Visitors are returning to Macau in big numbers following the relaxation of Covid-19 prevention measures.
According to GGRAsia, the Chinese special administrative region (SAR) was just short of its goal of 40,000 daily visitors on January 8, the day the government canceled most travel restrictions to the gambling hub. By the third day, more than 109,000 people had visited, mostly from Mainland China, Macau’s top feeder market. More than half of those entered through the Border Gate between Macau and Zhuhai, per security officials.
Visitors from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan no longer have to provide negative Covid tests to enter the special administrative region.
The increase in visitors coincided with the resumption of ferry services between Macau and the Central district in Hong Kong. The bus line between Macau and Hong Kong via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is also working around the clock.
In related news, according to Asia Gaming Brief, the Macau government is investing MOP30 million (US$3.73 million) in a promotional campaign to attract Hong Kong visitors, offering discounted travel by ferry or shuttle bus for those who stay for at least one night. The campaign will run through March and is expected to boost tourism ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday. The Year of the Tiger begins January 22 and celebrations culminate with the Lantern Festival on February 5.
Concerns remain about understaffing in the city. Luis Herédia, president of the Macau Hotel Association, told TDM Canal Macau, “From one moment to the next, we cannot have our full workforce available … We are certainly lacking manpower currently.” He added, “We are optimistic for Chinese New Year. We are not sure if we can achieve 100 percent [hotel occupancy], but we will certainly have around 90 percent, depending on each hotel, its size and how many rooms it offers.”
In related news, as reported by AGB, the Philippines and China recently signed a cooperative tourism agreement, during a three-day visit of the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to Beijing.
“Our governments will work together on increasing tourist arrivals, resuming and adding direct flights to key and emerging destinations, joint promotional activities, and inviting tourism investments in infrastructure, among others,” said the nation’s tourism secretary Christina Garcia Frasco.
In 2019, the Philippines welcomed 8.26 million international visitors. Of those, Chinese tourists accounted for 1.74 million arrivals.
Frasco said Manila would “encourage investments in tourism infrastructure and support tourism enterprises of both countries to cooperate in the development of tourism projects in accordance with the current laws and regulations in each other’s countries.”
