If it’s been years since you last set foot in Macau, you’ll be surprised by how much it has changed! But don’t go anywhere because in this article, we’ll show you around some of its newest attractions.
When it comes to transformation, few could rival Macau. Every time we return, we’re always greeted by something new – be it a new hotel, new restaurant or new attraction. We recently made two separate trips in the past four months. Prior to this, it has been years since we last set foot in the territory, and we were surprised how drastically Macau has transformed. Many of them were launched during or after the pandemic. Here are seven of them!
WHAT’S COVERED IN THIS GUIDE?
1. Harry Potter The Exhibition
Location: The Londoner Macao
Yes, Macau is now home to a Harry Potter attraction! As Potterheads, wherever there are traces of the Wizarding World, we’ll be there sooner or later. Sooner, in this case, because it was just inaugurated on 15th December 2023. We were able to visit just a month after it opened its doors to wizard wannabes like us.
Encompassing almost 3000 square meters, this brand new interactive museum inside The Londoner will take you through more than 20 magical galleries! But before you start exploring, you need to register first for a more personalized experience. You’ll be given an electronic wrist band that you can use to access many of the fun activities like seeing your name on the Marauder’s Map, brewing your favorite potion, harvesting a shockingly silent mandrake, and having a go at Divination!
There’s a section where you could conquer a boggart or your greatest fear, or conjure a Patronus. Vins had a field day trying to hone his non-existent Quidditch shooting skills, too!
Along the way, you’ll get to know more about Hogwarts and the Wizarding World in general, and how the filmmakers brought them to life.
It was fun, but if you’ve been to the Warner Bros. Studio Tour, Tokyo, just temper your expectations a little bit. It’s not as huge, as grand or as immersive, but it’s a great experience nevertheless. It’s a fantastic dose of nostalgia for Potterheads.
Regular time slot tickets cost MOP 218 on weekdays, MOP 268 on weekends and holidays. These tickets are limited only to specific time slots. But if you want flexible tickets, you can snatch one on Klook!
HARRY POTTER MACAU TICKET PRICES
Time Slot Tickets
Mondays-Fridays:
Adult: MOP 218
Child: MOP 168Weekends/Holiday:
Adult: MOP 268
Child: MOP 208Flexible Ticket
Adult: MOP 338
Child: MOP 258
2. The Londoner Macao
The Harry Potter Exhibition isn’t the only family-friendly attraction at The Londoner Macao. This London-themed hotel and entertainment complex officially opened on 25 May 2023, at the site where the Sands Cotai Central used to stand. But it wasn’t just given a simple rebrand. It’s more like a complete British makeover, from the exterior to the attractions housed in it.
The first thing you’ll notice is its stunning façade, a lookalike of the Palace of Westminster and Houses of Parliament, and a replica of the Big Ben, trying to compete for attention from The Parisian’s Eiffel Tower just across the street. It chimes every hour, but it’s most spectacular at night!
Inside, you could get lost in mini-London and take unlimited selfies at the many UK icons scattered around the area, including:
- a replica of the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain at the main lobby
- a double-decker bus
- a statue of Sir Winston Churchill greeting everyone at 10 Downing Street
- Black Cab Escape, a virtual drive with David Beckham
We were told there’s also a changing of the guards, but we didn’t get to see it.
All these can be accessed for FREE by the way.
3. teamLab SuperNature
Location: The Venetian Macao
We’ve been at a teamLab museum in Tokyo, Singapore, and Osaka, so we weren’t particularly thrilled about visiting another one. But boy oh boy, Macau’s teamLab SuperNature is one of the best!
For the uninitiated, teamLab is an international art collective that was formed in Tokyo. It’s behind many of the body immersive museums and installations that quote “seeks to transcend the boundaries between the self and the world, and our perceptions of them.” Wow, such hifalutin words.
But in simpler terms, think of it as an interactive art museum on steroids. The entire space is the canvas, and the art isn’t merely put on display. It moves, pops in and out, and invites audience participation. We’re not just observers. Often, we become part of the piece. Just like this wall, on which flowers blossom as it detects movement. It’s mesmerizing and creative.
This creativity is evident in all 5000 square meters of teamLab SuperNature. In one room, you can draw a flower or a frog, scan your sketch, and watch it become a part of the giant artwork!
teamLab SuperNature has been around since the pandemic years, but some of its best exhibitions were only made available starting June 2023. Three of them require payment on top of the entrance fee, though:
- Floating Flower Garden, a room of mirrors bursting with 8000 live orchids that seem to float in mid-air.
- En Tea House, where you are served matcha and ice cream while you watch flowers and branches sprout and grow each time you put your cup down and see them wither and dry as you lift them for a sip.
- Massless Clouds Between Sculpture and Life, where you could have fun with foam that resemble clouds. I know, I heard someone say the name sounds pretentious. And I can’t say I disagree. But I had a grand time here. To access it, you need to be fully covered, so expect to don a raincoat, goggles, and waterproof shoe covers. Then, you enter a room full of foam. It’s just that — like detergent foam. Now that I think about it, I can’t believe I paid extra for that, but it took me back to my childhood, when I would always play with foam and bubbles, while helping my family do the laundry. And just being in that moment and knowing that I never really had any opportunity to do that anymore, it was bliss.
And I think that’s the beauty of it. That’s why teamLab works. It allows us to reconnect with a part of ourselves that we forget is still with us. I’m telling you, I can’t remember the last time I held a crayon and drew something – and I could do it anytime, yes, but it wouldn’t enter my mind in normal circumstances, and not in this almost magical environment.
Anyway, regular tickets cost MOP 290 apiece, but you can get discounted tickets on Klook.
