New Orient Landmark

Maven Meter: New Orient Landmark Casino & Hotel

(Last updated: August 23, 2023)

INTRODUCTION

One of the oldest hotels on the Amizade Strip, Landmark opened a lifetime ago in 1997, while its casino commenced operations in 2003.  While the hotel remains one of Macau’s best mid-range options, the casino took a hard nosedive post Covid, losing all of their Western games, including the only $100 Caribbean Stud Poker left in town.  It’s nothing but a cheap Baccarat Hall now, one that doesn’t deserve anyone’s attention.

New Orient Landmark Photo Gallery

LANDMARK CASINO GAMES

Let’s hope Landmark brings back Blackjack, Roulette and $100 Caribbean Stud Poker in the future.  In its current state, it’s totally irrelevant.

Baccarat – Minimum bet is $300.

Commission Free Baccarat – Minimum bet is $200.

Sic Bo – 5 different bets available.  Minimum bet is $100. 

LANDMARK CASINO PROMOTIONS

The Landmark VIP program is identical to the one at Fortuna.

Rolling turnover exceeding $1,000,000 returns 1.2% cash back monthly, or 1.1% immediate settlement. For amounts rolled under $1,000,000, the return is 1.1% (monthly) or 1.0% (immediate settlement).

For players participating in the VIP program, they can get discounted rooms at Landmark for $600 (Sunday-Thursday), $700 (Friday) and $800 (Saturday).

I also saw that buy-ins of $3000 score a free dining coupon.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK HOTEL

Landmark opened way back in 1997 which is ancient for hotels anywhere, especially in Macau.  But ageism in this case would be a catastrophic mistake, since it’s easily one of the best mid-range options in town.

The lobby looks great and room rates are very competitive, just a touch more expensive than nearby budget holes like Fortuna and President ($800 Sunday to Thursday).  It’s also a better hotel than its close neighbours L’Arc and Starworld, two places that routinely cost $500 to $700 more per night.

Always book off of third party travel websites though, as the rates on the New Orient Landmark are routinely higher by about $200 or $300.  Prices below are in Macau Mops and include all tax and service charges.

If you’d like breakfast, it costs $158 per person.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK HOTEL ROOM

As mentioned in my 10 Top Tips, you shouldn’t be afraid of older hotels in Macau, especially when some of them used to go by the names Mandarin Oriental (Grand Lapa), Westin (Grand Coloane) and Hyatt Regency (Regency Art Hotel). I think we can add another one to the list in the New Orient Landmark, which had been known as Landmark Macau for over 20 years before switching ownership around 2018.

As a general rule, hotels that were built pre-handover from well known international chains were built very well, offering large comfortable rooms, outstanding spa facilities and a comprehensive sort of resort experience. As such, the New Orient Landmark Macau is probably a lot better than most people give it credit for, and I’ve got the proof below.

The second hotel on my 2020 Coronavirus Tour, I stayed for one night on Wednesday, February 19th. Given that the entire property was a ghost town, I had no problem checking in early at 12:00 pm. It was a maze to get to the room, first having to go through one set of elevators to the 6th floor, and then transferring again, but they had staff on hand to ensure a smooth transit.

I had booked a Standard Room through C Trip for $667 Mops, which was a savings of about $140, had I gone through the Landmark site itself. When I got to my room on the 16th floor of the West Wing, number 1619, I couldn’t believe how large it was.

Indeed, I had scored a free upgrade to a Grand Deluxe King, which has a going rate of about $1300 per night.

The size of the room (60 square meters) reminded me of ones at the Grand Lisboa and Wynn Palace, two hotels that are far more expensive, routinely costing more than $2000 per night.

Just as in those two hotels, the bathroom was especially spacious, and came equipped with a killer bathtub and separate stand-up shower.

It’s one of those bathrooms that you could hold meetings in, where five women could easily stand in front of the side by side power sinks and faucets getting ready for the night (hopefully as you monitor and give instructions laid out in the bathtub.)

Toiletries were above average, provided by L’Occitane, and the whole space just looked really sharp, the white marble on black floor tile colour scheme a fantastic combination.

Even when the Deluxe King is the full normal price (around $1350), I think it’d still be worth considering, given its abundance of space and classy retro furnishings; in particular, the regal curtains, lamps, chairs, desk and bedside table.

The room exude the same sort of history and elegance that ones at the Lisboa do, just upgraded slightly from 1970 to 1979, which you just don’t get in newer hotels. So yeah, the Landmark rooms do have some style, they do have some swagger, they do have some panache, and above all, they do have some fantastic value. It truly exceeded my expectations 100%.

