[Anonymous]

[McArthur]

I have a wekend off at last while in HK. Is a trip to Macau worth it?

[everhopeful]

if you like casinos and major brand shopping in Vegas style shopping malls yes other than that not much to see except central square which is colonial. Seafood is very good. A warning however immigration queues
can be horrendous 1-2 hours not uncommon I was there recently and was told it was quiet and it took 45 mins to get in Macau and 60 mins to get back in to Hong Kong. If you go by helicopter the queues are much shorter apparently but cost is around usd 3000 and takes 20 mins whereas fast ferry around 1 hour

[VintageKrug]

Horrendous, but at the same time worth it.

Better to go by fast ferry than fly.

Stay here:

http://www.wynnmacau.com/en/homepage

[Scandinavian]

Agree with everhopeful regarding immigration queues.

We got stuck for about two and a half hours one weekend. Probably spent more time there than we did in Macau…

[HedgeFundFlyer]

I would be more inclined to go to the New Territories for the day. Maybe to Bees’ River? Or a walk along the Dragon’s Back (Shek O CP) on the south of HK Island is a nice way to kill a few hours. Weather should be OK this time of year too.

[NTarrant]

It is worth the visit and the square and old church are interesting. Yes the imigration queues are long and a pain but if you do it once then you don’t have to do it again! It would be silly to avoid just because you have to queue. Go and enjoy.

[TominScotland]

No doubt in my mind that Macau is worth it if you have not been before but a return visit – probably not. It is an experience but, as others have implied, the weekend is probably the worst time to do as the ferries are heavily booked etc and queues are long. Try a very early ferry and explore what is left of the old Portuguese colonial town first – challenging to find but worthwhile. Then just admire the grandiose resorts and try to understand what the thousands of mainland Chinese make of a location like the Venetian – their only taste of Europe, maybe.

But don’t miss it just because old hands are bored with it – you can walk in the countryside in Europe any day!!

[McArthur]

Thanks to all for the tips. Was to make the trip in Sept but didnt work out.. Weekends seem to be very busy though

[CallMeIshmael]

If you haven’t visited Guangzhou, early starting weekend trips with visa are available. IMHO it has more interest and cultural variety than Macau however avoid staying at the hotel where most American (adopting parents) stay – sorry the name escapes me.

Train one-way fast ferry the other adds a little interest too.

[McArthur]

Done Guangzhou, arrived by train, never experienced anything like Guangzhou in the week before Chinese new year. Has to be seen.

[LuganoPirate]

I was last in Macau in the mid 80’s, so still very colonial Portuguese then. I don’t even remember immigration then but I do remember they came round with electric kettles full of hot water which was poured into containers of pot noodles the pax had bought on board the high speed ferry.

The smell at 7am was awful for a European.

Macau has changed a lot since then and I’m tempted to visit again despite the pot noodles!

[First.Class.Please]

I did a trip in August with my wife. Yes, very busy on arrival to Macau as something like 1,000 people arrive every 30 minutes. Took about an hour to get through immigration.

Worth the visit, just to say been and seen it.

I stayed at the Island Shangri La in HK and they recommended the following tour company which i booked through and thought very good.

http://www.splendid.hk/en/tour_details.php?scid=7&id=10

[NTarrant]

Just a thought, if you travel on the Turbojet hydrofoil service there is a first class facility which you get to get off first which does reduce the queue length. Also if there are four of you travelling there is a private compartment in the first class area upstairs which the price is no more than four first class fares and is quite nice.

Getting to the square from the ferry terminal is easy on a bus, just make sure you have a fair few HKD coins as it is farebox but the cost is only about HKD3.00 or HKD4.00. Don’t take the taxi sightseeing.

[Binman62]

Need to go at least once. We waited 40 mins on arrival but flew out of the airport. Avoid holiday inn as they have some of the worst beds I ever encountered in a hotel.

[Author]

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