Tourism fares well over the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays Positive growth in visitor arrivals and hotel occupancy rates

Macao welcomed over 40,000 visitors on the first day of the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays

Spanning five days (30 April -- 4 May 2022), the 1^st May Labor Day Holidays has drawn to a close in Mainland China. Preliminary statistics revealed a cumulative volume of 137,000 visitor arrivals in Macao over the period while the average occupancy rate of local hotels reached 59.5%. The single-day record of inbound visitors peaked at about 42,000 on 30 April, an all-time high in 2022.

Increase in visitor arrivals and hotel occupancy rates

Individuals crossing land or sea checkpoints from Guangdong Province to Macao are now required to present valid proof of their negative result of a COVID-19 nucleic acid test issued within an extended span of 72 hours. Spurred by the latest measure, tailored promotional campaign and special offers, average daily visitor arrivals and average hotel occupancy rates went up considerably over the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays, in comparison with the figures of April 2022.

Visitor arrivals peak on the first day

Throughout the Mainland’s five-day Labor Day Holidays, Macao welcomed 137,000 visitors which included 124,000 Mainland visitors. Average daily visitor arrivals hit 27,000, a surge of 33.5% compared with the figure of April in 2022. On the first day of the Mainland’s Holidays, Macao registered 41,584 visitor arrivals, the highest single-day record in 2022.

Hotel occupancy rate up by nearly 29 percentage points

Industry figures indicated an average occupancy rate of 59.5% among local hotels during the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays, up by 28.8 percentage points compared with the rate in April 2022. As of 30 April 2022, the supply of hotels and economical accommodation establishments totals 44,668 rooms in Macao. Below is a list of various hotel occupancy rates:

Hotel room rates

The average room rate of hotel establishments in Macao was about 885.2 patacas during the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays, an increase of 17.9% in comparison with the rate in April 2022. Below is a list of various hotel room rates:

Promotional campaign goes on with special offers

To widen the range of visitors, MGTO has been rolling out promotional initiatives and highlighting Macao’s festive calendar via platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Xiaohongshu, Douyin, travel influencers and news websites in the Mainland. The “Experience Macao, Unlimited” promotional campaign also carries on, showcasing monthly city highlights to potential visitors. In ongoing partnership with e-commerce platforms, special offers on travel, hotels and air tickets are launched to draw visitors, spur tourism spending and extend their length of stay in Macao.

Strategic plan for marketing events in latter half of 2022

Riding on the positive tourism trends over the Labor Day Holidays, MGTO has worked out meticulous plans for different tourism products and promotional initiatives via multiple channels in the Mainland. The array of promotional events is mapped out for the latter half of 2022. Under stable pandemic situation in the Mainland, MGTO will organize activities in different cities to spur travel, spending and tourism revival in Macao.

Mega events drive community economy forward

The Light up Macao Drone Gala 2022 was splendidly held during the Holidays and manifested the charm of Macao as an enchanting city of events. The Macao Grand Prix Museum has lately introduced the new AR feature of panoramic view and other fresh highlights. Next to the Museum, a café themed around the Macau Grand Prix is newly opened. Embodying the concept of integration across “tourism + sports + culture and creativity”, the café serves specialty coffee and sells local cultural and creative products in original design.

MGTO subsidized different local tourism activities during the Mainland’s Labor Day Holidays, including community tourism guiding services stationed in various districts of Macao, Taipa and Coloane to promote community and maritime tourism development and stimulate spending.

Promotion for pandemic prevention

MGTO has been leveraging different channels to inform visitors of various information about pandemic prevention, such as posting pandemic prevention guidelines on its website, publicizing information on pandemic prevention at MGTO’s Tourist Information counters at ports of entry, calling for attention on pandemic prevention via MGTO’s WeChat and Weibo platforms. The Office also reminds travel industry operators to carry out pandemic preventive measures in accordance with related advices and guidelines issued by the Health Bureau against COVID-19. Meanwhile, hotel establishments and industry operators continue to convey messages about pandemic prevention to visitors.

Patrols and inspections

Between 30 April and 4 May, MGTO conducted a total of 36 inspections targeting major ports of entry, tourist attractions, hotels and other licensed establishments under supervision for implementation of pandemic preventive measures. During inspections, no sign of irregularities was discovered. MGTO inspectors were standing by round-the-clock. Tourist Information counters tended to visitors’ enquiries, while MGTO's tourism hotline (853) 2833 3000 maintained its 24-hour operator service as usual.

During the aforementioned period, MGTO received three complaints from visitors, mainly about charges of taxi service, rusty direction signs at tourist attractions and food hygiene.