About 2,000 foreigners residing in mainland China have booked hotel accommodation in Macau through campaigns cohosted by the local tourism board, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) revealed yesterday.
The MGTO director recapped that earlier this year, the Health Bureau (SSM) had recommenced granting certain foreigners permissions to visit Macau without the need for prior approval. In addition, foreigners who had not visited anywhere other than mainland China within a certain period of time have also been allowed to enter Macau from mainland China.
With that said, Senna Fernandes revealed that her bureau had done some work in response to the changing situation. For example, she said, the air ticket and hotel privileges previously targeting only mainland Chinese residents had been widened to include non-Chinese residents on the mainland too.
The tourism official spoke on the sidelines of a press conference yesterday late afternoon.
“Since then, we have seen an increase in searches on mainland search engines and travel platforms,” Senna Fernandes said. “Over 20,000 people have claimed their coupons on these platforms.”
Nonetheless, the number of tourists who actually visited Macau only amounted to approximately one-tenth of coupons claimed. “Over 2,000 have used their coupons so far,” Senna Fernandes disclosed, adding that she was happy with the feedback “because they have rekindled their interest in Macau.”
She confirmed that these promotional efforts will continue as the feedback from non-Chinese mainland residents is “a good start.”
Moreover, promotional campaigns targeting air tickets and hotel accommodations are ready and can easily be extended to foreign tourists, she revealed. As long as Covid-19 control measures are lifted, these campaigns will commence immediately.
In the meantime, Senna Fernandes also expressed confidence in Beijing resuming tour groups to Macau. She hinted that, with a promise made by Beijing, it is just a matter of time.
