The Venetian, Macau

I've booked the Venetian for a few nights next week. However, someone has told me that you can't get around some of the hotel facilities like the Food Court without passing through its casino and, if you are with a kid, you will have a problem because they do not allow kids to pass through the casino and you will have to walk round, outside on the pavement, the hotel complex and it's a long walk with no cover. I did not know about this when I made the booking. I am worried about the weather and the fact that I have a young kid with me. What if there is a thunderstorm? I'm not going to risk towing him along in the rain. I wonder if someone can tell me what it is like to be getting around the hotel complex with a young kid. I know it is a huge property but walking in the open dodging rain or being scorched by the sun is definitely not my cup of tea.

I think that person was wrong. I've only been the once but the casino appeared to be in the centre of the development, downstairs, with shops, restaurants, foodcourts etc upstairs. There's probably bar or two within the casino proper that you can't get to with kids but I'd say everything else is very accessible. You'll probably still walk for miles (it's huge), but undercover.

Children under 18 are not allowed in the casino, which is the usual route throught to the hotel, but our friends stayed there with their kids, and there is a way up to the rooms and shops without going outside, but its not as straightforward as going through the casino. Why don't you phone the hotel and doublecheck with them.

You should check in at the West Lobby, where all the shuttle busses stop anway. From there you can access the entire Venetian without having to go through the Casino. If you arrive by Taxi at the main lobby I believe you must pass through the casino to reach the rooms.

Thanks folks! Just returned from The Venetian. Very nice hotel. Not as child friendly as I had hoped. The strangest thing about it was the swimming pool. You had to go to the 5/F first, walk along corridors, past the spa, all the way until you got to the lifts and then you took a lift down to the G/F where you would find a teeny weeny pool which was virtually at the centre of a lot of construction going on. Other than that I quite like the hotel and could spend days there. My boy enjoyed the gondola rides. Service people were very friendly and service was generally very good. The walk in the open - my friend definitely gave me wrong information. There was a bit of walking to do but it's all indoors and it was actually quite pleasant to walk. Guess my friend mistook the ceilings for the sky. Think I'd better set the record straight. Will go back there for the Cirque du Solieul.