Macau has revived its tourism attractiveness ranking within the Top 10 travel destinations for both Hong Kong and mainland tourists, a Study on Consumer Payment Attitudes organized by credit card and digital payment company Visa has found.
According to the report of the Consumer Payment Attitudes Study 4.0: Travel Consumption Insights – Macau Report, Macau has made a “rapid ascension back to the top of the bucket list of travelers from mainland China and Hong Kong” – the two major tourist sources to the city – with “food and dining” being the most preferred activity for both groups.
The study polled consumers in Greater China to provide insights into their travel intentions and purpose in traveling to Macau. It found that Macau placed eighth on the list of intended destinations for mainland tourists and seventh for those from Hong Kong.
The report also noted that while Hong Kong consumers expressed some interest in visiting Macau for entertainment, mainland Chinese visitors favored “activities with friends and families” as well as shopping when visiting the city.
Topping both rankings are France and Japan, for mainland and Hong Kong tourists, respectively. The mainland comes second on the list of intended places to travel for Honk Kong people. Concurrently, Hong Kong ranked third on the travel intentions of mainland travelers, immediately after Japan.
Travel consumption with an optimistic outlook
The same study report also noted that Macau is “well positioned to capitalize on the opportunities that have arisen due to the revival of Greater Bay Area (GBA) tourism,” with an average of 70% of respondents across mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau expressing interest in a multi-destination trip in the GBA.
Among these, the consumers from the mainland (77%) and Hong Kong (55%) expressed interest in a trip duration of six days or more.
Contributing to these results is reportedly the phenomenon of “revenge spending on travel,” which results from a long period of border restrictions, the study notes. The study added that 45% of mainland Chinese consumers and 33% from Hong Kong would be happy to set aside at least 20% or more of their household income for leisure travel.
Interest in luxury and remote travel locations dropping
The pandemic has also changed both the ways of travel as well as the expectations of travelers in chosen destinations and purposes.
Throughout mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, 44% of consumers placed more emphasis on cleanliness and hygiene during travel, while 39% pursued wellness experiences. Shopping locally gathered some 32% of the responses, while “once-in-a-lifetime experiences” reached some considerable momentum (30%).
Concurrently, traditional tourist activities such as luxury experiences (39%) and visiting remote locations (27%), although still attractive to tourists, have seen a significant decline when compared to pre-pandemic times, with respondents expecting to do even less of these activities in the future.
