Macau H1 visitor numbers reach 16.73m

The number of visitors was up by 43.6 per cent in year-on-year terms.

Macau.- The Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) has announced that the city received 16.73 million visitors in the first six months of the year. The figure was up by 43.6 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The data indicates an average of 91,918 visitors per day, about 82.5 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in 2019. International tourist numbers rose by 146.4 per cent year-on-year, with 1.17 million visitors in the first half of the year, representing 67.2 per cent of 2019’s international visitor numbers. The average occupancy rate for guest rooms rose by 7.7 points year-on-year to 84.3 per cent. The number of guests rose by 25 per cent to 6.1 million.

The government highlighted the impact of policies to encourage tourism, such as the increase in the duty-free allowance and the authorisation for Mainland China package tour visitors to make multiple visits between Hengqin and Macau within seven days. There are also 10 more mainland Chinese cities on the list of those eligible for the Individual Visitor Scheme (IVS) to come to Hong Kong and Macau.

Macau’s chief executive, Ho Iat Seng, has said that Macau could attract more than 30 million tourists in 2024. The director of the MGTO, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes says Macau is on track to achieve a target of 2 million overseas visitors.

See also: Macau receives 87,000 daily visitors in first 10 days of July