For visitors to Hong Kong the former Portuguese colony of Macau makes for a popular side trip. While the highlight of the city is its well-preserved historic center, for first time visitors to Macau it may come as a surprise as to how many casinos there are. Macau is often called the Monte Carlo of the Orient or the Las Vagas of the east, but with Macau now surpassing Vegas in terms of gaming revenue (by over 400%!) perhaps it will only be a matter of time before people start referring to Las Vegas as the Macau of the west. In Macau there are already a number of impressive casino hotel resorts, but the one building that dominates the skyline is the Grand Lisboa.
Standing at 261-metres tall (856 ft), this 58 floor tower is the tallest building in Macau and a prominent landmark on the edge of the old town area. This is not your average grey glass box tower though – the building is modeled on a massive lotus flower and sits on an 8-storey sphere of colorful glass.
Shooting up from the ground and covered in gold-tinged windows, the tower’s sides seem to ‘peel off’ from the center line as the building gets higher, ending in a curved, concave roof, atop which sits a large dome. Due to its unusual shape, the building sometimes has a bit of a ‘mirror ball’ effect, bouncing the sun’s rays out into the city at odd angles, which can sometimes catch your eye in some random alley from hundreds of meters away. At night, the hotel is lit up with colorful lines along its axis, and the dome upon which it sits glimmers and flashes in a dance of rainbow neon.
One notable feature of the Grand Lisboa is the hotel restaurant – Robuchon au Dome – which was awarded three stars by the Michelin Guide in 2008. The restaurant is named after the head chef, Joël Robuchon, and is located in the dome that sits atop the building (and boasts an outrageous chandelier that has to be seen to be believed). Also of note is The Star of Stanley Ho diamond, which is on permanent display in the hotel. Weighing in at 218.08 carats (43.62 g) this diamond is the largest cushion-shaped internally flawless D-color diamond in the world.
Of course being in Macau the hotel has its own casino complex. Casinos have been operating in Macau since 1962 and you can still see some of the older ones that look like transplants from 1960-era Las Vegas (such as the original Hotel Lisboa, which sits next to the Grand Lisboa). The industry has always done well, but in 2002 Macau opened up to foreign casino operators and things took off from there.
If you are not a gambler there is more to Macau than the casinos. While Vegas has its shows and concerts, Macau has a historical UNESCO world heritage city area. Portuguese traders arrived in Macau in the 1550s and there are historic buildings from every century since represented here. One of the oldest structures is the ruins of St. Paul’s, which was built from 1582 to 1602. Visitors who have been to Portugal (or other former Portuguese colonies), will be familiar with the footpaths paved with little square limestone blocks with various patterns, which are paved in the same style. The old city area is a pedestrian friendly area, so walkers will appreciate these artistic touches.
Macau is connected by air to destinations around Asia, but most visitors from Europe and North America will arrive via Hong Kong, which is a one hour ferry ride away. Even though Hong Kong and Macau are now part of of China, they are Special Administrative Regions, so each city has its own immigration policies and separate customs territory from mainland China.
Hotels of Note: Grand Lisboa, Macau
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