Macau Festivals and Events

Macau Festivals and Events introduce a brief introduction of festivals and activities and tell travelers Top Things to Do for Macau Festivals Tours and important Macau events and activities including Exhibitions, Important Events, Famous Performances.

Festivals in Macau

Macao’s line-up of festivals, shows, marathons and major events is a testament to the city’s lively culture. The Macao calendar is full of both traditional and western celebrations in a variety of specialities from arts and film, to food and sporting events, each year. Macao is home to a variety of internationally recognized events and festivals, and is renowned as a destination that provides travelers with some of the most exciting, colorful and revered events across the globe.

Traditional Festivals in Macau

Local Festivals in Macau

A-Ma Festival

Date: April 17-19
Location: A-Ma Temple, Barra Square
A-Ma belief and customs is one of the intangible cultural heritage gems of the city. The century-old Festival honors A-Ma, the Goddess of Seafarers, through various thanksgiving rituals and performances originally performed on fishing vessels. On A-Ma’s birthday April 19, the community will hold festivities at Barra Square. From Lion Dance, traditional rituals and other activities as well on April 17. A Cantonese Opera performance will be held on April 17 and 18 at 7:30pm which highlights this event.

Christmas

Date: December 25
Location: Macau
From 1557 until 1999 Macau was an overseas province of Portugal and this colonial heritage is still evident in the food available in the SAR. Thanks to its Portuguese heritage, much of architecture of the historic center of Macau retains a distinctly European flavor, and, at Christmas, this means beautiful decorations to get you into the festive mood. 

Macau Lotus Flower Festival

Date: Summer season yearly
Location: Macau
Do you know that the lotus flower is part of Macau’s identity? You can see it on the country’s flag. Besides that, the lotus flower is considered sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists worldwide. It signifies purity and enlightenment. Summer is the time for Macau Lotus Flower Festival and you will get to see different types of species in the city. The festival is to pay tribute to the variety and beauty of lotus flower around the city.

Good Friday(耶穌受難日)

Date: 2 days before Easter 
Location: Macau
Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of Passover. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, and Black Friday.

Buddha's Birthday

Date: April 8 of the lunar month
Location: Macau
Buddha's birthday is a Buddhist festival and holiday traditionally celebrated in most of East Asia to commemorate the birth of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later the Gautama Buddha and founder of Buddhism. It is also celebrated in South and Southeast Asia as Vesak which also acknowledges the enlightenment and death of the Buddha. According to the Theravada Tripitaka scriptures.

Activities in Macau

Events in Macau

Macau International Fireworks Display Contest

Date: every September, on Mid-Autumn Festival and on China’s National Day on 1st October
Location: in front of Macau Tower
This particular event is very popular in the whole of Macau. It is a combination of a fireworks show and contest. There are three different contests that are held annually together with the fireworks display. Imagine the night sky of Macao aglow in a starburst of magnificent fireworks accompanied by the cheers and applause of spectators enjoying this spectacular light and sound show. What a splendid scene! The annual Macao International Fireworks Display Contest usually takes place on several Saturdays every September, on Mid-Autumn Festival and on China’s National Day on 1st October.

Macau Food Festival

Date: November
Location: Sai Van Lake Square
Every year around November, the Macau Food Festival - sited in the rotunda opposite the Macau Tower - attracts local residents and visitors beguiled by delicious Asian, European, Mainland Chinese and local delicacies. Liberally salted with exciting live entertainment, games and beer competitions, this food feast has become a firm favorite for its uninhibited, relaxed and welcoming atmosphere of street stalls, booths and tents.

Macau Light Festival

Date: December
Location: Macau
If there is a perfect time to visit Macau, it’s during the city’s annual Light Festival, a great kick-starter to the festive season. The mild December weather is ideal for nighttime strolls along Macau’s cobblestone lanes as you take in the dazzling light artistry that illuminates the city’s unique East-meets-West character.

Macau International Music Festival

Date: September-October
Location: Macau
If you are a music fan, then this festival is a must for you. Sit back and relax to enjoy the music performances by local and international musicians. From the chamber orchestra to skilled opera tenors, it will be an eventful evening for you and your family. Among others, you get to watch classical performances, Chinese folk songs as well as Broadway-hits.

Macao International Parade

Date: December
Location: Macau
This is definitely one of the crowd-puller events in Macau. Tourists and visitors need to be part of this Lusophone-Latino experience. Parade Through Macau, Latin Festival is a joyous and lively carnival and it is a time for everyone to join in the fun by dancing and singing together with the local and international performers.

Macau International Marathon

Date: December
Location: Macau
The Macau International Marathon(Chinese: 澳门国际马拉松; Portuguese: Maratona Internacional de Macau) is an annual road running event over the marathon distance (42.195 km) which is held the special administrative region of Macau adjacent to the People's Republic of China. The event is sponsored by Galaxy Entertainment Group, a casino and hotel investment company.

