Casa Real

Maven Meter: Casa Real Casino & Hotel

(Last Updated: May 20, 2020)

INTRODUCTION

Since May 2005, Casa Real has been controlled by Golden Resorts Group, a gaming and hotel company based out of Hong Kong. It’s one of two four star hotels they own in Macau, with the other being Grandview down in Taipa.

Both hotels have aged quite well and Golden Resorts should be commended for the fine job they’ve done restoring and maintaining them. Casa Real looks years better than most hotels that were built in 1993, and it’s probably the third best place to stay around the Ferry Terminal, behind only the Grand Lapa and Legend Palace.

Casa Real Photo Gallery

Casa Real Coimbra azulejo — Coimbra Azulejo

CASA REAL CASINO

Casa Real is a happening little casino that probably doesn’t get the respect it deserves. Denigrated for years as a “mainland haunt”, I’ve never understood the hate. Always alive with action, the floor is fun and upbeat, while the dealers are unusually friendly for Macau, happy to smile and banter with the players.

I actually should thank one of them because I only sat down at her table after she motioned me over to have a seat, then raised the glass window above her chips. Attracted by her good looks I sat down and then proceeded to win about $10,000, aided strongly by a run of 17 consecutive Banker wins. That was an incredible streak I don’t think I’ll ever experience again and I owe it all to her and Casa Real.

Gaming takes place on 4 floors with the ground floor and 1st floor exclusively tables and the 2nd and 3rd floors all slots and Live Gaming Machines. Baccarat, Commission Free Baccarat, 21, Fan Tan and Sic Bo are all offered, with most tables between $100 and $300. Slots start at 5 cents while Live Baccarat is $20 and Electronic Roulette only $10.

For VIP gamers, the first floor is home to the Golden 28 club, which returns 1.1% plus 0.05% comp allowance on buy ins over $50000, while immediate settlement is 1%. They also give players a lot of room deals, where cheapest rooms run $700 (Sun-Thu)/$900 (Fri)/$1,100 (Sat).

Not very large, Golden 28 has 4 Baccarat tables, with minimums of between $200 and $2000. Upstairs beside the slot hall, the club has another private room with more expensive tables.

CASA REAL CASINO GAMES

An OK range of games for such a small casino.

Baccarat – Minimum bet is $200.

Commission Free Baccarat – Minimum bet is $200.

Blackjack – 1 table, $100 minimum bet.

Fan Tan – 2 tables, $100 minimum Fam, Nim, Kwok bet, $200 Nga Tan, $300 Sheh-Sam-Hong.

Sic Bo – 5 different bets available, $50 minimum Big/Small, Even/Odd bet.

Slot machines – 103 machines, with lows of 5 and 10 cents. Also has Electronic Roulette for $10.

CASA REAL PROMOTIONS

Promotional chip customers receive the following deals:

1. Amounts rolled under $10,000,000 receive 1% cash back plus 0.05% comp allowance.
2. Amounts rolled in excess of $10,000,000 receive 1% cash back plus 0.10% comp allowance.

A free hotel room can be had with the following buy ins:

A few buy in deals return the following comps:

$1,000 – One $20 dining coupon
$5,000 – Five $20 dining coupons
$5,000 – 1 Free Buffet
$10,000 – $100 gambling chip OR $150 dining coupon

CASA REAL HOTEL

I was very impressed with Casa Real when I went there to review it. Staff all around were friendly and engaging and I got the impression that the hotel is very well run.

The 381 rooms look unbelievably good for being over 20 years old, it’s clear a lot of money has been put into remodeling and redecoration.

Prices are excellent too, with rates only $800 Mop Sunday to Thursday and around $1000 on Friday and Saturday, including all tax and service charges.

If you want breakfast, just buy it during check in for $80 per person.

Going through a third party website like Agoda or Booking.com might result in a savings of $200 per night, so be sure to check them out as well.

CASA REAL HOTEL ROOM

You know you’ve been hard for accommodation lately when you stay at Casa Real and it reminds you of the Ritz Carlton Macau.

Believe me, fresh off the heels of toiling through the Budget Hotel Guide in late 2019, that’s exactly how it felt！

The first stop on my 2020 Coronavirus Tour, I stayed at Casa Real for one night on Tuesday, February 18th, 2020. My reasons for visiting were twofold – one, Zhuhai was in a sorry state at the time, not quite in lock down, but close enough to it, and two, I was ready to snag some serious deals on hotel rooms, given that Macau was basically bereft of tourist business at the time. Since I’d always suspected that Casa Real was a lot better than most people thought, I put it first on the list.

Arriving promptly at 2:15 pm the lobby was empty, save for one doorman and woman working the front desk. I’d never seen the hotel so dead before, but such is life in February when the casino is closed and everyone in mainland China is afraid to go outside. I’d booked the cheapest room available online through C Trip for $520 Mops, which would have been a slight discount of about $100, had there been no pandemic raging.

When the desk girl told me that I reserved a Twin Room, I asked if I could have one King bed, as I was traveling solo. She said no problem and that the new room would be a little bigger, then asked for a deposit of $500. I paid that with my credit card and was soon up to the 9th floor, room 913.

