MGTO to promote quality tourism amid review on tourism master plan

Promotion of quality tourism and improvements to precise marketing are areas that need refinement, as outlined by the Review Study Report on Macao Tourism Industry Development Master Plan (Master Plan).
The Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) commissioned a research institute at the end of 2020 to examine the implementation progress of the Master Plan in various areas over the past five years. The report is the result of this review.
Comments were given by the research institute on amendments, rejuvenation, consolidation and addition of policies in order to cope with the ever-changing environment of the tourism industry.
Apart from the aforementioned areas, the MGTO has also determined that tourism products and facilities should be enriched in the future, urban construction should be refined, smart technologies utilized, and regional and international cooperation be explored.
After the review, the MGTO noted that 16 new action plans needed to be added to the Master Plan, as the city is soon to face drastic changes to the state of regional cooperation and integration.
Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of the MGTO, further explained the content of the report on the sidelines of a public event over the weekend.
According to her, the 16 new plans will include, among other elements: cooperation with e-businesses; exploring new tourists’ attractions, such as marine tours; the implementation of more precise marketing plans; and consideration of new approaches from an urban construction perspective.
Amid new opportunities that may be brought on by the Greater Bay Area and the Guangdong-Macao Intensive Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, the MGTO head revealed that development in both regions has been discussed.
On the topic of Macau-Hengqin tours, Senna Fernandes revealed that the two deputy directors of the office recently paid a visit to Hengqin to study the factors there. They have come up with a lot of new thoughts and avenues for cooperation.
In addition to attractions on Hengqin, the MGTO director said her office will explore island tours. However, details cannot be revealed now because they would concern cross-border grouped tours, which are currently suspended by Beijing.
“For now, there is no guided tours yet, as it involves the issue of cross-border tours. But first we will have some packages for tourists under individual visiting schemes, or introduce other attractions,” she explained.
To make up for this, Senna Fernandes said that individual tourist packages will be promoted in this phase, alongside the promotion of other attractions.
Collaboration with Hengqin will also be expanded. This will include inviting teams from Hengqin to participate in events held in Macau. A recent example of this approach is a Hengqin production team’s participation in the Macao Light Festival.
The two parties will also preferentially promote each other in mainland cities. Promotions in overseas territories will also be under consideration once conditions change.
Additionally, ecological tours and high-end tours are also within the scope of the MGTO. Public-private partnerships in tourism as well as the fostering of tourism+ are also being planned.
The MGTO will also employ Big Data studies to better target marketing to attract high-value visitors. Innovative technologies will also be employed to upgrade visitors’ experience and the overall business environment.
The Master Plan, compiled in 2015, identified the developmental direction and goals of the city’s tourism industry to 2030. Announced in 2017, the Master Plan stipulated eight key goals, 33 strategies, 29 suggestions on planning, and 76 action plans each focusing on the short-, mid- and long-term.
Currently, 90% of the targets set forth in the Master Plan for the first five years have been accomplished.
The report is available in Chinese, English and Portuguese, and is downloadable from the MGTO’s website.

Tourist arrivals may reach 41m in 2025

The Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) forecasted that the estimated number of tourist arrivals in the region will be around 36 million to 41 million in 2025.
Up to September, visitor arrivals totaled 5.76 million, a year-on-year surge of 43.2%.
Despite the pandemic situation’s temporary impact upon visitor arrivals since September until early this month, visitor numbers have rebounded within a relatively short time once restriction measures were loosened across the border, followed by the promotional campaign rolled out by MGTO.
The figures show an obvious increase in visitor arrivals in recent months compared with the visitor numbers before. Average daily visitor arrivals between October 20 and November 10 reached 25,168, which rose by 20% compared with the average daily volume of visitors in September. LV