Shopping in a Historic City
December 5, 2009 by admin
Filed under Restaurants
Due to Macau’s status as a free port it has rapidly become a shopper’s paradise. The most popular buys for tourists visiting the country are jewellery, designer clothes, antiques, porcelain and pottery. There are a number of different precincts in Macau where shoppers can chose from a variety of items. The Macau peninsula region is where all the major shopping malls and clothes outlets are located. Senado Square is the bustling downtown area of Macau, here shoppers can find a host of shops and food stalls lining the streets.
The area is largely cosmopolitan and features a large Array of designer brands; some consider it to be reminiscent of Causeway Bay in Hong Kong. Brand label clothes stores selling U2, Nike, Reebok and Nine West labels are very popular with youngsters in Macau. Another notable feature in the area is the large number of cosmetic shops that can be found such as Body Shop, Sa Sa and Angel, during the summer months these stores are packed with young girls and office going women looking for the latest make up.
The Red Market area is unique because it owes its name to a row of red buildings that were constructed by the former colonial masters of the island- The Portuguese. At present the area is an open market that sells vegetables, fruit, clothes and flowers, the best part about shopping here is that everything is so cheap!
Macau’s most popular piazza is the Rua de St. Paulo area that is located as the name suggests near the ruins of St. Paul. In keeping with the backdrop of a world heritage site this area offers shoppers the chance to pick up some valuable souvenirs and antiques. Authentic antique porcelain items, ancient coins, traditional Chinese furniture and painting can be bought for very reasonable prices. This area is also known for the plethora of pastry shops and dim sum bakeries that offer wonderful snacks.
If one is on the lookout for cheap electronics the place to visit would be the New Yaohan and the Macau Landmark. Everything from digital cameras to DVD players can be bought for very affordable prices in these malls. Some of the outlying islands of Macau also offer great shopping experiences. Taipa Village on the island of Taipa has become a tourist hot spot famed for its excellent pastry shops and street vendors. In recent times it has become famous as a dining street and a great place to savor Macau dim sum.
Any hotel in Macau will offer great access to the regions’ many shopping districts due to the smallness of the island. A luxury hotel in Macau that offers the best entertainment and accommodation options is the Venetian Macau, a newly constructed hotel that is considered to be one of the best in the world.
Causeway Bay offers shopping with a difference
Causeway Bay is a heavily built up area on Hong Kong Island and was one of the first areas in Hong Kong to have high rise buildings such as the World Trade Centre and several other sky scrapers that were constructed in the 1970’s and early 1980’s. Now the area is famous as a trendy shopping district and features a variety of shops, also the commercial property rent in causeway bay is among the highest in the world further emphasizing its popularity.
To the north of Causeway Bay lie the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club and the Causeway Bay typhoon shelter. Plunging beneath the harbor between them is Hong Kong Island’s entrance to the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, now one of four tunnels between the Island and Kowloon with the recent addition of the Western Harbour Tunnel.
At the center of the area is a busy shopping district that is found in Little Japan, Jardine’s Bazaar, and Times Square. The different shopping areas in Causeway Bay offer you different types of stores. Little Japan is a popular area that has outlets of major Japanese department stores. Jardine’s Bazaar has a distinct Chinese feel to it with shops selling Soya sauce, the famous Chinese delicacy 100 year-old eggs and Pennington Street has Chinese Medical Halls and pawn shops. By contrast Times Square is home to a twelve-story shopping arcade with over 200 shops, restaurants, and a Cineplex and topped off by two office towers. Just outside the myriad of shops, is the city’s centre of entertainment Times Square Plaza inspired by Times Square in New York. Here you will find the city’s largest Sony Jumbotron, the site of New Year’s celebrations and the most popular meeting spot in Hong Kong.
At the furthest southernmost end, before the island rises dramatically towards Victoria Peak, is the horse-racing track at Happy Valley which is one of the oldest racing tracks in Hong Kong.
Located in the busy, chic shopping districts of Causeway Bay is Cosmo Hotel. This is a very hip hotel in Hong Kong that is quite modern and keeps with the trendy and modern feel of Causeway Bay.
Hotels In Hong Kong
When it comes to traveling to Hong Kong for winter vacations, it is more likely that traditional celebrations of this season run away with your mind, bringing images of the Chinese New Year’s Parade, which is in fact, one of the main seasonal attractions in the city. However, Hong Kong became a British colony in 1842, and the Opium War of 1860 left the city as a British Protectorate until the year 2000, when Hong Kong returned to China’s hands. History made this place a cosmopolitan city where visitors can enjoy a traditional Christmas pudding cake, or a New Year’s dinner with a Cantonese touch. In fact, many hotels in Hong Kong offer special packages from late November to mid-February to cover all the seasonal events, including the Chinese New Year.
