Macau Fact Sheet: Get to Know Macau in Five Minutes!

This article is part of our completely FREE and FANTASTIC All in One Travel Guide to Having Fun in Macau. Why spend days researching when all your holiday information is simply a click away? 🙂
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If you are planning for a holiday to Macau, this fact sheet will be ideal for you. Simply browse through the various points below and you will have a much better idea of Macau in five minutes or less!

Getting to Macau
1. By plane: The Macau International Airport is located at the eastern end of Taipa Island. The Venetian Macao is just a five-minutes drive away.

2. By ferry: It is easy to travel by ferry between Hong Kong and Macau. There is a very high frequency of sailings, and tickets can be conveniently purchased at the ferry terminals and some Macau hotels/casinos. Click here to find out more.

Geography
Macau is separated into two main parts: 1. Macau Peninsula and 2. Taipa Island/Cotai/Coloane Island. Macau Peninsula houses attractions like Senado Square and Ruins of St. Paul’s. If you stay on Macau Peninsula in hotels like Hotel Lisboa or Wynn Macau or MGM Macau, you will be within walking distance from Senado Square. Cotai is an artificial land mass created by land reclamation. It houses the famous Cotai Strip, where hotels such as the Venetian Macao and Galaxy Hotel are situated. The two main parts are connected by three beautiful bridges. See the map below.

History
Macau is a former Portuguese colony. Portuguese settlers first arrived in Macau during the mid-sixteenth century. In 1849, Portuguese soldiers invaded Taipa Island and Coloane Island, and declared Macau as an official Portuguese colony. In 1999, Portugal returned Macau back to Chinese sovereignty, where it is now governed as a Special Administrative Region (similar to Hong Kong).

Culture
Due to a few hundred years of Portuguese presence, Macau has a unique fusion of Portuguese and Chinese culture. You will see many Portuguese architecture in Macau, as well as Portuguese restaurants and Portuguese foods. Most of the road signs and buildings also have Portuguese titles. Some examples include Rua do Cunha (a street in Taipa Village), Ruínas de São Paulo (Portuguese for Ruins of St. Paul’s). There are also many Chinese temples on the island, such as the “Na Tcha Temple” and the “Ah Ma’s Temple”. Of course, there are also the glitzy casinos, which are especially dazzling at night.

Traveling around Macau
It is very easy to travel around Macau. Most of the hotels provide free shuttle services. Galaxy Hotel (on Taipa Island), in particular, provides shuttles to many places in Macau. You can see the list of places on Galaxy’s website. If not, you can also catch a cab (the rates are very reasonable) easily at the airport, the ferry terminal, the hotels, or even along the roads.

Things to Do
On top of visiting the casinos, be sure to explore the various places of attractions and enjoy the delicious food in Macau. One of the popular attractions is Taipa Village, which is a rustic enclave with lots of food establishments, such as “Koi Kei Bakery”, “Tai Lei Loi Kei”, “Seng Cheong Restaurant”, “Pui Kei Café”, “Mok Yi Kei”, and many more! Another popular place is Senado Square, which is a beautiful place with many lofty Portuguese churches and charming Portuguese buildings. Of course, there are also good foods here, such as the famous “Wong Chi Kei” noodles and delicious “Magaret’s Cafe e Nata” Portuguese egg tarts. If you are interested in Macau’s history, be sure to check out the Macau Museum, which sits on Mount Fortress (a former Portuguese military stronghold). From there, you can also get a good aerial view of Macau Peninsula. Check out my articles on the Ten Places to Eat in Macau and the Ten Things to Do in Macau to find out more!

This article is part of our completely FREE and FANTASTIC All in One Travel Guide to Having Fun in Macau. Why spend days researching when all your holiday information is simply a click away?

All in One Travel Guide to Having Fun in Macau!
1. Macau Factsheet: Get to know Macau in 5 Minutes!
2. Culture of Macau
3. 10 Things to Do in Macau
4. 10 Places to Eat in Macau
5. Macau One-Day and Two-Days Itinerary
6. Download this guide for viewing on mobile devices!
7. Travel Video: Experience Hong Kong and Macau in Four Minutes!