850,000 visitors flock to the city during Golden Week

A surge of 850,034 visitor arrivals was recorded during the five-day Labour Day Golden Week holiday period.

According to preliminary data from the Public Security Police Force (PSP), the totals recorded from May 1 to May 5 far exceeded government projections and marked a strong rebound for the city’s tourism sector.

Arrivals jumped 40.5% from last year’s figure of nearly 605,000.

On average, more than 170,000 visitors entered the city daily, surpassing the government’s forecast of 127,000 to 140,000 per day.

Friday, May 2, saw the highest single-day total since the pandemic, with 221,968 arrivals. The city also welcomed 176,873 visitors on May 1, 204,041 on May 3, and 154,411 on May 4, according to figures from the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO).

Mainland Chinese tourists drove much of the growth, accounting for 678,521 arrivals across the holiday period, a 39.6% increase from the previous year. Hong Kong visitors also surged, reaching 111,189 – up 42.3%. Combined, these groups represented more than 90% of all arrivals during the holiday, as revealed by MGTO.

Border crossings soared alongside visitor numbers, with border checkpoints collectively handling a total of 3.75 million arrivals and departures.

The busiest crossing was the Border Gate, managing approximately 1.89 million entries and exits, accounting for over half of the total traffic. Qingmao checkpoint followed with around 584,000 crossings, while the Hengqin Port recorded about 513,000 crossings.

The influx of visitors to the city prompted local authorities to introduce special crowd control and traffic measures to maintain public safety.

The PSP established pedestrian zones near landmarks such as the Ruins of St. Paul’s and temporarily closed parts of Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro to vehicles.

For the first time during Labour Day, similar measures were introduced in Taipa Village around Rua do Cunha. Sections of Rua Fernão Mendes Pinto, Rua Direita Carlos Eugénio, Rua Correia da Silva, and adjacent roads were closed to traffic daily from noon to 7 p.m. from May 1 to May 5.

Police managed large crowds at busy bus stops and other areas with heavy tourist traffic, deploying rope barriers, while bus operators increased service frequency to every five minutes on key routes.

Despite these efforts, long taxi queues and crowded buses were common, with some residents voicing concerns to local media that tourists were prioritized over locals.

Bus rides that typically took 15 minutes stretched to 45 minutes due to congestion. Tourists also expressed frustration over overcrowding and limited ride-hailing options.

The tourism sector saw substantial benefits from the influx. Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, MGTO Head, reported hotel occupancy rates above 95% on May 1, with many visitors opting for day trips from nearby Zhuhai.

Senna Fernandes said, “We are very happy with this [figure]. It indicates that tourists are very willing to come to Macau […] So whether they stay overnight or not […] We also hope that they can get the feeling of greater ease to visit Macau. I think this is the most important thing.”

Since January 1, 2025, residents of Zhuhai city with household registration have been able to apply for a new “one-trip-per-week” visa to visit Macau, allowing them to stay for up to seven days each time.

Meanwhile, mainland Chinese residents who hold both household registration and a residence permit for Hengqin can apply for a multiple-entry visa. This visa permits unlimited trips to Macau within its validity period, with each visit limited to seven days, promoting greater ease of travel between the cities. Nadia Shaw