MGTO expects no tourist influx amidst ‘10+7’ quarantine shift

No great influx of tourists is anticipated, despite the city shortening quarantine-upon-arrival from today, the city’s head tourism official said yesterday.

On the sidelines of a tourism seminar, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), was asked for her views on the new quarantine period length.

In response, Senna Fernandes said that despite the shorter quarantine period, she did not expect there to be a sudden influx of tourists.

“After all, the quarantine will still last for 10 days. I don’t believe tourists will be willing to take that,” she said. “However, it will be good news for those whose trips to Macau are inevitable.”

In addition, ahead of the shortening of the quarantine period, the tourism chief pledged that her team would monitor the situation closely in order to promptly react to the demand for quarantine hotel rooms.

Recently, various countries have announced reopening to tourists, including Thailand, the UK, South Korea and Japan. Many of them have even lifted the requirement that tourists be vaccinated – whether partially or completely.

Today, Taiwan will see its mandatory quarantine period for entrants shortened to three days, unless their tests-on-arrival yield positive results, which will then lengthen their quarantine period to seven days.

Comparatively, it is still shorter than that which applies in Macau.

Senna Fernandes was questioned as to whether Macau will be less competitive from a tourism perspective with stricter entry requirements. She recapped the stance of maintaining safety and keeping in line with mainland requirements.

She added that a gradual opening is key to maintaining confidence in the city among tourists.

In fact, the strict border restrictions have deterred trade shows such as the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia, as well as international racers who wanted to return to the Guia Circuit but found the quarantine requirement unattractive.

The MGTO will run marketing roadshows in Qingdao, Wuhan and Changsha in China from August to October.