Macau With Kids
What Macau with kids really looks like, from a family that plans these trips for a living.
Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel
Is Macau worth it with kids, not just a casino stop?
Yes. Give it a day or two. The old town, the egg tarts and the tower make it far more than a casino stop, and it pairs perfectly with Hong Kong.
How many days?
One to two days. A single day works from Hong Kong, two lets you add the tower and a resort pool.
Do we need to book anything ahead?
Almost nothing needs booking ahead. Grab a ferry time from Hong Kong online in busy seasons, and the rest you do on the day.
Do we need a car?
No. The old town is walkable, the resort shuttles are free, and taxis are cheap for the gaps. A car is no use here.
When should we go?
October through December for the mild, dry weather. Summers are hot and humid with the odd typhoon, so aim for the cooler, drier months.
More Than A Day Trip From Hong Kong
Say Macau and people think casinos. That is one corner of it. The rest is a tiny, walkable old city where Portugal and China have lived side by side for four hundred years, and it makes a surprising, easy stop with kids, especially tacked onto Hong Kong.
There is a ruined cathedral front standing alone on a hill, a Portuguese square paved in waves, egg tarts on every corner, a tower you can ride to the top of, and resort pools and family shows out on the new strip. It is small enough to see in a day or two, and the ferry from Hong Kong is part of the fun.
Getting Around
You will not need a car, and could not use one well anyway. The historic center is for walking, the resorts run free shuttle buses everywhere, and taxis are cheap for the hops between. From Hong Kong, the ferry or the bus across the giant sea bridge gets you here in about an hour.
Neighborhoods worth basing in
The Historic Centre
The old town around the Ruins of St Paul’s and Senado Square, walkable, full of history and egg tarts, and where I would base a short trip to be in the heart of it.
Cotai
The new strip of giant resorts, with the pools, the shows and the family attractions, connected by free shuttles. A fun base if the kids want a big hotel and a water play day.
Taipa
The quieter island side around Taipa Village, with colorful lanes, good food and a local feel, a short hop from both the old town and the resorts. A gentler, characterful base.
The Venetian Macao
An enormous resort with canals and gondolas indoors, pools, a kids’ club and endless food, the splurge that is a destination in itself. Worth it if a resort day is the point of the trip.
Sofitel Macau at Ponte 16
A comfortable riverside hotel near the old town with the sights at your door and a pool for the afternoons. Well priced for the location and the one I point most families to.
Ole London Hotel
Simple, central and cheap right in the historic center, walking distance to St Paul’s and the square. It does the job and puts you in the old town.
The Three I Build Every Macau Trip Around
The Ruins of St Paul’s and Senado Square
The Ruins of St Paul’s is the front wall of a burned cathedral, standing alone at the top of a grand staircase, and it is the icon of Macau. Just below, Senado Square is a wide Portuguese plaza paved in black and white waves, ringed by pastel buildings and lined with egg tart shops. Walk it in the morning, climb the fort behind for the view, and let the kids count the tarts.
The Macau Tower
The Macau Tower is more than a thousand feet high, with a glass floor to dare the kids across and, for the very brave, the highest bungee jump in the world to watch from the safe side. The view over the two cities and the bridges is the real reason to go up.
The Cotai Resorts and Their Pools
The Cotai resorts are theme parks in disguise, with wave pools and lazy rivers, indoor canals, magic and acrobatic shows, and kids’ clubs, all reachable on free shuttle buses. Pick one for an afternoon and let everyone cool off and be entertained.
Family Time, Built In: Macau With Kids
Macau packs a lot into a small, easy space. History you can walk, egg tarts everywhere, a tower with a glass floor, and resort pools when the kids need a break. The whole place is compact and the shuttles are free, so a family moves around it without fuss.
The harbor ferry to the beach
Sunday fish market
Paddle boats on the the Inner Harbour
Planten un Blomen
the Macau Tower plaza
PARK & DOWNTIME PICK
The old fort gardens and Camoes Garden near the ruins, shady and green with banyan trees and quiet paths, a calm break right in the middle of the old town. The reset between the history and the crowds.
Five Things To Eat In Macau
Portuguese egg tart
Pork chop bun
Minchi
Almond cookies
SerraduraNicole’s Perspective
Where Portugal and China share a street
I taught social studies for eight years, and Macau is a perfect small lesson in how two worlds meet. Portugal ran this port for centuries, and you can stand in a plaza that looks like Lisbon, then turn a corner into a Chinese temple older than the cathedral. A kid feels the two cultures layered right on top of each other.
I have planned and priced a lot of this region for families, and Macau is the easy add on I reach for beside Hong Kong. An hour on the ferry buys a completely different world, Portuguese and Chinese at once. When a family has Hong Kong on the plan, this is the one I tell them not to skip.
The Day Trip: Coloane and Taipa Villages
Coloane and Taipa are the older village corners of Macau, away from the towers, with pastel Portuguese houses, a black sand beach, the famous egg tart bakery and quiet lanes. Take a shuttle or a short taxi over, wander, eat, and let the kids see the slow side of the city.
Things I Would Tell A Friend Before They Booked
How Many Days
Two full days covers Macau well, and even a single day works as a trip from Hong Kong. That is Macau as a real stop, not just a ferry over and back.
Day one, the old town, the Ruins of St Paul’s, Senado Square and the fort, with egg tarts throughout. Day two, the Macau Tower and an afternoon at a Cotai resort pool.
With more time, the villages of Coloane and Taipa and their beach and bakeries. Evenings are for the lights of the strip and more Portuguese and Cantonese food.
If all you have is a day from Hong Kong, do the Ruins of St Paul’s, Senado Square and a stack of egg tarts, and call it a strong taste.
Macau With Kids, Answered
Is Macau worth it with kids, not just a casino stop?
Yes. Give it a day or two. The old town, the egg tarts and the tower make it far more than a casino stop, and it pairs perfectly with Hong Kong.
How many days?
One to two days. A single day works from Hong Kong, two lets you add the tower and a resort pool.
Do we need to book anything ahead?
Almost nothing needs booking ahead. Grab a ferry time from Hong Kong online in busy seasons, and the rest you do on the day.
Do we need a car?
No. The old town is walkable, the resort shuttles are free, and taxis are cheap for the gaps. A car is no use here.
When should we go?
October through December for the mild, dry weather. Summers are hot and humid with the odd typhoon, so aim for the cooler, drier months.
Ready To Put Macau On The Calendar
Send me your dates and your kids’ ages and I will tell you how to fit Macau in, on its own or beside Hong Kong.
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