Now Open: The Mandarin Oriental Macau (with Nary a Casino in Sight)

There's a new luxury hotel on the block in China's gambling mecca of Macau, the former Portuguese colony adjacent to Hong Kong. Joining the likes of Las Vegas-style hotels (the Wynn, Venetian, et al.), the dazzling new Mandarin Oriental-- surprise!-- does not have a casino. A recent AP article highlights what seems bizarre for a hotel launch in one of the world's premier gambling destinations, where the gambling revenue for first-quarter 2010 was over $5 billion, surpassing Vegas' paltry $1.53 billion. Mandarin Oriental also opened a swank new hotel in Vegas last December with no casino on the premises:

Both the Vegas and Macau hotels offer alternatives to visitors who happen to be in gambling centers but who prefer accommodations in a non-gaming environment... Many hotel-casinos are built so that guests must walk through or past large, dark, noisy casino areas to reach their accommodations, so the Mandarin Oriental properties also provide a different experience walking in. Some visitors to Macau may also be more interested in its cultural attractions and unusual colonial history than in games of chance, just as some tourists head to Vegas for shows, restaurants and the Bellagio fountains but leave town without ever placing a bet or playing the slots.

Promising the "best views in Macau" over the South China Sea and Nam Van Lake from the Nape waterfront, the sleek new hotel has an outdoor pool, cutting-edge fitness center, and chic restaurants with panoramas over glittering Macau. Celebrate the hotel's debut with a special "Opening Offer" which is valid until September 30, 2010. You'll get one complimentary consecutive night or a dining or spa credit valued at MOP 388, plus free shuttle bus transfers between the Macau Maritime Ferry Terminal. Rates from HKD 2,188.