Macau Grand Prix

Date: November 19-22, 2020
Location: Circuito da Guia
The Macau Grand Prix (Portuguese: Grande Prémio de Macau; Chinese: 澳門格蘭披治大賽車) is a motor sport road race for automobiles and motorcycles held annually in Macau. It is the only street circuit racing event in which both cars and motorcycles participate. The Macau Grand Prix was originally conceived in 1954 as a treasure hunt around the streets of the city, but shortly after, it was suggested that the hunt's track could host a professional racing event for local motor enthusiasts.

Performances in Macau

Valentine’s Day Concert ‘Sentiments’ – Lin Daye and Macao Chinese Orchestra

Date: February 8, 2020(Saturday)
Location: Macao Cultural Centre – Small Auditorium
To strengthen musical cooperation and exchange in the Greater Bay Area, the incumbent music director of the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra and distinguished young conductor, Lin Daye, will join hands with the Macao Chinese Orchestra to present the Valentine’s Day Concert ‘Sentiments’. The programme covers a wide variety of compositions in different styles, ranging from sentimental pieces for huqin and orchestra to pipa concertos and classics for suona and orchestra. You are cordially invited to this moving musical journey, with beautiful traditional Chinese melodies regaling the twists and turns of love.

‘The Future Conductors’

Date: April 11, 2020 (Saturday)
Location: Dom Pedro V Theatre
The Macao Chinese Orchestra is joining hands with the Department of Conducting at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music to present the concert ‘The Future Conductors’. The Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Macao Chinese Orchestra will first give personal guidance to these future conductors of the Conservatory, after which they will take turns to step on to the podium and conduct the Orchestra as they perform different compositions. 

‘Chinese Musical Milestone’ – Wang Fujian and Macao Chinese Orchestra

Date: June 21, 2020(Sunday)
Location: Macao Cultural Centre – Small Auditorium
Wang Fujian, Artistic Director of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra and top-notch contemporary maestro in conducting Chinese traditional music, will join the Macao Chinese Orchestra again to present a list of classics that serve as milestones in the history of Chinese orchestral music in the modern age. This seamless collaboration between Wang and the Macao Chinese Orchestra will certainly bring a flawless interpretation to the concert program. Meanwhile, the Macao Chinese Orchestra has also invited eminent dizi musician Yuan Feifan from the Central Conservatory of Music to Macao. The chemistry between these masters is sure to deliver a musical delight to audiences in Macao.

2019 – 2020 Season Closing Concert ‘Dance to Picturesque Melodies’

Date: July 26, 2020(Sunday)
Location: Macao Cultural Centre – Grand Auditorium
Conductor: Liu Sha
Liu Sha, Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Macao Chinese Orchestra, will lead a line-up of musicians and bring a series of challenging and innovative compositions to the audience as a closing tribute of this season. The closing concert will invite two sought-after young dancers, Yin Shuo and Gulmira to join the performance for greater variety in the concert. The Orchestra has also invited renowned erhu musician Chen Chunyuan to render the erhu concerto ‘The Great Wall Capriccio’. The Macao Chinese Orchestra and the talented artists will showcase their consummate artistry in this challenging performance and deliver a much-anticipated concert to music fans.

Exhibitions in Macau

The Long Journey: The Forbidden City and Maritime Silk Road

Date: 2020-01-11 - 2020-04-13
Location: Macao Museum of Art
Maritime Silk Road had already been established by ancient Chinese living along China’s coastal areas. With the evolution of the times, the Maritime Silk Road linked Asia, Europe, Africa, the Americas, and even Oceania, introducing China’s silk and porcelain, tea and related cultures to all over the world. Conversely, products imported from the West, such as spices, carpets, and later even scientific devices and artistic techniques, had been subtlety changing the lives and ideas of the Chinese people.

A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains 3.0

Date: December 18, 2019 ~ March 16, 2020
Location: Macao Museum of Art
Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 20th anniversary of the Macao’s Handover to China, MAM and the Palace Museum specially present “The Long Journey”, an exhibition series in an unprecedented scale. By displaying cultural gems associated with the Maritime Silk Road, the exhibition seeks to lead the audience to revisit the magnificence that ensued in the course of Chinese and Western cultural exchange. 

Collective Exhibition of Macao Artists 2019

Date: November 22, 2019- February 23, 2020
Location: Avenida da Praia Grande
The “Collective Exhibition of Macao Artists” has been held for many years, providing an important platform for local artists to showcase their calligraphic works and paintings and to exchange ideas, and promoting the innovation and development of art in Macao. The open submission for this year’s Exhibition was held in May. After a professional and rigorous selection, the winning and shortlisted works were selected by a panel of experts and academics from Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao.