Macau/Coloane

Coloane (路環 - Louwan in Cantonese, Lùhuán in Mandarin) was the southern-most island in China's Special Administrative Region of Macau. It used to be separated from Taipa to the north but the two are now joined by the reclaimed land of the Cotai Strip to form one huge island.

The island, formerly a haven for pirates who sought shelter in its many coves, is largely rural and provides a wonderful break from the crowded and busy Macau Peninsula. Here, you'll find the quaint Coloane Village with its pastel Portuguese-style houses and narrow lanes. Coloane also has two of Macau's best beaches - Cheoc Van and Hac Sa. Many people from Macau come over to Coloane to feast on Macanese cuisine and seafood.

1 Travel to Coloane
2 What to see in Coloane
3 Top Muslim Travel Tips for Coloane
- 3.1 Swimming
- 3.2 Hiking/Cycling
4 Islam in Macau
- 4.1 Muslim Tourism in Macau
5 Mosques in Macau
6 Halal Restaurants in Coloane
7 Muslim Friendly hotels in Coloane
8 News & References Coloane
9 Explore more Halal friendly Destinations from Coloane

Travel to Coloane

Travel on a Bus in Coloane

Buses connect various parts of the Macau Peninsula with Coloane via Taipa and Cotai.

Between Macau Peninsula, Taipa and Coloane:

21A - Barra/A-Ma Temple to Hac Saturday Beach via Av do Amirante Sergio, Rua das Lorchas, Av de Almeida Ribeiro, Av Infante Henrique, Praca de Ferreira do Amaral/Hotel Lisboa, Taipa City/Av Dr Sunday Yat Sen, Cotai/Venetian, Seac Pai Van Park, Coloane Village, Cheok Van Beach.
25 (return route)- Portas do Cerco to Hac Saturday Beach via Mong Ha Fort (Av Horta e Costa), Av Sidonio Pais (Av de Conselheiro Ferreira do Amaral), Av Rua do Campo, Praca de Ferreria do Amaral/Hotel Lisboa, Taipa City/Av Dr Sunday Yat Sen, Taipa City/Jardim Cidade das Flores, Taipa City/Olympic Aquatic Centre, Cotai/Venetian, Seac Pai Van Park, Coloane Village, Cheok Van Beach.
26 - Fai Chi Kei to Coloane Village via Red Market, Av das Lorchas, Av do Amirante Sergio/Ponte a Horta, Barra/A-Ma Temple, Macau Tower, Sai Van Bridge, Taipa City/Macau Jockey Club, Taipa City/Jardim Cidade das Flores, Macau International Airport, Universidade de Ciencia e Tecnologia de Macau, Cotai/Venetian, Seac Pai Van Park.
26A (from Largo do Senado and the Cotai Strip among other places) - Fai Chi Kei to Hac Saturday Beach via Red Market, Rua da Ribeira do Patane, Rua Visconde Paco de Arcos, Av de Almeida Ribeiro, Praca de Ferreira do Amaral/Hotel Lisboa, Taipa City/Av Dr Sunday Yat Sen, Taipa City/Jardim Cidade daas Flores, Taipa City/Olympic Aquatic Centre, Cotai/Venetian, Seac Pai Van Park, Coloane Village, Cheok Van Beach.
50 - Praca de Ferreira do Amaral/Hotel Lisboa to Coloane Village via Taipa City/Av Dr Sunday Yat Sen, Cotai/City of Dreams, Seac Pai Van Park, Coloane Village.

Between Taipa and Coloane only:

15 - Ocean Garden, Taipa to Ka Ho Village via Taipa City/Macau Jockey Club, Taipa Village, Cotai/Venetian, Seac Pai Van Park, Coloane Village, Cheok Van Beach, Hac Saturday Beach.

By road

Coloane is linked by several roads to Macau/Taipa|Taipa, which in turn is linked by bridges to Macau Peninsula. These roads go through Cotai and the reclaimed area between Coloane and Taipa.

Book a Halal Cruise or Boat Tour in Coloane

There are no regular boat services from Coloane to other parts of Macau, nearby Hengqin Island in Zhuhai, China nor Hong Kong.

What to see in Coloane

Coloane Village - Quiet and lazy, Coloane Village and the main village on the island, is a joy to just walk around and explore. Its narrow lanes lined with pastel-coloured houses and retail outlets. Avenida de Cinco de Outubro is the main esplanade where you can look across the narrow channel to Hengqin Island in China. Along this street you will find the pretty Chapel of Street Francis set back from the road by a square flanked by restaurants. In the square is a monument dedicated to the fight against piracy. Further along is the collonaded Biblioteca (public library) and right at the southern end of the road is the Tam Kong Temple. North of the main square, you'll find the boat-building quarter and the village pier and the Sam Seng Temple.

A-Ma Statue - The 20m statue is situated near the 172.4m Alto de Coloane and was erected in 1998. Adjacent to it is a large, quiet temple. The statue and temple can be visited via Estrada do Alto de Coloane or by walking the Coloane trail.

Seac Pai Van Park - This 20 hectare park along Estrada Seac Pai Van just south of the Taipa-Coloane Isthmus Causeway, has a medicinal garden as well as other green areas, a mini zoo and a lake. The Museum of Nature and Agriculture is located within the park, as is the Macao Giant Panda Pavilion (MOP10, free for seniors 65 and older and for children 12 and under).