As soon as I walked in, I knew it was a suite, which the turn down staff confirmed later on.

How I went from an Elite Room to a Junior Suite was beyond me, but it definitely wasn’t because the hotel was sold out and that’s all they had left. I mean, I doubt they had 20 total guests in the entire hotel.

I should say that Junior Suites usually run $1450 on weekdays, so don’t look at the pictures and then make a beeline straight for the website thinking that you’ll get them for $520 too. (Unless, of course, another virus strikes.)

Perhaps it was karma paying me back for the pain I endured putting together the Budget Guide, where 5 or 6 hotels were sad disgusting options that should be detonated immediately, their very existence a blight on Macau.

Of course, the Casa Real suite was nothing like the Ritz suite, but it almost felt as lavish and luxurious to me. I loved all the space in the two rooms and the size of the bathtub, which was absolutely huge. Sometimes I’m all scrunched up in there close to assuming the fetal position, but I could recline back in there like I was on a Lazyboy. The bed was super soft too while the Wifi was excellent, never cutting out once.

At the same time, remember that in these smaller mid-range Chinese style hotels, suite is really just a synonym for “Larger”, and won’t whisk you off into airy abodes of penthouse magic. No matter the occasion, $1500 is too much to pay for anything at Casa Real, and at that price point, consider rooms at Altira or the Grand Lisboa first.

As a free upgrade though… beggars can’t be choosers and all I can say is, please keep them coming!

Anyway, the standard rooms at Casa Real look just fine for the price (at least from the website) and they should be just as clean and well maintained as what I was given.

CASA REAL POOL

There’s a nice little pool at Casa Real, sort of like the ones found at Landmark and Rio. I think the castle motif and pillars both look pretty cool.

The pool has the same hours as the gym, from 7 am to 9 pm.

CASA REAL RESTAURANTS

The Casa Real has two restaurants for your dining pleasure.

Imperial Chinese Restaurant – Located on the 2nd Floor, the Imperial Chinese Restaurant offers pricey abalone set meals for $1180 or $1480, while Chef’s Recommendations are $98 to $248 and Bird’s Nest $328 to $588. Appetizers run $55, while Soup is $50 to $328 and Vegetable dishes $88 to $108. Other choices include Barbecue ($88 to $248) and Casserole ($98 to $338).

Hours are from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm in the afternoon and from 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm at night.

Pena Restaurant – The Pena Restaurant does buffet three times daily, with prices $120 (adults) and $80 (children) in the morning, and $108 for lunch and dinner, both of which are semi-buffets. The way it works is that patrons order one main dish from a selection of 8, then can help themselves to as much soup, salad, bread and dessert as they want.

A second menu is also available with pricier dishes that run between $80 and $98, and patrons can also enjoy the buffet by spending another $28 on top of that.

If guests just want to frequent the salad and dessert bar and nothing else, that costs $68.

Pena Restaurant also has an a la carte menu featuring appetizers ($88 to $100), salads ($48 to $138), soups ($38 to $88), seafood ($88 to $428), mains ($98 to $338) and desserts ($35 to $68).

Also located on the 2nd floor, daily hours are from 7:00 am to 2:30 pm, and 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm.

GYM

The facilities at Casa Real are very disappointing. There’s no free spa amenities at all, while the gym is much too small. All they have are a couple of cardio machines and not much lifting equipment. I don’t even think you can call it a proper gym, it’s that pathetic.

Located on the 5th floor, hours are from 7 am to 9 pm.

CASA REAL SPA

East Castle Spa is Casa Real’s newest addition, opening sometime in early 2014. It’s partnered in some way with Waldo’s East Spa Club, hence the similar names. They’re also selling the same thing. Full service starts from $2898 and proceeds all the way up to $5898, for a top of the line Japanese or Korean babe. And for that price, gentleman, it’d be cheaper just to go to Japan or Korea yourself.

Straight up body massage, if that’s indeed what it is, runs $1698, while the door pass is good for 12 hours and costs $1198.

East Castle Spa is located on the 4th floor.

CASA REAL BARS

Knights Bar – Located in the lobby, Knight’s Bar serves both food and drinks at very affordable prices. Starting with the beverages then, soft drinks range from$28 to $32, while juice is $45 to $48 and coffee and tea $35 to $68. Fancy milkshakes run $48 while the only alcoholic beverages available are beers for $42 to $45.

Their snack menu is available for 24 hours and features congee ($35 to $68), noodles ($60 to $88), fried rice ($75), spaghetti ($75 to $88) and sandwiches ($60 to $120). There’s also a fresh fruit platter on offer for $68.

Located in the lobby, hours at Knight Bar are from 11:00 am to 10:00 pm.

THE LAST WORD

Even though Casa Real is clearly one of the better four star hotels in town, its poor location precludes it from being much of a viable living option. The area around the Ferry Terminal just isn’t where tourists should be.

As for the casino, it’s usually full of people and a lot of fun, but that’s offset by the lack of player card and promotions. Low limit gamers and those out for a good time will probably enjoy it, while more serious players should take a pass.