The Venetian Macao Experience

We actually did not book our hotel in Macao before departing from Manila as we were thinking of just staying in a B&B or a guesthouse. While on our HK city tour, I was being cheeky and asked our tour guide, Jackie, “what is the best hotel in Macao to stay in” and she answered, you can stay at The Venetian Macao. And that is what we did. Ha ha ha

Don’t ask me how much we paid, although it was not expensive (in Maldives terms) but it definitely was way out of our budget for that trip! We were supposed to be cheap when we go there! Anyhow, let’s just enjoy the experience of going there, and of course, this is my first time to stay in a casino hotel!

From the Ferry terminal, we took the hotel shuttle bus (its free so I think anyone can go in as well) and got lost in the melee when we arrived. We did not know that the hotel is a “tourist destination” --- meaning, all the tour packages ends up in the casino hotel to do their shopping and sightseeing.

O-M-G, the place was swarming with people, the entrance was pure chaos! I was totally lost! We arrived early (about 10am) and they don’t allow early check-in so we had to wait for awhile before they were able to let us in at around 1:30pm.

It was a veritable maze, to go to our suite we had to pass through the shopping mall and the casino. We were staying at a Royal Venetian Suite, and the room definitely lived up to its name. Gold-trimmed mirrors and bathtub, gold motif bedroom….it’s so golden nakakasilaw! Hahahaha

The view outside the window was fantastic, I think all the rooms overlooks the landscaped golf course and the multitude of swimming pools (they must have at least 3-4 siguro). Although from a distance, you can see all the construction going on of maybe upcoming casino hotels along the strip.

Instead of a welcome drink and fruit platter that you normally encounter in a resort, we were given drink coupons to be redeemed at one of the bars in the hotel so after a trip into town, we decided to have a little drink by the canal at the Boca Bar & Restaurant in the evening before dinner.

As we were staying on a BB basis, we decided to go to Café Deco for breakfast. It’s a huge cavernous place with a long buffet line and all the dimsums that you can imagine! It was such a bustling place that it really did not set the mood for me. I want my breakfast, unhurried and savoured, not rushed and quick.

Anyways, I realized staying in casino hotels is not for me. Had we known it would be like this, we would have opted for the nearby Four Seasons Macau which is only U$50 higher --- promise, next time I’ll stay there, at least with Four Seasons you can expect privacy and quiet. I am not being snotty here but I think the Maldives air has definitely altered my preferences, I want peace and quiet away from throngs of people, I would even prefer staying in a small B&B with a garden and a veranda.

We went inside the casino complex but shied away from actually joining a table. We just hovered around and watched while tourists (the casino is open to everyone so anyone can just go in and sit at any of the tables even is he/she is not a hotel guest) the roulette or the cards. We were too poor anyways that even a $10-game we cannot afford!!!

Shopping

Shopping at the Grand Canal Shoppes is truly an experience in itself. You can get serenaded by the singing gondoliers while cruising the San Luca Canal, creating an old world Venice impression. Of course, one can see that it is totally artificial and that the crystal blue waters is just probably knee-deep but hey, try to be more positive and see the romantic side of it…aww! Although, how you can even feel the romance of it when everywhere around you, there are lots of tourists & shoppers clicking their cameras, sometimes even at you and your gondolier! Or maybe coz we had the prettiest gondolier (forgot her name! sorry) with a beautiful voice taking us for the canal ride.

When you pass by St. Mark’s Square, it’s like the entertainment center with some band or what they call the “Streetmosphere” performers always with a dancing and singing event going on. At one time, there was even a Cinderella or was it Rapunzel who was singing in opera mode in one of the windows!

One thing I really regretted was spending my entire shopping budget in Hongkong, I should have done it here! Especially when I saw the Sale signs at Zara and Lacoste, I really wanted to die right then and there! I was so poor that I have to scrounge up all my loose bills just to buy a Zara bag. Promise, next time I come back I’m going to lock my wallet while I’m in Hongkong and shop my guts out only in Macao!

Outside the hotel casino, the whole façade is very consistent with their Venetian theme. There were canals, with gondolas (but I did not see any gondoliers around) tied around in its jetties. Arched ceilings and antique lamps with cobblestone walkways, it’s so quaint one can think you were out somewhere in Europe.

There were good and bad things, all in all, I can say that the place might be plush and opulent and the room really grand and luxurious but I would rather stay in a smaller, more quiet hotel where you can at least use the hotel facilities without bumping into someone all the time.

That sums up my Venetian Macao experience.