Audio walk · Macau Peninsula
Senado Square & Ruins of St Paul's
Put your phone in your pocket and walk. Your phone reads each stop aloud, then waits while you walk to the next one; tap “I've arrived” to carry on. Everything it says is written out below, so the walk works without sound too.
- 3 stops
- about 5 min of listening
- about 15 min between stops
- Cluster guide
3 stops · about 5 min listening · about 15 min between stops
Before you start
Voice and speed
The script is in English. On-device voices keep working with no signal once this page is open or saved.
Transcript
Everything the tour says, in order. Read it instead of listening if you prefer.
Before you start
Welcome to the Senado Square & Ruins of St Paul's audio walk in Macau Peninsula. 3 stops: Largo do Senado (Senado Square), Ruins of St Paul's and Monte Fort and Macao Museum. Morning cluster: Largo do Senado, the pedestrian street up to the Ruins of St Paul's, before the tour groups arrive at 10:30; flat then steps at the top.
Largo do Senado, Rua de São Paulo and the Ruins of St Paul's. Underfoot: stone paving; slope: gentle; shade: medium.
Macau is a small territory with a long history: a fishing harbour that became a trading port for Portugal, then a casino capital, and now a place where a Chinese temple, a Portuguese church and a resort tower can be seen from the same corner.
Before you start: Tour-group crowds after 10:30; keep bags in front. Keep your eyes on the street, and pause the audio before you cross a road.
1. Largo do Senado (Senado Square)
議事亭前地
Stop 1 of 3: Largo do Senado (Senado Square).
The wave-patterned square at the heart of the old town: 30 minutes before the tour groups arrive at 10:30. On a first visit: The centre of the old town.
It is best seen on foot from Senado Square outward, and the density is the point: a Portuguese baroque church, a Chinese temple and a colonial city hall sit within a few hundred metres of each other, and nobody gave the mix a name. Senado Square is the centre. Noodle shops near Senado Square, such as Wong Chi Kei, have served the same bowls for decades.
Keep bags in front in the crowd. Quiet before 10:00; tour groups from 10:30. The square is free and always open; nearby shops keep their own hours. The wave pattern in black-and-white stone is a Portuguese pavement (calçada). Tour groups arrive from 10:30; weekends are crowded all day.
Walk:Next, stop 2: Ruins of St Paul's. It's about 8 minutes on foot, about 450 metres to the north. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
2. Ruins of St Paul's
大三巴牌坊
Stop 2 of 3: Ruins of St Paul's. Arrival point: Walk up Rua de São Paulo from Senado Square.
The 17th-century church facade above the old town: 30 minutes, best in the early morning; a steep climb by steps. On a first visit: The icon of the city.
From the square, Rua de São Paulo climbs to the Ruins of St Paul's. The small Na Tcha Temple beside the Ruins of St Paul's honours a child deity, and sits in the shadow of the great Catholic facade, a neat picture of the city's mix.
Stay off the roped-off areas; do not climb the facade. Crowded 10:30–17:00; quiet before 09:30. The facade is all that remains of the 17th-century Jesuit church after the fire of 1835. The carvings show saints, a ship, a Chinese lion and Japanese chrysanthemums. The crypt and museum have their own hours and tickets (check). Walk up Rua de São Paulo from Senado, past the cookie shops.
Walk:Next, stop 3: Monte Fort and Macao Museum. It's about 7 minutes on foot, about 100 metres to the east. Route: Walk up the hill path. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
3. Monte Fort and Macao Museum
Fortaleza do Monte, 澳門博物館
Stop 3 of 3: Monte Fort and Macao Museum. Arrival point: Walk up from the Ruins of St Paul's (about 6 minutes) or take the escalator (check).
A hill fort above the ruins with cannon, shady paths and a good museum of Macau in the walls: 1 to 1.5 hours in the morning, and a fine air-conditioned break in the heat.
Above sits Monte Fort, built by the Jesuits in the 1620s, with cannon still on the ramparts and the Macao Museum in the walls. The best rain option is Monte Fort, whose museum is indoors and air-conditioned, and the best heat option is a long lunch in a small restaurant.
Stay behind the barriers on the ramparts. Quiet before 10:00; tour groups after 11:00. The fort was built by the Jesuits in the 1620s and used for defence. A legend credits a single cannon shot with ending the 1622 Dutch attack.
End of the walk
That's the end of the Senado Square & Ruins of St Paul's walk. To carry on, A-Ma Temple & Barra is about 15 minutes away (taxi or bus south-west). To carry on, Nam Van Lake & Macau Tower is about 18 minutes away (taxi or walk south).
Built from this site's place pages, walking times and city deep dive; nothing is added that isn't on those pages. Opening hours, prices and rules change: check each place page before you go. Walking times are typical (median) and assume a steady pace.