Opened on February 11, 2007, Grand Lisboa quickly became one of the most popular land-based casinos in Macau, and it wasn’t hard to see why. At 261 meters and 856 feet, the casino hotel stands above every other building in Macau, making it a sight to behold, especially with all the lights on at night.

The casino is attached to a luxurious hotel with 47 floors and 431 rooms, which, in turn, houses bars and Michelin-star restaurants. Rooms in the Grand Lisboa are spacious and relatively inexpensive for what they offer, and the building is wheelchair accessible.

The main casino floor is in front of the 856-foot-tall hotel building. Like the hotel, it’s a marvel from the outside. However, the inside isn't what you’d expect from a casino of that size, especially if you’re used to gambling at luxurious gaming establishments.

Grand Lisboa towers magnificently above Macau as the largest casino hotel. The 261-meter tall, centrally-located structure looks significantly more gigantic in person, almost as if it’s looking down on all other buildings in the city. Grand Lisboa’s 47-story hotel isn’t just the biggest casino hotel, but also the largest building in Macau, making it a crucial landmark in the city.

The casino’s size makes it easily identifiable from miles away, and it’s also very accessible. I hopped on a free shuttle from the ferry terminal to the casino on my first day, which was almost a perfect experience if not for the crowd.

Quick heads up—the ferry terminal is always crowded, and I learned it’s even worse on weekends. Don’t try to wait for the shuttle buses on a weekend; you’re better off hailing a taxi instead.

Hotel

The skyscraper behind the main casino building serves as the casino hotel, which is almost obvious when you think about it. As expected, the rooms are luxurious, but given how gigantic the building is, I wished the non-VIP rooms were just slightly larger.

Casino

Stepping in, I must admit the casino looks less impressive on the inside than on the outside. It’s not disappointing per se, but I somehow expected the giant skyscraper to house the main casino floor. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t! The casino is in a much smaller, almost spherical-looking building in front of the 47-stories tall skyscraper.

Staff and Dealers

I had difficulty interacting with the casino’s staff since I don’t speak Chinese or Portuguese. Getting the minimum bet on slots in US dollars was a hassle; the casino staff kept pointing towards the sign on the table, seemingly understanding my question but unable to respond.

It’s a similar story with the dealers. I noticed they have excellent control of the game and are willing to explain when necessary, but they’re simply more comfortable with non-English languages. My guess is Grand Lisboa’s ideal users are the wealthy Macau residents, so it makes sense that their hires speak mainly the city’s native languages.

Smoking Areas

Grand Lisboa has a no-smoking policy on the main casino floor, which I believe contributes to the relatively healthy atmosphere within the casino. The casino hotel, on the other hand, doesn’t restrict smoking. I wouldn’t try smoking in the lobby as you’ll occasionally see kids around, but there are no restrictions for smoking in your room.

Bars and Restaurants

I experienced the best of Grand Lisboa’s fine dining during my visit to Casa Don Alfonso, one of the casino’s many exquisite restaurants. The interior looks like a luxurious home, with large sofas adorning the spacious dining area and wall art hanging beautifully from strategic positions within the restaurant.

I also discovered two bars at the casino: Lotus Lounge and Tycoons Bar. Lotus Lounge serves an assortment of premium wines for surprisingly low prices, especially in a casino of that size. Drinks can be as low as $30, and they come with top-notch service for free.

The wine list can be confusing, so it's best to ask a server to recommend something nice.

ATMs & Cashless Gaming

There are on-site ATMs at the Grand Lisboa Casino, so accessing cash wasn’t a problem for me. While there are no money exchangers on the gaming floor, you'll find more than a few around the casino building exchanging the US dollar (and some other currencies) for Macanese Panaka and Hong Kong Dollars.

Wheelchair Accessibility

Wheelchair users won't find it difficult to get around as the stair-based entryways are also wheelchair-accessible.

I expected Grand Lisboa’s game selection to be better than most, and the casino didn’t disappoint. Its gaming area features over 400 gaming tables and 700+ slot machines.

So,  whether you prefer playing Poker, Roulette, Baccarat, or Blackjack, Grand Lisboa has enough tables to whet your gaming appetite.

Table Games

Grand Lisboa has an exciting variety of table games, including Baccarat, Sic Bo, American Roulette, 3 Card Baccarat, Caribbean Stud Poker, 3 Card Poker, and Roulette.

The minimum on most table games is MOP 200 (~$25), which is almost unbelievable for such a big-name casino. Some exceptions are Carribean Stud Poker, inside bets on Roulette, Sic Bo, and both three-card games.

The minimums on Carribean Stud Poker, Sic Bo, and 3 Card Poker are all MOP 300 (~$35), while 3 Card Bacarrat and inside bets on Roulette have minimums of MOP 500 (~$60) and MOP 50 (~$6) respectively. There are also a few Casino War tables, two or three maybe, with minimums of MOP 300 each, but I’m not a fan, so I didn’t try them out.

