With China watching closely, Macau is performing a delicate dance between its longstanding Portuguese roots and its 21st-century casinos. Their biggest game now is getting the balance right…
In the area known as Taipa, near the Macanese version of the Vegas “Strip”, two young Chinese women squeal with excitement atop a 60m-high tower. Nine stories up, they’re about to do the most thrilling thing they’re possibly likely to ever experience.
“Don’t look down,” the friendly Zipcity manager advises,,. but these women don’t seem at all nervous. “ Zou ba! (Let’s go!)” they shout. Upon release, they race 55km/h across a 388m-long zipline towards a distant tower. Halfway, one whips out a selfie stick, smiles euphorically, holds up two fingers, and twirls, nearly 60m in the air. Macau – and even China – unfurl in all their current glory and future potential as far as her eyes (and selfie stick) can see.
“Macau’s come a long way,” says Jason Budovitch, who along with business partner Scott Davies, co-founded Zipcity at the request of SJM Resorts.. Over several years, the duo utilised the services of the world’s top bridge engineers and a top French lighting company to ensure complete safety and, at night, more excitement, for what they claim is the only urban zipline in Asia.
“There’s some amazing properties here,” Budovitch continues. “The Macau – and Chinese – governments are right in that it does need to be more than a gaming destination. Families need to look at it and think about water parks, ziplines, go-karting, and hiking,, and not even think about a casino table.”
WHERE WE’VE BEEN
For decades, Macau was seen as a unique getaway for Hong Kong residents wanting to briefly swap their breakneck daily lives for the slower pace of the former Portuguese trading post (dating back to 1557). By and large, there were two ways to get there: a one-hour Turbojet ferry, or for those feeling flush, a 15-minute helicopter ride. Time spent in the 120sq-km territory was like entering an exotic blend of Asia, Europe, and something else…
“It had all that grittiness and charm and wild west kind of vibes,” says Budovitch, a Hong Kong resident for over three decades. At the time, hotels like The Mandarin, the historic, fortress-like Pousada Di Sao Tiago, and the Westin Resort were the places to stay for jetsetters with a bit of cash. And for fun, everyone would inevitably end up at the famed Lisboa Casino, founded and owned by Hong Kong and Macau billionaire Stanley Ho, who won the territory’s casino license in 1961. As one of the only places to gamble in town, tourists gawked at the old men playing Fan-Tan and Baccarat while smoking up a storm. Meanwhile, outside, men and women alike were often mesmerised by the ladies of the night who paraded like clockwork around the hotel lobby, heels clicking in sync across the hard marble floor.
Macau was – and still is – also popular for its distinct Portuguese cuisine as many restaurants showcased a homey atmosphere, good service, and family recipes like Caldo Verde soup, African Chicken, and Portuguese salt cod. One popular evergreen destination for locals and expats alike has always been the open-aired hideaway Fernando’s, on Hac Sa Beach. “Beyond the casinos, for me, it’s about the Macanese food,” says Budovitch. “Fernando’s, for example, is exactly the same, and I think the guy that runs it is the son of the two brothers who were there all the time. One time I didn’t have any cash – they don’t take credit cards – and the guy said ‘Just send me a cheque’. It’s that kind of place.”
But change was certainly in the air once Macau was handed back to China in 1999, marking the end of 442 years of Portuguese rule. China quickly made plans to integrate the territory by creating an Individual Visit Scheme, which brought in 10 million mainland tourists in one year alone. In a conscious effort to connect what’s known as the “Greater Bay Area”, China also created more ways to get to Macau.
“Now there are at least four borders,” says Vanessa Estorninho, a Macanese native and member of the Media Relations team at the Galaxy Entertainment Group. “In addition to Hong Kong, you can travel by car across the Zhuhai-Hong Kong-Macau bridge, there’s the Zhuhai border gate, the Lotus Bridge, and the Qingmao Port.”
WHERE IT’S HEADED
Originally only accessible by three bridges, Taipa was always Macau’s sleepy cousin. It housed (and still does) a quaint village with cobblestone streets, a university, and sprawling marshland. That is, until Las Vegas tycoon Sheldon Adelson was permitted to build a casino on the reclaimed land of Cotai The Venetian, the world’s largest casino, which also includes 3,000 suites and a 15,000-seat arena.
In a bid to compete, an ageing Stanley Ho built the oddly shaped, gold-clad Grand Lisboa in Macau, to this day a selfie favourite. But by and large, out went bets on horse and greyhound racing, and in came a new variety of tycoons who were moving in and taking over. Today, a casual stroll down The Strip in Cotai reveals such marvels as a miniature Eiffel Tower (The Parisien), an ode to London (The Londoner), incredible attempts at futuristic architecture (City of Dreams, Studio City, The Morpheus), and of course, Wynn Macau. During the day, the sheer building scale impresses, while at night the sparkly lights truly dazzle.
