Macau arrivals balloon to 11.6 million; hotel occupancy to rise in summer season

Visits have already occupied 89% of Macau’s total hotel occupancy. Government official says manpower shortage may pose a problem in anticipated peak.

Original story by Pierce Chan for Inside Asian Gaming

According to Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, Director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), 11.6 million inbound visitor arrivals in the first half of the year. 

De Senna Fernandes highlighted that 89% of total hotel occupancy was reached last week, with more than 100,000 visitors per day in the city.

“Last weekend (Saturday and Sunday) the hotel occupancy rate reached 89% and the number of visitors exceeded 100,000 in both cases, while the average number of visitors per day in the past week was nearly 80,000,” the MGTO Director said.

De Senna Fernandes added that the supply of hotel rooms has increased by 5,000, and with a lot of tourism facilities completed in the city, hotel rooms are now at 47,000. 

However, a shortage of manpower could pose a problem, as the easing of border restrictions this year have spurred visits to the city.

Macau’s hotel rooms are basically all open now, but there is still a shortage of manpower in the face of the peak season of tourists, and the government will work together with the industry to solve the manpower problem,” she said.

“The number of Mainland visitors to Macau has returned to 60% of the pre-epidemic level and Hong Kong visitors to 90%, while the overseas market has only returned to 20%,” Senna Fernandes said.