882-534; www.lordstow.com). Touted by basically everyone as the best Portuguese egg tart in all Macau (and Asia, as the tiny powerhouse has branches throughout the region), these little yellow tarts are the perfect treat to help you contemplate Macau's rich (and gooey) culinary history: A blending of Portuguese gastronomic nostalgia and Chinese innovation. The egg tart, however, is the product of an English ex-pat's experimentation with the traditional Iberian pastry in the late 1980s. Get in line with dozens of regional tourists who buy the tarts by the armload to take home to family.

A few steps away from Lord Stow's puts you directly in the middle of village life -- which is not controlled by egg tart mania or casinos. A light and simple stroll along the waterfront will reveal intimate temples, the Chapel of St. Francis of Xavier, colonial Portuguese architecture and more cafes.

Since you're already on Colôane, why not stay the night? If you're coming to Macau as a side trip from Hong Kong, then you'll welcome a stay at a hotel or resort along the somewhat isolated beaches. Beachside resorts in Hong Kong are situated in the poshest of surroundings, while in Macau things are a bit more relaxed. Considering all the money the high rollers bring to the casino developments, you can still stay at the secluded Westin Resort (1918 Estrada de Hac Sa; tel. 853/871-111; www.westin-macau.com) for around $250 a night, or at the isolated Pousada de Colôane (Praia de Cheoc Van; tel. 853/882-143; www.hotelpcoloane.com.mo) for around $100. Both are situated on a beach.

The beaches of Cheoc Van and Hac Sa, the 50-acre Seac Pai Van Park, and the numerous hiking trails throughout the island provide a nice respite from the dust of construction and smog of downtown. But remember, the Macau you visit this year is very different from the Macau you could have seen 5 years ago and is bound to be unlike the Macau you'll find in years to come. Currently, there are no plans to develop Colôane. Yet it is not unthinkable that in all the excitement of Macau's growing status as a luxury destination that the relaxed pace and small restaurants set Colôane apart from the seaside construction zone of Macau itself will soon have to make room for the poker table.

Stroll the World

In case you've absorbed too much authentic history and architecture while in Macau, you can always treat yourself to the easily-digestible eye-candy of Fisherman's Wharf (www.fishermanswharf.com.mo). This gigantic, $2.4 million outdoor entertainment complex is built entirely on reclaimed land on the outer harbor on the eastern edge of Macau. Partially opened in 2005, some portions are still under construction, but when completed it will feature shops and restaurants, nightclubs, casinos, an outdoor amphitheater and an erupting volcano, among numerous other pursuits. Everything is housed in replicas of the world's major city centers like Amsterdam and Cape Town (to name a few), as well as in copies of buildings from the Tang Dynasty and even a few fanciful constructions like Babylon. Can you guess the theme of the amphitheater? Oh yes, the Roman Coliseum. The volcano? Well, that's just a volcano, any resemblance to a real volcano is strictly coincidence.

Taking in the sites is free. Wow your friends back home with photos of yourself in: Lhasa, Tibet; Aladdin's fort; Havana, Cuba; New Orleans. Whether you love this place or are frightened by the very concept, you've got admit, it is a hoot.

Complete details about planning a trip to Macau are available online and the most recent edition of Frommer's Hong Kong.

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