Nearby, in its own self-contained, growing area, lies Galaxy Macau, 1.1 million square metres of unforgettable hotels, venues, and attractions so gargantuan, that one can easily get lost – and many do. If the endless casinos don’t overwhelm, then the 120 restaurants, 200 shops, Skytop Adventure Rapids, Broadway theatre, and Macau’s largest indoor arena might. Not impressed? Well, their newly opened Convention Center could persuade. Still not convinced? They’ve just opened two new hotels featuring sumptuous rooms – Raffles and The Andaz Macau. And five more are already built and on the verge of opening, including the Capella, which will reportedly have an indoor swimming pool… in every room suite. If Macau wants to be perceived as a global destination in its own right, then the Galaxy Entertainment Group is leading the way, providing inspiration and balance to all the other players trying to do the same.
Within The Andaz Macau lies Andaz Kitchen, the hotel’s sole restaurant, where executive chef Andre Lai is not only overseeing staff in the open-aired facility but testing out the upcoming Spring menu as well. A nine-year resident of the territory, and hailing from Portugal, many of his dishes are homages to his parents, also chefs. One memorable new entree features a blend of tender octopus, brussel sprouts, mashed potatoes, garlic, and olive oil. “It’s a small city – yes – but let’s not forget that the Portuguese shrunk the world in the 16th century,” says Lai proudly. “Here I’m a step away from anywhere and there are always new things to discover – nuances.”
That feeling seems to be pervasive amongst many expats and transplants. At the award-winning new restaurant Teppanyaki Shou, personal chefs prepare exquisite eight-course Japanese meals combined with exclusive sake. A Korean hostess from Busan reveals that she loves to “walk around Old Taipa, where you get a real blend of Eastern and European cultures”. And behind a dark, secretive corridor at Raffles lies Long Bar, an intimate new hideaway where DJ Jo P, an American from Indiana, plays a wide assortment of 70s tunes on vinyl while thinking about an upcoming US trip. “When I go back, I have no idea how much I’ll miss this place. There’s a great vibe here.”
WHAT IS MACAU?
In terms of gambling, Macau has a way to go before it truly matches Las Vegas. Firstly, they could do with more cabs and transportation. And unlike Vegas, the endless Cotai strip is void of attractions on the sidewalks, almost as if the individual hotels don’t want you to leave their confines (which they probably don’t – but should change for the greater good). Minimum casino bets have also become more expensive – US$65-125 is the average starting hand – intimidating for casual gamblers.
This may also be where Macau is headed: less of a gambling mecca and more of a vacation destination.
A short walk from most hotels – and within sight of The Venetian (the North Star of Cotai) – lies the Light Railway Train. After years of delays, the two-car train makes a circular route around Taipa, before heading to its sole Macau stop in an area known as Barra. If one feels fit, one could stroll along Nam Van Lake, and past the classic local restaurant Henry’s African, where two locals might be found casually smoking cigars outside while sharing a bottle of port.
Then, it’s a brief distance to Unesco-listed Senado Square where locals and tourists shop and eat amidst vividly coloured historic buildings. This gives way to more crowds and more places to eat (Macanese ice cream, dried beef, noodles, Matcha cones) before heading up the classic 1,2… 66 steps to Macau’s most iconic landmark, the Ruins of St. Paul’s. So unique, it’s one of Portugal’s “Seven Wonders of the World”, the nearly 400-year structure is Macau in a nutshell. Almost better, a glimpse down the hill reveals slices of old and new Macau, as well as alleyways darting in any number of tantalising directions.
With the words of a Russian hostess at Long Bar ringing in the ears, there’s just one place left to explore for the full Macau experience. “There’s the old Macau, which is the main island,” she says while offering homemade gin cocktails. “There’s Taipa, which is the new. And if you want to get away from it all, there’s Coloane.” Getting to Coloane requires a lengthy (albeit cheap) bus ride, during which one sees nearly every aspect of the city, before being dropped off in front of the legendary Lord Stowe’s bakery. Named after the British expat Andrew Stowe, who perfected the creamy Portuguese egg tart, the corner bakery is still just as charming and winsome as it was back in 1989 (albeit more expensive). From there, one can venture towards the pier and the fishmongers drying fish in one direction, or casually walk past the quaint open-aired restaurants, coffee, and homemade ice cream shops in the other. Or better yet, grab something from everywhere and sit on a bench along the water.
At the Galaxy Arena, Jisoo from the Korean K-pop band Blackpink is about to perform for thousands of fans. Across many other venues, casinos are buzzing with the sounds of anticipation. And here, in Coloane, as the sun goes down, you can gaze in peaceful wonderment across the Pearl River estuary at Henqqin, which has morphed in two decades from a dark, mysterious nothingness into a major Free Trade Zone with skyscrapers and buildings galore.
“The air is fresh, it’s laidback, and it’s a totally different vibe,” says the hostess. And darn, she’s right.
Words — Scott Murphy
