Experience the best of Macau

The Historic Centre of Macau, a World Heritage Site, spreads around Senado Square, paved in a black-and-white wave pattern with pastel colonial buildings beside it. Up the steps beyond, the carved granite façade of St Paul's, all that remains of a 17th-century church, stands against the sky. Temples such as A-Ma, on the hillside by the harbour, show the older Chinese side of the city, and Portuguese-built forts guard the hills.

The territory spreads over the Macau Peninsula and the islands of Taipa and Coloane, now joined by reclaimed land. Taipa's old village has pastel houses and food shops, Coloane has a quiet seafront and Hac Sa beach with dark sand, and the Cotai Strip is lined with large resorts. Macau Tower rises above the harbour, and a long bridge links the territory to Hong Kong and Zhuhai.

Macanese cooking blends Portuguese, Cantonese and Southeast Asian influences, in dishes such as African chicken and minchi, a minced-meat hash with potato, and pork-chop buns. Autumn and early winter are clear and comfortable, while summer is hot, humid and prone to typhoons. Cantonese dim sum fills the teahouses, and egg tarts with caramelised tops are sold everywhere.