When does sunlight hit the front of the Ruins of St. Paul's?
The carved front faces due south (179° from the mapped outline). Macau lies south of the Tropic of Cancer, so around the June solstice (2 June to 10 July in 2026) the sun stays north of the facade all day and the front gets no direct sun; in autumn and winter it is lit from morning to evening, with low warm light after sunrise and before sunset. Pick a date.
Sunrise 06:40·Sunset 17:45
Direct sun on the front from 06:40 to 17:45, about 11.1 hours. Low warm light (sun under 15° high): 06:40 to 07:50 and 16:35 to 17:45.
Museum of Sacred Art and Crypt: 09:00 to 18:00
Mount Fortress and gardens (next door): 07:00 to 19:00
- Low warm sun on the front
- Direct sun on the front
- Daylight, front in shade
- Night
Which months light up the front
Hours of direct sun on the front on the 15th of each month (tap a month to jump to that day). Below each bar: average rainfall and relative humidity for that month.
Rainfall and humidity: Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau monthly normals, 1991 to 2020. Typhoon season runs May to November, peaking July to September (Macao Government Tourism Office).
How this is worked out
Every 5 minutes we compute the sun's height and direction. When the sun is above the horizon and on the front side of the facade, that counts as direct sun; the part with the sun under 15° high counts as low warm light. Geometry only: clouds, haze, trees and the surrounding buildings and slope are not modelled, so real sun can be less.
Opening hours
- Facade: open 24 hours, no ticket listed. Macao World Heritage: Ruins of St. Paul's
- Museum of Sacred Art and Crypt: 09:00 to 18:00, last entry 17:30; Tuesdays closes at 14:00; open on public holidays; free. Macao Museum: Museum of Sacred Art and Crypt
- Na Tcha Temple: 08:00 to 17:00; exhibition room 10:00 to 18:00, closed Wednesdays. Macao World Heritage: Na Tcha Temple
- Mount Fortress: fortress and gardens 07:00 to 19:00. Macao World Heritage: Mount Fortress
Sources
- OpenStreetMap way 192183185 (facade outline) (checked 2026-10-27): facade direction
- NOAA Solar Calculator equations (checked 2026-10-27): sun position, in Macau time (UTC+8)
- Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau: Macao Climate, 1991 to 2020 normals (issued 2022-03-28) (checked 2026-10-27): monthly rainfall, rain days, relative humidity, mean temperature
- Macao Government Tourism Office: typhoon season (checked 2026-10-27): May to November, peak July to September
- Macao World Heritage: Ruins of St. Paul's (checked 2026-10-27): facade and museum hours
- Macao Museum: Museum of Sacred Art and Crypt (checked 2026-10-27): Tuesday hours, free admission