At the same time though, it is called the New Orient Landmark and not the Landmark anymore, so everything wasn’t perfect, and some signs of slippage were evident. First off, communication on the phone sometimes led to problems, with instructions in English often not understood, while the “fully stocked” mini bar advertised on the website didn’t offer a single thing, the fridge completely empty as well.

There was no TV list explaining the stations, and the English on the TV didn’t always correspond to the proper channel, although the selection wasn’t bad, with 10 to 15 of them foreign networks. Lastly, there was a bit of wear and tear evident on the floorboards by the door, which they really should take care of, while one electrical socket was broken as well.

On the day of the checkout I overslept badly, all the way to 1:00 pm. I immediately phoned the front desk to see if I could check out late, and they said no problem. Indeed, late checkouts at 2:00 pm are often easy to get in Macau, provided it’s a nicer hotel and not a weekend or other peak time.

All in all, I had an excellent stay at Landmark in the midst of a terrible virus, and you might want to give serious consideration to these supremely adorned rooms.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK HOTEL POOL

Landmark’s indoor pool is swank and styling, and open all year round.  The plants down the side are a nice design touch too, as is the jacuzzi.

Located on the 3rd floor, hours are from 7:30 am to 9:00 pm daily.

Sadly, the jacuzzi was not in working order my last visit in June 2023.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK DINING

Landmark is down to just 2 restaurants, neither of which I’d recommend.

Imperial Palace – Imperial Palace is right outside the old Pharaoh’s Palace casino entrance on Level 3.  From 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm they only serve noodles, while rice becomes available from 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm.  Most dishes are $68 with some pricier outliers reaching up to $198.  A few inexpensive sets, finally, go for $50.

A morning breakfast buffet is also available for $148.

Imperial Palace stays open 24 hours.

The Landmark Restaurant – Now serving Cantonese fare, prices at the Landmark Restaurant are no bargain, with appetizers $56 to $108, soup $88 to $908 while vegetables are $98 to $168.  Shark’s fin, bird’s nest and abalone are mostly between $650 to $3000, while seafood and meat are $108 to $398.  The cheapest choices on the menu are rice and noodle dishes for $98 to $218, while barbecue is $56 to $108 and Chef’s Recommendations $88 to $430.

With no English menus, I’d be giving the Landmark Restaurant a hard pass if I were you.

Located on the 5th floor, hours are from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm daily.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK SPA

There are two spas at the Landmark, one legit and one that specializes in sweet sin.

Guests at Landmark can access the spa on the 5th floor and its sauna, steam room, hot tub and cold pool for free, a very nice perk that most hotels in town don’t provide.  The facilities are truly top notch as well, with plenty of space inside and usually not many people using them.  Non-guests have to pay $100 for that action, which no longer includes access to the gym.  That has separate pricing of $160 now, which is still a pretty decent rate if you’re on the road and need to workout in a pinch.

Services at the spa are limited to just massage with 60 minute prices $338 to $720 while one 80 minute Thai massage is $588.  Once the treatment is over, they’ll allow you to use the spa facilities for 1 hour.

Spa hours are from 7:30 am to 9:00 pm daily.

One Sauna – The privately owned One Sauna operates out of the 2nd floor.  Featuring all manner of illicit delights, the door pass costs $880 for 12 hours while full service ranges between $2580 and $4680.  Straight up massage is $1180 while those with happy endings are $1480.

The One Sauna stays open 24 hours.

The One Sauna is currently closed, as they relocate it to the 2nd F, where the VIP gaming used to be.

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK GYM

Landmark’s gym is three to four times larger than other gyms found in comparably sized hotels.  With a wide selection of cardio equipment and heavy duty weight machines, getting a good workout there won’t be a problem.

The gym is located in the 5th floor Recreation Area, and has the same hours as the Spa.

THE LAST WORD

The New Orient Landmark was built last century and looks it too, but don’t let that dissuade you.  Older properties such as these tend to age very well in Macau, and the Landmark is yet another example.  It does quite a lot of things reasonably well with the end result being more than the sum of its parts.  I love the old vintage rooms in particular and would gladly live there again.

As for the Landmark Casino, it’s a total waste of time now, with only Baccarat and Sic Bo on offer.  Losing that $100 Caribbean Stud Poker hurts a lot too, since the cheapest tables in Macau are now $300.  (Which of course really means $900, after raising.)

NEW ORIENT LANDMARK HOTEL LOCATION

New Orient Landmark Hotel is directly opposite Starworld on the Western end of the Amizade Strip.