On the island side, some of the most popular hotels include the Charterhouse Empire, Hotel Causeway Bay, South Pacific Hotel, Novotel Century, Grand Hyatt. JW Marriott Hotel, Ritz Carlton Hong Kong and Harbour Plaza North Point. Hong Kong’s Kowloon area has many other reputable hotels, including the YMCA International House, The Imperial Hotel, Ramada Hotel Kowloon, Royal Pacific Tower, and the Nikko hotel Inter-Continental Hong Kong.
Whether booking your lodging in the traditional district, in Kowloon, the new territories or the outlaying island, Christmas and New Years celebrations in Hong Kong are seasonal events. Chinese New Year in Hong Kong last for three days and it is coming next February 18, 2007. The new moon comes to end for the Year of the Dog and welcomes the Year of the Boar, which is the twelfth animal of the Chinese horoscope that.
Even though Christmas is celebrated much like any other big city of the world there is also a Western-like New Year’s parade with fireworks. Dragon dancers are the main attraction of the New Year Parade, going from one point to another on the island, spreading the good wishes and scaring away the evil spirits that were left from the previous year. Christmas celebrations not only attract many international visitors to Hong Kong to see how the Orient celebrates holidays, but it also attracts performers from all over the world who meet in Hong Kong.
Hotels in Hong Kong decorate Christmas trees and are dressed in colorful decorations throughout December, but many other decorated floats remain until the Chinese new year, when music, dance and street entertainers take over all the streets, starting from the Harbour front.
Christmas lights are substituted by paper lanterns that hang between buildings. Candles are placed inside the lantern to create a colorful glow through out Hong Kong streets. They are usually made from red paper and golden ink, symbolizing happiness, prosperity, healing, and good fortune.
Hong Kong is filled with flower displays all over the island. There will be literally millions of people on the streets, crowded on the streets of Hong Kong celebrating for days and creating an atmosphere like you will never see in any other city around the world. A great display of fireworks and firecrackers over Victoria Harbor announces the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations.
Luxurious and Cheap Hong Kong Hotels
Hong Kong, a dependent territory of the United Kingdom, transferred its sovereignty to People’s Republic of China. It begins as a trading port, but emerged as a financial centre where service industries are the main basis of capitalist economy. Hong Kong has a multicultural identity that is influenced by both eastern and western cultures and is reflected in its cinema, music and cuisines. It is generally described as a place where east meets west. Western rule ended in 1997, but it has been deeply ingrained in Hong Kong and exists together with traditional practices and philosophies of the Chinese.
Hong Kong is one of the famous tourist destinations. Millions of tourists visit the place every year. The main tourists’ spots include few new territories, the Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon peninsula and 260 other islands. Hong Kong attracts business visitors for it one of the biggest business destinations in Asia. There are many Hong Kong hotels ranging from cheap hotels to star hotels, which serve their clients with various facilities and amenities. Few fantastic hotels are located around Tsimshatsui, Causeway Bay, Wanchai, Admiralty and Central.
There are many top class Hong Kong hotels. One of them is Macau hotels that are located off the southern coast of china, which is 70 km from Hong Kong. Macau’s history perfectly goes with the meaning of its name, which means ‘Door’ or ‘Gateway’. It played an important role in acting as a gateway between east and west and encouraged development by bringing business license to western casino financer. Macau’s food, music and architecture are all about the mixture of culture of east and west. Some main tourist attractions around the place are Cosa Garden, Old Protestant Cemetery and A-Ma temple. The area is well known for its blended culture. There are lots of recreational and entertaining activities such as electronica, enthralled night life, classical music, and Chinese folk pop.
Hong Kong is a major tourist destination, so it caters to people of all sort of budget. There are many 1 to 3 star hotels that offer several different types of discounts and make it easy for people to adjust the vacation in their budget. These cheap hotels in Hong Kong satisfy the need of travelers to stay in the cheap and clean place. The rooms are well furnished with modern architecture and in room facilities. Many of the Hong Kong hotels cater their visitors with conference rooms, restaurant, bars, pool, minibar in the rooms, spa, fitness facilities etc… These hotels on budget are best for the people who focus on their budget before traveling as they serve their visitors at affordable price.
