Macao SARE Day for the year 2024 is celebrated/observed on Tuesday, December 20th. There are until the next observance.

Every year on December 20, Macao SARE Day is commemorated. This day has been observed as Macao SARE Day, or Macao Special Administrative Region Establishment Day, since 1999. It is also known in Portuguese as’ Dia Comemorativo do Estabelecimento do Regio Administrativa Especial de Macau.’ It commemorates the day in 1999 when the Chinese government formally took over Macao. It marks the end of Macao’s colonial era. This implies they are largely independent territories inside the People’s Republic of China, with their own administrative, legal, and judicial systems distinct from the rest of the nation.

📆 When is Macao SARE Day?

This year, Macao SARE Day is on December 20th. It is the 3rd Tuesday in December; in 2023, it is on Wednesday.

Countdown to Macao SARE Day

Did you know: The Portuguese first landed in Macao in 1887 and gave it up to China in 1999.

You can also learn all exciting things you didn’t know about and facts about December 20, 2022.

📜 History of Macao SARE Day

When Chinese officials banned direct trade with Japan in 1547, Macao’s Portuguese traders carried goods between the two countries. Initially developed as a staging port on the long voyage from Lisbon to Nagasaki, and a trading post for China-Japan trade by the Portuguese upon their arrival in the 16th century. After establishing a permanent settlement in 1557, the Portuguese paid an annual silver fee to China’s Ming Dynasty until 1887. They stayed and instilled their own culture with the Chinese way of life.

On April 25, 1974, an almost-bloodless revolution launched by the military forces in Lisbon was known as the Carnation Revolution. Instead of shooting, the soldiers placed the flowers they had been handed in the barrels of their rifles. It ended Europe’s longest-surviving authoritarian rule and more than 40 years of dictatorship. The new governing administration announced plans to abandon all of their foreign possessions. In June 1986, the Portuguese and Chinese governments began discussions on Macao’s sovereignty. A year later, both nations signed a Joint Declaration, establishing Macao as a Chinese Special Administrative Region. More than a decade later, China regained control of Macao. Since then, its economy has gotten better as more people from mainland China visit and more casinos are built.

☑️ Macao SARE Day facts

Home to all legal casinos in China
Macao, nicknamed “Las Vegas of the East,” features 40 casinos.

World’s highest commercial bungee jump
At 764 feet (233 meters), the Macao Tower holds the “Guinness World Record” for the highest bungee jump.

It has the world’s highest population density
The region is only 13 square miles (30.5 square kilometers), but it is home to 667,400 people.

Things to do on Macao SARE Day

Visit a casino
Play a couple rounds of blackjack or spin the slot machine. Today might be your lucky day! Remember to keep everything in proportion.

Have a Macao food fest
Popular dishes popular in Macao include pork chop buns and Portuguese seafood rice. Sweet delicacies include egg tarts, Serradura, almond pastries, and sweet beef jerky.

Watch gambling on-screen
Hollywood celebrities win big! Films like “The Hustler,” “Rounders,” “Casino,” “Rainman,” and the “Ocean’s Eleven” series allow you to participate in the game without taking any risks.

📅 Macao SARE Day Observances

YEAR DATE DAY
2023 December 20 Wednesday
2024 December 20 Friday
2025 December 20 Saturday
2026 December 20 Sunday
2027 December 20 Monday

See all December holidays, including Cultural and other Cultural holidays.

We will continue to update this page with new information and fun facts about Macao SARE Day. So be sure to check back soon.