MGTO director | 2016 with slight tourist growth ‘in the most optimistic view’

T he Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) expects the number of tourists to increase slightly by one percent year-on-­year, both during the upcoming CNY holidays and throughout the entire year.
The head of the MGTO, Helena de Senna Fernandes, said during the bureau’s annual press conference at the Sheraton Hotel yesterday, “even in the most optimistic view,” a one-percent increase would be a good outcome for the local tourism industry. “We want to maintain this number – 30 million – but our focus will be to attract more overnight tourists and visitors from outside the Guangdong province.”
The director recognized that the local economy was “impacted by whirlwind forces,” forcing the tourism sector to go through a period of adjustment. With the number of tourists registering a 2.6 percent drop in 2015 (totaling 30.7 million), the bureau expects to diversify the origins of visitors. As the numbers stand now, most tourists come from the Chinese mainland (20.4 million), with tourists from the Guangdong Province representing 44 percent of that figure. The number of international visitors dropped by 3.9 percent last year. Preliminary data also indicates that a total of 8.52 million tourists came to visit in tour groups last year, a year-on-year decline of 8 percent.
Demonstrating the consequences of the gaming slump, it was said during yesterday’s event – which was attended by hundreds of representatives from the hospitality sector – that visitor expenditure between January and September totaled USD26.3 billion, a fall of 36.4 percent.
Presenting a review of the year, the director cited preliminary figures indicating that the average occupancy rate of hotel establishments in 2015 was 81 percent, a decline of 6 percent year-on-year. The average room rate for three to five-star hotels was USD187, down by 7.8 percent. There are currently 110 hotels in town (including 46 budget accommodation establishments) supplying 33,047 rooms in total. That offer will certainly increase this year, with three new hotels and seven hostels currently undergoing the licensing process. Senna Fernandes estimated that the new hotel facilities will feature 3,000 new rooms.
“At this point, the hotels are targeting tourists from other countries. Previously, perhaps the mainland tourists would be sufficient, but given the 4 percent drop in that market, now we are led to think that, besides China, we should look further away. That was always a MGTO bet, but now we have the support from the [hotel] trade,” she said.

1.3 million visitor inquiries

The local tourist information counters handled over 1.3 million visitor inquiries, material requests and suggestions last year, according to data revealed yesterday. Implementing measures to tackle illegal accommodation, an interdepartmental task force inspected over 1,100 apartments and sealed 153 of them. MGTO submitted an analytical report to the government on a proposed amendment to the Law on “Prohibition of Providing Illegal Accommodation.”