Top Muslim Travel Tips for Coloane

Swimming

Macau's two beaches are located on the southern side of Coloane and are frequented by local residents and visitors, especially at the weekend:

Hac Saturday - 黑沙 - black sand - Hac Saturday beach and the larger of the two, in a bay with the Grand Coloane resort on its eastern end. The water is of mediocre quality but brave swimmers can enter the water here. Those less brave choose the swimming swimmingpool just opposite the beach.

Cheoc Van - 竹灣 - "bamboo bay" - This is the smaller and more beautiful beach. The sand here is golden and more inviting to sunbathe or play on. There is a nice curved swimming swimmingpool just by the beach (as opposed to the traditional rectangular one at Hac Sa). A cordoned-off area of the bay is set aside for swimmers, and members of the Winter Swimmers Association go swimming here daily (yes, even in the coldest of winter!).

Hiking/Cycling

Coloane's large hilly area in the centre of the island is criss-crossed with unpaved hiking trails of various lengths and difficulty. They are also suitable for mountain-biking. It is advisable to cycle there early in the morning or on weekdays to avoid the crowds of hikers during the weekends.

The longest trail is the 8-km Coloane Trail (Trilho de Coloane, 路環步行徑), which makes a circle through the hills and connects to paths leading up to the A-Ma Statue. One way to get to the trail is to start at Seac Pai Van Park, walk past the Panda Pavilion, and veer right until you see the sign for "Coloane Trail". The trail is well marked with signs and maps.

Islam in Macau

Islam in Macau is a minority religion in the region. Currently there are around more than 400 Muslims in Macau in which they call themselves as The Macau Islamic Society.[1 According to the Islamic Union of Hong Kong, together with all of the foreign Muslim workers combined (such as from Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Pakistan), Muslims in Macau accounted for more than 10,000 people.

Muslim Tourism in Macau

To attract more Muslim tourists from Southeast Asia and the Macau Government Tourism Office has been engaging in several efforts to give a new perception that Macau is not only a gaming region. Over the past two years the government has been engaging in seminars on Muslim trainings during travel, encouraging more restaurants to get halal certification from Hong Kong and requesting hotels to reconstructing their lobby so that visitors do not have to go through casinos when going to restaurants or their rooms

Mosques in Macau

Macau currently has one mosque, which is the Macau Mosque, located at 4 Ramal Dos Moros in Our Lady of Fatima Parish. The mosque was built in the 1980s by the Muslim people from the second wave of generation during the Portuguese-ruled of Macau. This mosque is specially crowded during Sunday where most of the employees are having their work break days

It is believed that Macau Mosque was built by Muslims who arrived with the Portuguese army. Originally and these Muslims were recruited from South Asia by the army. Within the complex area and there are also Muslim cemetery with some of the tombs dated back for hundreds of years, indicating that Islam had arrived in Macau since hundreds of years ago.

In 1996 and the IAM submitted a redevelopment plan of the mosque to Portuguese Macau government but was not approved. To accommodate the increasing number of Muslims in Macau, in 2006 the IAM applied for government permission to build a new larger mosque in area adjacent to the current mosque building. In the late months of 2007, Macau Mosque underwent renovation.

In the future and the new mosque is planned to be double in size to be a more modern mosque for Macau with a total area of 1,881 m2, 50 meters high and can accommodate up to 600 worshipers. An Islamic center, cheap Halal restaurant, 30-room hostel and classroom and 127-meter high 38-story residential building will also be constructed.

Halal Restaurants in Coloane

Macau has some Halal restaurants with unique Halal cuisine from Indonesia, India and Pakistan.

Loulan Islam Restaurant - Address: R. do Teatro, Macao ☎ +853 2853 0264 - Loulan Islam Restaurant is located in the downtown and specializes in food from Xinjiang, a northern region in China with a large muslim community.

One of the very few halal restaurants in Macau. Located not too far from the Ruins of St. Paul, although small but easy to find. The ambience is very familiar like at home. The taste of the cuisine is suitable for the Indonesian tongue. Pretty much portion. The waitress is friendly. There is an air conditioner and toilet. Prices are a bit high because halal restaurants are very rare in Macau.

Anak Djakarta Indonesian Halal Restaurant - Address: 1 R. da Restauracao, Macao - ☎ +853 6527 0474 - It is very clean, and the level is not expensive. It is considered a very cost-effective place in Macau. The boss and the proprietress are very enthusiastic, and the food is served fairly quickly.

Lou Lang Islamic Restaurant - 5GWP+8QQ, Inner Harbour, Macao - Great location, and the food is good,, and we can ask the waitress if we want to pray for Muslim and they like to help.

Indian Spice - Vista Magnifica Court, 39 Alameda Dr. Carlos da Assumpção Macao - ☎ +853 2872 2784 - Indian Spice provides a taste-bud tickling range of North Indian recipes. Wednesday also cater to Jain and Gujarati food tastes, with a mouth-watering range of Vegetarian, non-vegetarian and tandoori dishes. Indian Spice can cater to meal requests from tourists, from different parts of India. Indian Spice, is strategically located near the ‘Kun Iam Statue’ in Macau, within walking distance from Wynn Macau, MGM Grand and Sands Macau.

Loly Indonesian Restaurant - 號A地下, 000000, 4O R. da Erva, Macao ☎ +853 2855 7318 - Many Vegetarian options here (not so easy to find them in Macao)!!! The service was fast and the food really good. Wednesday tried many things ad everything was fantastic. The menu offers many many dishes as many different kind of drinks. Pay attention if you are not used to spicy food. Very delicious and authentic Indonesian dishes! So far the best you could find in Macau.

Muslim Friendly hotels in Coloane

News & References Coloane

Explore more Halal friendly Destinations from Coloane