Online Casino, casinos

The Casinos of Macao
 
Macao is a peninsula located in the south of China, 145km from Canton and 70 km south-west of Hong Kong. The Islands of Taipa and Coloane form what is known as “the other Macao”. The island of Taipa is linked to the peninsula by two large bridges. This island was used as a centre for international trade with China. Canton was closed to the Franco-British at the beginning of the 18th century. As for the island of Coloane, it is linked to Taipa by an enormous land-fill bridge. The island of Coloane is twice as large as Taipa and its beaches are much loved by tourists.

Macao’s historical background

Portuguese missionaries and traders established a settlement in Macao in 1557, and it became a Portuguese enclave on Chinese territory. This piece of territory had been presented to Portugal in return for help given to the Chinese Empire in the fight against pirates. It was the first European trading post in China. On the geographical level, Macao was the centre of trade with the Far East through which all commodities passed. Macao’s population in the 1740’s is estimated at about 40,000 inhabitants and demographic growth stagnated for almost two hundred years. In 1844, this peninsula officially became a colony of Portugal, the latter unilaterally declaring Macao to be an “Overseas Territory”. In 1849, the Portuguese governor Ferreira do Amaral was assassinated following numerous undertakings to reinforce Portuguese sovereignty over Macao. China was rumoured to be behind the assassination.
In 1974, Portugal wanted to transfer Macao to China. The Chinese Government refused in order to avoid repercussions for the financial health of Hong Kong, then an English colony. On the legal level, Macao had a special status. Macao was defined as a Chinese territory under Portuguese administration, governed by the law of 1976 and revised in 1990.  In 1987, China and Portugal agreed on the return of sovereignty to China. On 20th December 1999, Macao was returned to China under a special administrative system similarly to Hong Kong. Macao’s green flag with a white lotus replaced the Portuguese flag, which floated above this former Portuguese colony.

Macao’s official language is Portuguese but Mandarin and Cantonese are very widely spoken. These languages are usual on Macao’s streets because a large part of the population comes from China.  Geographically speaking, the Macao region is located in the south of China next to the Guangdong province. Its total surface area is 28.2km2 (including the 2 islands of Coloane and Taipa), of which 8.9 km2 for the peninsula itself. The population is of about 500,000 people and casinos and tourism are factors which have promoted employment.

Macao and gaming

This peninsula has always been closely linked to gaming. Under Portuguese administration, its economy was always almost completely dominated by gaming. The high level of crime had a very strong impact on Macao’s society. Since the Chinese army entered Macao, crime levels have fallen markedly.
Today, the gaming industry represents almost 40% of local Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (read more about gaming in Macao). In 1981, the number of casino players was estimated at three million. Today, Macao is the among the most visted countries in the world in the same league as Las Vegas. The latter was the capital of gaming for decades. Tourists flocked from the four corners of the earth to play on the slot machines, at blackjack, roulette, baccarat and other games in its majestic hotels and casinos. Today, all eyes are fixed upon Macao and American multimillionaires are opening casino after casino in this tiny territory which produces billions of dollars every year. Punters from Hong Kong disembark at Macao from ferries which carry the players both day and night and all year long. Since being handed back to China, Macao is attracting floods of Chinese players to its casinos, notably the new millionaires. Tourists come flocking in from all over the world and close to 19 million tourists have visited this peninsula.

The casinos represent an extraordinary financial manna and all of the American and Chinese magnates are opening their casinos in this new gaming capital. Macao is the heart of international gaming and the clientele come principally in order to discover this new gaming “Eldorado”. All of the hotels have their own gaming rooms which are omnipresent. Hundreds of slot machines are available in each of the casinos with different possible antes, accessible to all budgets. Slot machines for children and many others are available in the rest rooms. Gaming is present everywhere in the hotels. The rooms offering roulette, blackjack and baccarat games are magnificent, without forgetting the video poker games and the poker tables. Texas Hold ‘em Poker is the most popular version of poker since the rebroadcasting of poker television coverage with the WSOP and the EPT. Poker players go to casinos for poker games and Macao is one of the preferred spots for bluff lovers.

In 2006, the town’s 26 casinos made higher takings than the whole of Las Vegas’s casinos, which are much more numerous. Takings reached a record 2.51 billion USD, that is an increase of 50% in one year. The famous Las Vegas casino “The Venetian” now has a twin in Macao. “The Venetian” hotel and casino was inaugurated in person by its founder, Sheldon Adelson, and thousands of players hurried to see this renowned casino’s sumptuous décors.

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