Macau sees rise in international visitors this quarter

According to the Macao Government Tourism Office, daily arrivals have doubled from the first quarter.

Macau.- The director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, has reported that the number of daily overseas visitors to Macau have doubled from the previous quarter, reaching between 3,000 and 5,000 in Q2.

In a press conference held for the upcoming Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo (MITE), Fernandes said the overall daily visitation number had remained at 60,000 in recent days. In the first quarter, the city received over 4.96 million visitors.

According to TDM, in the first four months of this year alone, the number of visitor arrivals rose by 190.8 per cent year-on-year to 7.2 million. Most of these visitors came from mainland China, followed by Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Macau is expanding its flight connections to various travel destinations. There are 21 weekly flights to Thailand, and a new route to Chiang Mai is scheduled to open in July. Korea’s JejuAir is set to resume flights between Macau and Seoul by late July, while Air Busan will resume flights from Macau to Busan.

Authorities expect a record turnout at MITE. Taking place from 30 June to 2 July, the 11th edition of the event is the first since the Covid-19 pandemic. Some 489 exhibitors and approximately 500 buyers have already registered for the expo.

This year’s MITE budget has been increased by 23 per cent to MOP31.8m (US$3.2m). The rise is attributed to the higher number of overseas exhibitors and increased logistics expenses. The city’s six casino operators will share 56 per cent of the budget, approximately MOP18m, while MOP7.9m will fall on the Macau Travel Agency Association.