​​​​​​​Visitor arrivals went up 7.2% to over 890,000 during 1st October Golden Week

The 1^st October Golden Week (1^st – 7^th October) of Mainland China has come to an end. According to provisional statistics, Macao welcomed more than 890,000visitors during the 1^st October Golden Week, registering a year-on-year rise of 7.2%.

Macao welcomed a total of 849,000 visitors from the Greater China markets throughout the 1^st October Golden Week, which constitutes 94.9% of total visitor arrivals to Macao and registered an increase of 10.9% from last year. Among them, the number of Mainland visitors rose by 14% to reach 734,000, which constitutes 82.1% of total visitor arrivals, whereas visitor arrivals from Hong Kong and Taiwan dropped by 2.7% and 23.6% respectively to 101,000 and 12,000. As for international visitor markets, the number of visitors totaled 45,000, down 33.6%.

The surge in visitor arrivals during this 1^st October Golden Week was higher than expected, possibly due to the further-enhanced regional transport network and the rich diversity of local festivals and cultural events, e.g. the finale performance of the Macao International Fireworks Display Contest and the Macao International Music Festival 2018. In addition to other favorable factors such as local cuisines and great weather throughout the holiday, more travelers were motivated to visit Macao.

Slight decline in average occupancy rate of hotel establishments

According to figures provided by industry operators, local hotel establishments (hotels and guest houses) saw an average occupancy rate of 92% during the Golden Week, a slight decline of 0.6 percentage points. To date, the supply of local hotels and guest houses in operation has reached a total of 40,041 rooms.

Industry figures revealed that the average occupancy rate of 5-Star hotels was 94%, down 1.0 percentage point. The average occupancy rate of 4-Star hotels was 90.1%, up 1.4 percentage points. The average occupancy rate of 3-Star hotels was 91.1%, down 1.9 percentage points. The average occupancy rate of 2-Star hotels was 72.9%, up 0.3 percentage points, whereas the average occupancy rate of guest houses went up by 7.7 percentage points to 78.3%.

Increase in average room rate of hotel establishments

The average room rate of hotel establishments (hotels and guest houses) in Macao was about 1,942.0 patacas during the Golden Week, a year-on-year increase of 10.1%. The average room rates of 5-Star and 4-Star hotels were around 2,270.3 patacas and 1,546.1 patacas respectively, up 11.0% and 15.8% respectively. The average room rates of 3-Star and 2-Star hotels were around 1,258.8 patacas and 981.3 patacas respectively, a decrease of 5.2% and 9.8%. The average room rate of local guest houses was around 750.6 patacas, up 5.9%.

Before and during the past Golden Week, Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) actively prepared for the approach of the peak period by carrying out an array of tasks which include sending reminders to industry operators and visitors via letter and mobile text respectively, interdepartmental sharing of information, thorough inspections, food guide publication, provision of enquiry service at designated locations, etc. With the above measures, MGTO strived to cater for the needs of residents and visitors as well as to optimize the tourism environment and service quality in Macao.

New statistical indicators are available on the Macao Tourism Data plus (“MTD plus”). On this online platform of MGTO, public users can check provisional data about visitations to Macao during the Golden Week and look up statistics about visitations to Macao during the past Golden Weeks since 2017. In addition, MGTO posted visitor arrival figures of every previous day on the Internet between 2^nd and 8^th October. For the public’s information, MGTO’s tourism website and the Macao Tourism Industry Net also regularly publish the declared room rates of local hotels and guest houses in all room categories. In addition, via WeChat, the Office advised visitors to make room reservation and prepare itineraries in advance of their trips to Macao.

This year, MGTO partnered with the Public Security Police Force to divert visitor traffic at various tourist attractions through delivering mobile text messages in accord with geographic locations for the first time. During the Golden Week (1^st – 7^th October), MGTO sent a total of four mobile text notifications to visitors who were in areas including Praça de Ferreira do Amaral, Nam Van Lake and Rua do Campo, advising them to avoid visiting the congested area at the moment. The total of mobile text messages sent exceeded 35,000. In addition, staff was arranged at ten tourist locations to provide visitors with tourism information and guidance while assisting in diverting the flow of visitors, with the aim to minimize their impact on traffic conditions and neighborhoods near popular tourist sites, thus maintaining the positive destination image of Macao.

During the Golden Week, MGTO conducted 97 inspections at various ports of entry and tourist attractions in Macao, and sealed 7 apartments allegedly operated as illegal accommodation.

MGTO’s Tourist Information counters and tourism hotline service both operated as usual. MGTO’s tourism hotline 2833 3000 maintained its 24-hour operator service to attend to visitor enquiries.

Since the start of the Golden Week, MGTO has received a total of 10 visitor complaints by far, mainly with regard to hotel and travel agency service, taxi charge and service, etc. MGTO has followed up with the cases or transferred them to relevant departments for settlement.