I sauntered into the high-limit area on the first floor while posing for pictures, but I didn’t try any games. Minimums were around $250 to $300 (MOP 2000+) in the high-limit area, and I simply wasn’t prepared to spend that much on a game.

Climbing up to the second floor reveals the poker room with several tables, up to 30.

Slot Machines

Grand Lisboa’s 412,000+ square feet gaming area is covered almost entirely with slots. There are over 700 of them and you can find pretty much any slot game, depending on how hard you look.

I noticed many of the slot machines have Asian themes, which isn’t a big surprise, considering the gaming establishment is located in China. Unlike with the casino staff, however, you’ll notice there are efforts to incorporate American and Western slots in the collection, as I can recall several familiar games.

Grand Lisboa has a decent selection of electronic jackpots, so I tried Jackpot Carnival and Cash Express. There’s also a handful of electronic live table games if you prefer that, but they’re just no fun when you can play the real thing.

Popular Games

Players at Grand Lisboa tend to gravitate towards Wheel of Fortune, as the wheel is almost always crowded, day or night. Despite having a relatively steep minimum of MOP 25 (compared to the slots), I still had to wait for more than a few minutes to be able to bet on a spin.

The most unremarkable aspect of betting at Grand Lisboa has to be the bonuses and promotions. Unless you’re a member or a high roller, you get nothing in the way of bonuses, which is frankly disappointing.

Dead Chip Program

High rollers can take advantage of Grand Lisboa’s Dead Chip Program, which starts at 1% on a MOP 100,000 buy-in with a rolling turnover of MOP 1 million. You get a placard that shows other options, but all I could make out of it was the MOP 200,000 buy-in. The casino staff around wasn’t any help as the language barrier made it impossible for him to offer much.

Here’s how the table looked:

Why 1.1% cashback seemed to require a rolling chip turnover of MOP 15 million when 1% required just MOP 1 million beats me, but that’s what it is.

Complimentary allowances

Once you spend up to MOP 100,000, you qualify for the 0.1% complimentary allowance, which is about 12 bucks in total. This bonus is supposedly redeemable in any of the casino’s amenities, but I didn’t get to do that, as $12,000 was way above my budget for the night.

Atmosphere

Grand Lisboa is your typical Macanese luxurious casino, with gold and red adornments beautifying the gaming area. What I first noticed after stepping in were the numerous screens from the slot machines. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many at one point before that. Whatever isn’t a screen is coated in either gold or red.

Cleanliness

The air feels healthier than in most casinos I’ve been to, probably thanks to Grand Lisboa’s no-smoking policy. In terms of crowd, there’s simply no way around it. I visited the casino on a Thursday, and there were people at pretty much every table. Imagine how it’d look on weekends.

Food and Drinks

There’s a bar on the main casino floor where the Crazy Paris Show used to take place. I tried a few drinks from the bar in memory of the show but the drinking experience wasn’t very remarkable. If you’re after the proper casino bar experience, I’d recommend Lotus Lounge. The tiny red seats are more comfortable than they look, and you get snacks and an actual table to accompany your drink.

For dining, Grand Lisboa spoils you for options. Robuchon au Dome brings you the finest French cuisine from an expert chef. The Kitchen serves some of the best steak in Macau, and I’ve not tasted better pasta than I had at Don Alfonso.

Grand Lisboa is one of my favourite foreign casinos so far, despite the communication hiccups I experienced with some of the staff. Its unique and gigantic look makes it the perfect spot for travel pictures.

There’s an ATM for instant cash withdrawal, money exchangers to exchange my US dollars for Hong Kong dollars (HKD) or Macanese Pataca (MOP), several bars and restaurants for food and drinks, and a giant gaming area with various casino games.

I’d recommend checking into the Grand Lisboa Hotel if you’re visiting the casino, as it offers a luxurious experience for a reasonable price.

If you don’t speak Chinese or Portuguese, consider sticking to games you’re familiar with, as you’ll likely struggle to find dealers proficient in English. Despite this tiny inconvenience, I’ll happily recommend Grand Lisboa to anyone, and I look forward to visiting again.

If you find yourself in Grand Lisboa, don’t forget to check out ‘The Star of Stanley Ho’ at the hotel’s lobby. It’s the world’s largest symmetrical, cushion-shaped diamond with a flawless D-color!

Grand Lisboa’s size and central placement give it a locational advantage in Macau. You get free shuttle buses to move around, but I couldn’t stand the queues for the free shuttle tickets, so I mostly stuck to using taxis. All the taxis in Macau know Grand Lisboa, so the language barrier was insignificant. If you want to get there on your own, just look Casino Lisboa on Google Maps or use the link here: //maps.app.goo.gl/tq6sTiSB2JZVZZPt9.

Here are a few other land based casinos I visited while in Macao:

• Venetian Macao Casino
• MGM Macau Casino
• Galaxy Macau Casino
• Morpheus Macau Casino
• Sands Macau Casino