JJ's Guide to Macau

Upon arriving in Macau for the first time 15 months ago, I had scarcely been outside the US and was so intimidated by the prospect of a non-English speaking cab driver that I walked all the way to my hotel from the ferry port.

I just completed my 9th trip to Macau, and though dealing with foreign cab drivers is still a pet peeve of mine, I've picked up a few do's and don't's regarding the city. Here is the collective wisdom of one degenerate gambler's experiences in Macau:

Tourist Attractions
Best: the Ruins of St. Paul's Cathedral

It wasn't until my fourth trip to Macau that I actually ventured beyond the casino district and into the town center, when someone I had met dragged me out of the poker room to show me the Ruins of St. Paul's Cathedral. I am usually not a fan of temples or churches, but upon seeing the ruins for the first time, you can't help but be impressed. One second you are in a bustling metropolitan shopping district, and the next you are standing in front of this giant historical looking thing. It's only a five minute walk from Sanado Square (or twenty from the Wynn poker room) and you can pick up some almond cookies or egg tarts from one of the many Pasteleria Koi Kei's along the way.

Worst: Hac Sa Beach
Macau has it's fair share of awful tourist attractions (the ghost town-like Fisherman's Wharf comes to mind), but the honor of the worst goes to Hac Sa Beach. If you are thinking about escaping the Macau heat by going for a quick refreshing swim at the beach, save yourself the $15 cab fare and go to your hotel pool instead. Located all the way on Coloane, the beach is thoroughly dank and depressing, the brown water resembles that of an open sewer. I can't speak for the swimming, because despite going on a midsummer afternoon, there was no one else on the beach, and I wasn't about to be the one to test the waters. For further atmosphere, a number of street hawkers try to sell fish to anyone unlucky enough to make the trek over.

Tip:
For you children of the eighties, there is a little known Michael Jackson museum located on the second floor of the Sofitel at Ponte 16. It is the largest collection of Michael Jackson memorabilia in the world, including the rhinestone gloves he wore during his signature Motown performance.

Restaurants
Best: Tenmasa

A bit pricy, but a super classy Japanese restaurant with awesome tempura dishes. The next time I find someone desperate enough to go on a date with me in Macau, this is the first place I am taking them.

Worst: ramen restaurant at the New Yaohan food court
As somewhat of a street food connoisseur, I've eaten at my share of sketchy restaurants during my travels. But the first and only place I have ever gotten food poisoning was at a Japanese department store of all places, eating ramen at the New Yaohan food court. When they served me an undercooked piece of pork, I gave them the benefit of the doubt, thinking perhaps it was some regional style of cooking that I hadn't encountered in the States. Right up until the point I started puking into my hotel toilet. Furthermore, they are the only restaurant I have ever eaten at to mess up one of my all time favorite dishes, unagi don, to the point of being inedible. As previously attested to, there are some very good Japanese restaurants in Macau, but unfortunately the New Yaohan food court is not the place to find them.

Tip:
In general, I am a proponent of eating local food when traveling, and there are dozens of non-descript local Cantonese and Macanese restaurants around town where you can get an awesome bowl of noodles or a pork chop sandwich. But if for whatever reason, you find yourself in Macau for a few weeks at a time and craving real American food, have no fear. There is a Fatburger located at the Venetian food court, with a genuine Fatburger (with egg) and an order of fat fries waiting for you.

Hotels
Best: Hotel Sintra
I can't speak to the quality of the $300/night rooms at the luxury resorts like the Wynn or the Four Seasons, as I can't ball that hard on a regular basis and have never been. But as far as location and value are concerned, I recommend the Hotel Sintra. The location is unbeatable, as the Grand Lisboa and the Wynn are a five minute walk in one direction, and Sanado Square is a five minute walk in the other. Additionally there is a free City of Dreams shuttle bus stop right outside the hotel lobby that will take you directly to the Cotai Strip. Make sure to check the prices online at Agoda beforehand, as the rooms are significantly discounted there relative to the walk-in price. A clean and comfortable room can be had there for about $90 on weeknights and $130 on weekends (sadly, this is considered cheap by Macau standards).

Worst: Villa Tin Tin
Occasionally when traveling, you will find a hidden gem in the unlikliest of places. Perhaps some dilapidated looking guest house down some dark alley that turns out to have the warmest, most comfortable beds and incredibly friendly owners. This is not one of those places. I tried staying here one night for kicks because it was the cheapest available room I could find. How bad could it be? The only positive I can take away from it is that I now know where the term "don't let the bed bugs bite" comes from.

Tip:
For all my busto backpacker friends that have become accustomed to mainland pricing, there is always Auguster's Lodge. This "guesthouse" is basically a tiny converted three bedroom apartment. The location is impossible to find, the beds are small and uncomfortable, the bathroom is shared, and the rooms are about the size of walk in closets. But the location is convenient to both the casino district and the town center, there is free wireless, the price cannot be beat. The last time I checked, the price was about $13 for a dorm bed and $33 for a closet like room with a bunk bed in it. Definitely not a comfortable place for a long term stay, but not bad for a day or two, especially if you plan on being the poker room 16+ hours a day.

Casinos
Best: Wynn

I've been to pretty much every casino in town and I think I can say without nationalistic bias that the Wynn is the best run casino in Macau. It certainly has the best poker room in town, All the class and elegance of its American counterpart, but with hordes of chain smoking degenerate Asian gamblers.

Worst: Any Chinese casino on the north end of the peninsula
All the class and elegance of Hawaiian Gardens Casino, but with hordes of chain smoking degenerate Asian gamblers... In other words, pretty much just like Hawaiian Gardens Casino. One thing to note about the Chinese casinos is that pretty much the only table game being spread is baccarat, a mind-numbingly boring game that is essentially the card playing equivalent of flipping a coin. It boggles the mind to think that this game basically forms the basis of Macau's booming economy.

Tip:
Besides the Macau peninsula casino district, there is a second casino district being developed on an area of land between the islands of Taipa and Coloane, dubbed the "Cotai Strip". Foreign companies are investing billions of dollars developing a number of state-of-the-art mega-resorts there. At the time, there are only a couple resorts open and there isn't much to see beyond that, but it certainly worth taking the $7 cab ride over from the Macau peninsula. The Venetian Macau, which is the largest casino complex in the world, is located there and is worth seeing regardless.

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It's been a busy week. Among other things, I cruised the Yangtze River and visited the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai. Blog entries will be forthcoming, but for the time being I'm hopping on a train tonight to Nanjing!