The Historic Centre of Macao

Overview

About

The Historic Centre of Macao, centred on the old town, comprises 22 buildings and 8 adjoining squares on the Macao peninsula. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in July 2005.

Its buildings blend Chinese and Western styles and are the oldest surviving Western architectural heritage in China, a synthesis of East and West.

Travel tips

Getting there: from Zhuhai, cross on foot at the Gongbei or Hengqin border checkpoint; from Hong Kong, take the shuttle bus over the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge or a ferry. Macau also has an international airport. The historic centre is on the Macau Peninsula and is best seen on foot, with buses for longer hops.

Documents: mainland Chinese residents need the Exit-Entry Permit for Hong Kong and Macao with a valid endorsement; other visitors follow their own entry rules.

Walking route: start at A-Ma Temple in the south and walk past the Moorish Barracks, the Mandarin's House, St. Augustine's Square, Senado Square and St. Dominic's Church to the Ruins of St. Paul's and the Mount Fortress; mostly lanes and pedestrian streets, half a day to a full day.

Guia Fortress: on Guia Hill, the highest point of the peninsula, away from the main route; go by bus or taxi, or walk up.

Mount Fortress: on the hill next to the Ruins of St. Paul's; the Macao Museum is inside.

Caution: the Ruins of St. Paul's and Senado Square are very crowded at weekends and on holidays. Churches and museums keep their own opening hours.

Season: October to December is dry and mild; summer is hot and humid, with typhoons.

Where to stay: hotels are on the peninsula and in Taipa and Cotai; they fill up at weekends and on holidays.

Buildings

A-Ma Temple; the Moorish Barracks (Port Authority Building); the Mandarin’s House (home of the thinker Zheng Guanying); St Lawrence’s Church; St Joseph’s Seminary and Church; the Dom Pedro V Theatre; the Sir Robert Ho Tung Library; St Augustine’s Church; the Leal Senado Building (former municipal council); the Sam Kai Vui Kun (Kuan Tai Temple); the Holy House of Mercy; the Cathedral; the Lou Kau Mansion; St Dominic’s Church; the Ruins of St Paul’s (called the “Vatican of the East”); the Na Tcha Temple beside it; the old city walls; the Mount Fortress; St Anthony’s Church; the Casa Garden (Oriental Foundation); the Protestant Cemetery; and the Guia Fortress with the Chapel of Our Lady of the Snow and the lighthouse.

Squares

Barra Square, Lilau Square, St Augustine’s Square, Senado Square, St Dominic’s Square, Cathedral Square, Company of Jesus Square and Camões Square.

Stamps

In 1997 China Post issued 1997-20 “Historic Sites of Macao”, four stamps: the A-Ma Temple, the Lin Fung Temple, the Ruins of St. Paul’s and the Guia Lighthouse.

Banknotes and coins

Of the two 10-yuan coins issued by the People’s Bank of China in 1999 for the founding of the Macao Special Administrative Region, one shows the A-Ma Temple, a sailing ship and the Great Wall on the reverse.

Map

Photo credits: The Ruins of St Paul’s: Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons); The Na Tcha Temple: Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons)

Nearby

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