Travel in October 2017.
I was looking forward to Macau Oktoberfest very much. However, I felt disappointment after participating in this festival. This Macau Oktoberfest was too uncomfortable in many ways. There was Information about the festival was lacking in Korea. So I made a lot of effort to get information in Korean and or in English. I searched for Google in English but did not get much information as I expected. I couldn't get any tips on participating in the Macau Oktoberfest. So It was not easy for me to book. So let me summarize my story about Macau Oktoberfest. If you are planning to visit Macau Oktoberfest, please read this article.
travelblogger-hana
1. Appointment Step & Ticket Buying
I didn't know when I was able to book a reservation. By the end of September, I noticed that the reservations for Macau Oktoberfest were already started. So I went to the MGM homepage and checked it.
There was a BUY TICKETS button on the homepage. Tickets could also be purchased on the website. Of course, it can be purchased at the Macau Oktoberfest as well. I bought a ticket in advance. I thought it would be convenient. But I realized later. It was not convenient to purchase tickets in advance. No matter how much I thought, There was no advantage in buying tickets at the homepage.
First, Macau Oktoberfest tickets purchased from the website are non-refundable and can not be cancelled once the payment is completed. I inquired of the MGM Hotel regarding this part. The hotel gave me answer, "Do you want to cancel the ticket? Sorry, but you can't. Why don't you just visit the Macau Oktoberfest once more? " This was the answer. It would be a joke I think. I told the clerk that I'd take a short tour.
Second, as listed on the homepage, I had to get this ticket from 1 to 8 p.m. Ticket booth run until the end of the Macau Oktoberfest. Nevertheless, You must get it from 1 to 8. When I checked by e-mail, The staff told me like this. "You have to get your ticket from 1 to 8 p.m." No matter how much I think, I don't understand that. Why was it between 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.?
Third, you must have your payment card, passport, and reservation number when getting your ticket at the ticket booth. I was perplexed at the reservation number. On the homepage of Macau Oktoberfest, There was no mention of the reservation number when buying tickets.
"Tickets must be collected by the ticket purchaser. To verify the transaction and pick up the tickets, you will need to provide a valid photo ID along with the credit card used to purchase them."
▲ Information on MGM Oktobefest ▲
I could not find my reservation number on my page after I was done with my payment. Later, when I contacted MGM hotel to inquire about others, they informed me of the reservation number. If I hadn't asked a hotel clerk, I wouldn't have known the reservation number. Even when the payment was final, there was no email or other contact in relation to the reservation number.
Fourth, Why did they want to check my passport to give me reserved ticket? When I got ticket booth, I gave the employee the payment card, the reservation number and my passport. The employee checked them, then gave me my tickets. By the way, how did the clerk check my passport? I did not understand at all. Becaus the staff member looked closely at my old Chinese visa within my passport. The staff focused on that part. And the clerk said to me, " I confirmed! " Of course, my visa has my name, but my old visa does not contain my full name. When I purchased my ticket from the official website, I wrote my FULL name. However, my old Chinese visa was written in English with only one alphabet as my name. What did the employee check on?
Fifth, I was frighteningly thrilled by the fifth. From October 12 to 22, 2017, the Macau Oktoberfest will be held. If you buy tickets, tickets are available only once a day during the festival, except for a specific date(October 21st was Family Day so tickets were sold separately.). However, When I checked with MGM hotel clerk to confirm my payment, I heard the following stories.
Please accept our apologies for making confusion to you from the confirmation letter you were seeing. Your tickets (3x GA for MOP510) are duly paid, and these tickets are valid for one entry from 12th Oct to 22nd Oct (except 18th Oct which is fully booked).
WHAT????????
October 18 is closed because it is fully booked! However, there was no place to announce this. I was surprised when I read this e-mail employee sent. And I thought it was fortunate to me. What if I couldn't enter the day I was going to go? I would have been so sad... Tickets can not be refunded in advance if the admission ticket has been paid on the website.
No matter how much I think, I don't need to buy tickets in advance. Moreover, They did not show the day when we could not enter. I did not understand these parts. I thought it was a very global festival, looking at the official homepage that was explained in English. Now that I think about it, it wasn't at all. It was just a festival for locals.
2. Ticket
Tickets cost 170 mop per person. The price was not very expensive. This ticket contained complimentary beer. There were two kinds of beer available for free. Just choose from one of them. There was no other benefit.
3. Table and Seat
at Macau Oktoberfest, the Standing table does not require any extra cost, but the other seats must be paid in advanced. (Seats are divided into A, B, C and S. And the cost of seating varies according to the alphabet.) But I didn't have much information about this . I tried to find an e-mail address in order to reserve seats. However, I could not find in official website of Macau Octoberfest. So I tried to find another email for the MGM hotel. I couldn't find this either. So I used the international call to the MGM Macao Hotel.
