Macau/Peninsula



The Macau Peninsula is the northern portion of China's Special Administrative Region of Macau. Its 8.5 square km is almost totally built up, making it the most urbanized and populous district in the territory.

For the visitor, Macau Peninsula is also the most interesting district of the territory as it is packed with historical attractions and interesting streets, and is home to many of Macau's casinos and entertainment spots. You'll also most likely land in this district first if you enter the territory by sea or land as the main ferry terminal and the main land border crossing are located here.

Get in
Unless you fly, Macau Peninsula will most likely be the first area you set foot on when you arrive in the territory. Macau's main ferry terminal, the Macau International Ferry Terminal (Terminal Maritimo) and the main land crossing with mainland China, the Portas do Cerco Frontier Checkpoint as well as the Inner Harbour Ferry Terminal are all located on the peninsula. See the main Macau page for information on how to get to Macau.

Macau Peninsula is linked with Taipa Island to the south by three bridges - Sai Van Bridge, Governador Nobre de Carvalho (or Macau-Taipa) Bridge, and the Friendship Bridge (Ponte de Amizade). Taipa is linked to Coloane by the Taipa-Coloane Causeway, the main artery of the newly reclaimed Cotai area.

The Macau light rail runs across the Sai Van Bridge to link Barra at the southwest corner of the Peninsula with the ferry and airport in Taipa and as well the hotels in Cotai. See these pages and Coloane for bus routes linking the Peninsula with those districts.

Get around
The Old City is very walkable, but most visitors will want to skip the rather dreary 3 km slog there from the ferry terminal.

By bus
To travel from the Outer Harbour (Porte Exterior) ferry terminal to the old city, just hop on one of the free green Hotel Lisboa shuttles. These depart from the bus center across the underpass and there are plenty of uniformed staff to show you the way.

To use the same shuttles to get back, though, you will need to sign up for a Hotel Lisboa membership: free, but a hassle. Alternatively, there is a large public bus interchange right next to Hotel Lisboa, from where you can reach most points in Macau. Most buses to the ferry terminal (3, 10A, 12) leave from Pier E and cost a flat 6 patacas.

Some useful bus routes:


 * 3 - Barrier Gate (Portas do Cerco) to the Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal via Hotel Lisboa, Avenida Almeida Ribeiro (City Center)
 * 5 - Barrier Gate to A-Ma Temple (Barra) via Hotel Lisboa, Avenida Almeida Ribeiro
 * 9A - Barrier Gate to Macau Tower
 * 32 - Ferry Terminal to Macau Tower

By scooter
Scooters are a very economical and fun way to see the sites of Macau, they are also the primary mode of transport for locals due to Macau's narrow streets and lack of car parking space. Scooters are available for rental from a few dollars. Licenses from most countries covering mopeds or motorcycles are accepted.

Heritage
Macau Peninsula is packed with old buildings left over from the colonial period. A site called Macau Cultural Heritage has information and maps.

A large section has been designated a. UNESCO lists 25 locations or buildings of cultural and historic significance, and the best way to cover them is to do the Macau Heritage Walk circuit. The 25 locations are:





























Museums
Macau Peninsula has several museums.

Gardens




Gambling


Most of Macau's casinos are located along the waterfront on the southern and southeastern side of Macau Peninsula. North of the Hotel Lisboa is a strip, called ZAPE, with many smaller casinos, a number of hotels and bars, and quite a few restaurants. This can be one of the more interesting areas of Macau; among other things it has quite a good Indian restaurant and several Portuguese ones. However, parts of it are also fairly sleazy, with lots of hookers and touts, so some caution is in order. In general the vast majority of the gaming tables are for baccarat. There are some slot machines but very few roulette wheels.

New casinos have also been established in the NAPE (Novos Aterros do Porto Exterior) area to the south of Avenida de Amizade, including Wynn Macau and Sands Macau.

The following casinos are on Macau Peninsula. For those in Cotai and on Taipa, please see the relevant pages.



Adventure Activities
At the Macau Tower, a 338.8m tall structure (3 and 8 are Cantonese lucky numbers!) with a revolving restaurant at its top and a convention and shopping center at its base, the visitor to Macau can savor a different kind of excitement: New Zealander AJ Hackett's company offers a set of adventure activities. There is a mast climb that takes you to the very top of the tower; a bungee jump off the side of the tower from 233m above ground (billed as the world's tallest bungee jump); a walk around the rim of the tower; as well as bouldering and sport climbing at the tower's base.

Buy
For souvenirs, try Rua de São Paulo (大三巴街), the main crowded walking street between Largo do Senado and the Ruins of St. Paul's, which is lined with shops selling the classic jerky and handmade almond cookies as well as lots of other products. Rua da Felicidade sells similar products but is a lot less hectic.



Eat
Macau Peninsula has the greatest concentration of restaurants in the territory, ranging from street stalls to world class hotel restaurants.

Drink
There are surprisingly few bars. Around the central area the only place devoted to drinking is a small stand with a couple of tables in the main square which closes around 9PM. There's also a small strip of bars (~11PM onwards) along the Av. Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and DD3 club (~2AM onwards) on the Fisherman's Wharf. Aside from this you can get a drink in a restaurant or a casino complex.

Budget
Much of the low-end lodging in central Macau is aimed at the red-light industry and their clients (prostitution is legal in Macau).



Go next

 * Taipa is just south of the peninsula, and beyond it are Cotai, home to more huge casinos, and mostly rural Coloane.
 * Hong Kong
 * Zhuhai