✅ GET DISCOUNTED TICKETS HERE!
TEAMLAB SUPERNATURE TICKET PRICES
Regular Ticket: MOP 290 (PHP 2015, USD 36)
Klook price: MOP 286 (PHP 1989, USD 35.50)
Hours open: 11:00 AM-7:00 PM
4. Illuminarium Macao
Location: Wynn Palace Cotai
Another newly opened virtual attraction is Illuminarium! Present also in Las Vegas, Toronto, and Atlanta, Illuminarium has reached Asian shores and set up shop here at the Wynn Palace Cotai. It’s also immersive – allowing you to experience sensory and sometimes interactive digital presentations as though you’re in that world, which is just projected on the walls, floors, and ceilings.
Here at Illuminarium Macau, we were told that the theme changes every season or so. But for now, the spotlight is on space exploration. As you walk from room to room, you get to marvel at the vastness and grandness of the universe.
ILLUMINARIUM MACAO
Hours Open:
Tuesdays-Sundays
11:00 AM-7:00 PMClosed:
MondaysRegular Ticket: MOP 228
Concession: MOP 188
5. Grand Prix Museum
The Macau Grand Prix is one of the most anticipated sporting events in this part of the world, drawing in throngs of visitors.
In 1993, in celebration of the race’s 40th anniversary, the Macau Grand Prix Museum was opened. But the Macao Government Tourism Office breathed new life into it in 2021 when it underwent major remodeling and filled it with more exciting attractions including virtual reality simulators and 8 wax figures of famous Grand Prix champions, five of which were in collaboration with Madame Tussaud’s:
- John Macdonald
- Ron Haslam
- Michael Rutter
- Robert Huff
- Edoardo Mortara
The museum houses four levels of racing artifacts, models, and information. The top floor is dedicated to the Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix. We tried riding a motorcycle and, oh my gosh, I was awful at it. Totally horrendous and hopeless. If it were a real course, I would’ve been dead 10 seconds into it. LOL. And mind you, I know how to drive a motorcycle. But it felt completely different. So different I wasn’t able to finish the course. I probably held the record for the worst driver that day.
The first floor is where you’ll find formula race cars! There are also simulators, but the queue was quite long and it moved very slowly so we didn’t bother. Also, because I totally sucked at the two-wheel ride, I would probably crash this one pretty horribly too. So I just took my chances at the other fun activities. I sucked at them, too. Man, I sucked at these games!
Anyway, down to the basement we went. This is the Macau GT Cup and Guia Race zone! And it’s also filled with so many race-related activities. You can try to be a media coverage staff or change wheels at a pit stop!
If you’re a racing fan or you just love cars and motorcycles – you’ll definitely have a field day here! As for me, the only race I enjoy watching is Rupaul’s Drag Race. But although I wasn’t good at any of it, I still had a lot of fun at the Macau Grand Prix Museum.
6. Martial Arts Arena
Location: Grand Lisboa Palace Resort
From one sport to the next! The Macao government is really serious in building up and promoting Macau as the City of Sport!
Inaugurated in December 2023, Martial Arts Arena also utilizes virtual reality and other tech to highlight wushu! Wushu means martial arts, and it puts together many Chinese forms like tai chi and Shaolin Kung fu.
As you enter the Martial Arts Arena, you’ll be handed a card that you’ll need to scan to take on several challenges, each focusing on an aspect of wushu. You won’t emerge from this arena as a wushu master, but you’ll have a better appreciation of this martial art – or martial arts in general!
Oh I almost forgot, just beside it is another attraction called AI Wonderland, which features various forms of artificial intelligence, but I enjoyed the Martial Arts Arena much more.
7. Grand Lisboa Palace Resort
Macau has seen a lot of new hotel complexes rise over the past few years, forever changing the city’s skyline. W Macao and its in-house buffet restaurant Hawker Hawker have just recently opened to guests and diners.
But this time, let’s focus on another new resort on the other side of the strip – Grand Lisboa Palace Resort. Not to be confused with its sister pineapple-shaped property in the mainland, the Grand Lisboa Palace is bigger and grander in many ways.
It has three hotels: Grand Lisboa Palace, the Karl Lagerfeld, and Palazzo Versace.
We’ve never tried staying at any of them, but at the invitation of the Macau Government Tourism Office, we were given a tour of the complex. The Grand Lisboa Palace gives a nod to the Sino-Portuguese traditions, while the Karl Lagerfeld just screams style and luxury.
At its core is a European-inspired courtyard called Secret Garden (Jardim Secreto). There wasn’t much crowd when we visited, so it was nice to have some peace and quiet that time. You can also easily find an Instagrammable spot wherever you look. And yes, you can access it for free.
Inside, at its mall area, aside from the Martial Arts Arena and AI Wonderland, you’ll also find several shopping and dining establishments, the biggest name of which is the Palace Garden, a Michelin-cited Taishi restaurant, headed by Chef Ken Chiong.
Top Hotels in Macau
Here are some of the top hotels in Macau.
Search for more Macau Hotels!
Flights to Macau
Philippine Airlines offers direct flights from Manila to Macau! So if you haven’t booked a ticket yet, consider flying with PAL! One thing I love about PAL is the generous baggage allowance that automatically comes with each booking. For Macau flights, economy passengers can take advantage of:
- 25-kg check-in baggage
- 7-kg carry-on baggage
Another reason we prefer PAL is its four-star service and delicious inflight meals and unlimited drinks on board, which are already included in the booking.
Visit philippineairlines.com to search for flights to Macau!
Updates Log & Acknowledgment
Original posting: 2024•02•18
Special thanks to the Macau Government Tourism Office for making our most recent trip possible.
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