I asked the receptionist to change staff who can speak English. But the clerk kept telling me in Chinese. Later She spoke English in a few words, then, she switched to English speaking staff. I said I'd like to reserve a table. But the only date I could go is that all of the tables were booked
I was sad to hear that there were no seats available. The staff recommended another date for me, but I am not a person living in Macau. So I couldn't go on the date that the employee recommended. When I was very disappointed, the staff told me.
"There is Standing table available. And You don't worry too much because there are plenty of standing tables. You can order and enjoy food from standing tables. "
After the phone call, I searched for the information of table at Macau Oktoberfest. So I couldn't find any information on the standing table. So I trusted the staff and booked the tickets. And I regret it very much.
4. Emtpy table?
"Wouldn't there be anyone who has made reservations leave early?" I thought. As I entered the Macau Oktoberfest, there were empty seats as I expected. The reservation seat had a RESERVED sign. Some people enjoyed beer and left the venue early on. The staff was cleaning up the empty plates. There was no sign of a RESERVED sign. "Can I sit there?" I thought it was. But I sat down and got kicked out by staff.
" Did you make a reservation for this seats? "
" No, I didn't. But the people here left. This seat is vacant. May I sit down? I want to order food. I bought a coupon for the food."
" No, no. You can order food at the Standing table. "
" There are already full"
" Still, you can't. "
At least the clerk could speak English a little bit so I could talk to him. Most employees were unable to speak English that day. I and my parents was kicked out by another clerk, who spoke Chinese.. If the seat was empty and the staff asked me to pay extra fees for table, I would have done so. However, it seems impossible to do so.
5. Finally...
After all, I and my parents played a little game. After drinking a free beer, we stayed there for about two hours. The events seemed funny. However, it was uncomfortable to stand up to enjoy the event. And I was hungry. The Macau Oktoberfest started at 6:00 p.m. I took an open top bus night tour to enjoy the night view at Macao. And I arrived at the Macau Oktoberfest around 8 p.m. I planned to drink and have dinner at the Macau Oktoberfest. But the plan was completely broken. I tried to catch the standing table that day, but it was impossible. So my family came out from the MGM Hotel and had dinner at the nearby Wynnmacau Hotel.
6. Coupon
At the Macau Oktoberfest, you can buy coupon as cash or credit card as you want. And you use it to buy food and pay for the game. But, the biggest problem was when I purchased coupon, I found out information about this coupon. The remaining coupon will never be refunded! When I purchased these, the staff did not inform me of the exact information about the refund. I have never heard of a refund of a coupon.
When I bought some coupon, the sales clerk asks me, How much? How many? " OK! ". That was all. Nor is this part mentioned at the official homepage of Macau Oktobefest. After I looked at the letter in the back yard of coupon, I realized that it would not be a refund.
I bought 500 mop. " First of all, I'll play a few games and sit down at the empty table. then I'll order food. If I wanted to eat more food, I thought I'd buy more coupons! " This idea did not come true in reality. Above all, sitting empty seats, I was kicked out of the staff.
7. WISH
I wish the organizers would explain the Macau Oktoberfest in detail on the website. And I hope they produce brochures and distribute them to tourists. As a result, it was inconvenient for me because it was a festival for locals.
8. I hope you'll refer to this.
(1) If you're going to be at the Oktoberfest in Macau, it would be nice to speak fluent Chinese. It seems like it's a festival for locals. Most of the staff are not able to speak English, and few employees speak English fluently,(They were foreign employees)
(2) Make sure to reserve a seat. PLEASE!!!! Or, if you're entering without booking of seats, you might want to stand at the entrance to the Macau Oktoberfest at 6:00 p.m. and take a standing table as soon as possible entering.
(3) Until what time is the peak time? I've been around at eight o'clock in the evening, and I guess this was the peak time. There were lots of people. When I left the Macau Oktoberfest hall, there were so many people and the show was still in progress. You can enter there from 6 o'clock and then later. The hotel told me they could limit people's entrance if too many people entered, but the words did not.
9. FINISH
I was disappointed in this festival in many ways. I think There was a lack of standing table compared to the number of people. And I was hungry because I couldn't sit in empty seats so I couldn't order food. I could not understand the description or guidance of the staff if I could not speak Chinese. I couldn't sit here and haven't been guided by the festival. So it was very inconvenient.
It would be fun if you just walk around for an hour and enjoy the atmosphere. Or book a seat in advance. I won't go to Macau Oktoberfest again next time.
The picture below was taken by myself.
This is the picture I took from the back. Yes, of course it's a long distance and I can't see peopen on the stage well. When you book a table, of course, you should book the front seat! Note that the Standing table was further rearward than this distance.
