According to the 2025 Star Awards released this week by the Forbes Travel Guide, an international star-rating service and online travel guide, Macau boasts 24 five-star hotels, an increase of two from the previous year.

The latest entrants to the five-star category are Epic Tower at Studio City Macau, operated by Melco Resorts, and Raffles at Galaxy Macau, managed by Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG).

Including all categories—hotels, restaurants, and spas—Macau features 67 five-star properties this year, comprising 25 restaurants and 18 spas, up by 11 from 2024. Most of these properties are housed within hotels and integrated resorts run by the city’s six gaming operators.

New entries in five-star categories

Macau welcomes seven new five-star restaurants in the 2025 edition: Aurora at Altira Macau (Melco Resorts); Chef Tam’s Seasons at Wynn Palace (Wynn Macau); Don Alfonso 1890 at Palazzo Versace Macau, Mesa by José Avillez at The Karl Lagerfeld, and Zuicho at Grand Lisboa Palace Macau (SJM Holdings); The Huaiyang Garden at The Londoner Hotel (Sands China); and Yamazato Macau at Hotel Okura Macau (GEG).

The two new five-star spas in the city are: The Spa at Epic Tower (Melco Resorts) and The Spa at Palazzo Versace Macau (SJM Holdings).

The 2025 Forbes Travel Guide marks the 67th annual edition, assessing more than 2,100 properties across 90 countries and regions. The latest list features 336 five-star hotels, 79 five-star restaurants, and 124 five-star spas worldwide, alongside other four-star and recommended properties.

Macau’s dominance in luxury hospitality offerings

Among Macau’s six gaming operators, Melco Resorts leads with 17 five-star properties, including five hotels, seven restaurants, and five spas. The operator’s City of Dreams Manila property in the Philippines also secured two five-star accolades—Nüwa hotel and Nüwa Spa.

“We are thrilled to receive three new Five-Star awards across our hotels, restaurants and spas this year, highlighting our dedication to creating integrated resorts that offer superlative design, operation and guest experience,” said Lawrence Ho, chairman and chief executive officer of Melco Resorts, in a statement.

“We are excited to welcome new and returning guests at our properties in Asia and Europe in the year ahead, as we continue to enhance our luxury hospitality and entertainment offerings across Melco’s portfolio,” he added.

Trailing Melco Resorts, SJM Holdings secures 13 five-star properties, comprising three hotels, six restaurants, and four spas across its two resorts, Grand Lisboa Palace and Grand Lisboa Macau.

“We are especially proud that Grand Lisboa Palace now holds the highest number of five-star restaurant and spa awards globally among integrated resorts. This achievement underscores our commitment to delivering a consistently refined brand experience,” Daisy Ho, managing director of SJM, claimed in a statement.

Wynn Macau follows closely with 12 five-star properties, including three hotels, six restaurants, and three spas, across Wynn Macau and Wynn Palace.

“We are proud that Wynn Macau and Wynn Palace are individually the most FTG [Forbes Travel Guide] awarded resorts in the world, and Wynn Palace continues to hold onto its position as the world’s largest FTG five-star resort,” remarked Frederic Luvisutto, chief operating officer of Wynn Macau, in a statement. “This is testament to our dedicated team members who always go above and beyond to deliver exceptional guest experiences.”

Appealing to international travellers

Meanwhile, GEG, Sands China, and MGM China feature nine, eight, and seven five-star properties in the 2025 edition, respectively. GEG particularly highlighted in a statement that its resort, Galaxy Macau, is “the only luxury resort with five FTG five-star hotel ratings in the world.”

“Galaxy Macau’s record-breaking performance in the 2025 Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Awards is a testament to our continuous commitment to delivering an exceptional luxury service experience to our sophisticated guests, made possible by the tireless dedication and unwavering passion of our team,” said Kevin Kelley, chief operating officer – Macau of GEG.

Sands China, which garners one five-star spa, two five-star restaurants, and five five-star hotels, also celebrated its achievements. Grant Chum, president and chief executive officer of Sands China, said in a statement, “Forbes Travel Guide is considered the gold standard for the industry globally, this array of accolades is a testament to our unwavering commitment to excellence as we remain steadfast in our support to the mission of establishing Macau as a World Centre of Tourism and Leisure.”

MGM China, which earns two five-star spas, two five-star restaurants, and three five-star hotels across MGM Macau and MGM Cotai, also acknowledged the recognition. Hubert Wang, president and chief operating officer of MGM China, said in a statement, “These achievements not only reinforce our leading position in Macau’s luxury hospitality sector but also strengthen Macau’s appeal as a premier global destination for international travelers.”

The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Macau is the only five-star property in the 2025 rankings that is located outside the resorts of the city’s six gaming operators.