Macau's Mighty Gamble

Lavish spending is off the menu for Macau as it reinvents itself as an entertainment capital.

- Marisa Cannon

Macau is well known as the world’s biggest, most over-the-top gaming capital. Where else could you enjoy an indoor gondola ride followed by the world’s tallest bungee jump? But its latest attempt at reinvention might be its biggest gamble yet.

Stunned by plunging revenues as a result of the Chinese leadership combating corruption and prolific spending, venues are scrambling to diversify their casino-led offerings, creating more family-friendly spaces, entertainment options and enhancing meetings and incentive travel.

As a result, Macau’s glittering Cotai strip now offers a Batman-inspired digital ride, a house of magic, a giant Ferris wheel and a 40,000 square foot Warner Bros-themed fun zone – and that’s just Studio City...

Hollywood Glamour

Melco Crown’s Macau Studio City, the city’s first cinematic-themed integrated resort, opened in October. One of the resort’s highlights is the iconic Golden Reel, a Ferris wheel in the shape of a figure eight set in the center of the hotel’s towers.

The fun doesn’t stop there, with a Warner Bros and DC Comics collaboration offering an immersive flight-simulation ride called the “Batman Dark Flight.” This 4D, sensory overload experience, allows riders to join the masked crusader as he fights Gotham city’s super villains.

Joining the line-up of Macau’s shows is the House of Magic, a three-theatre arena pitched as a hub for the world’s leading magicians. Hosted by leading illusionist Franz Harary, it features daily live magic shows, including Harary’s resident show Mega Magic. Ibiza import Pacha nightclub has also debuted at Studio City, adding to the region’s growing nightlife scene.