New type of tourist budget accommodation proposed

The Executive Council has completed discussions on the draft of the hotel business law, proposing to allow budget accommodation options to meet the demand from different types of tourists.

Last Friday, the council reported the law amendment draft, which suggests that budget accommodation options can provide for shared rooms based on the number of beds.

In addition to the approval of a new type of affordable accommodation, the bill also allows hotel operations inside classified properties.  According to the Macao Government Tourism Office’s (MGTO) deputy director, Cheng Wai Tong, the IC’s opinion will be referred to before issuing licenses to hotels built inside heritage buildings.

Inês Chan Lou, head of the license and supervision department of MGTO, explained that budget accommodation will have to meet safety requirements, as well as other requirements, such as the size of the room.

The proposal does not mean that any property can be used as budget accommodation. Only buildings and locations that have been registered for hotel utilization purposes can be used to provide budget accommodation.

Regarding classified properties, they must first obtain approval to run hotel operations before they effectively are used as hotels.

“It is forbidden to [operate hotels] in buildings that are not for hotel purposes,” said the MGTO representative, further remarking that “as long as the location is legal, [MGTO] does not regulate the way the hotels are reserved.”

“The government has many policies on cultural heritage protection. On the other hand, the government still needs to refer to the world regarding cultural protection and renovation,” said Leong Heng Teng, spokesperson of the Executive Council.

“In different places, there are many successful cases [of protecting relics and renovating them]. The government does not simply want to increase the supply of relevant facilities. It wants to do better in [making Macau] a world leisure and tourism center,” argued Leong.

In addition to the above two new regulations, the bill also proposes reducing the required number of rooms for two to five stars hotels from 40 to 10 rooms. Requirements for two- star hotel facilities and services are also relaxed, to favor the supply of such hotels. 

On the other hand, more requirements are proposed for hotels with five stars or more, hoping to improve the quality of high-level hotel services.

Apartment hotels are also suggested to be divided into three stars and four stars categories.

Bars and restaurants will no longer be divided into different classifications and groups, and the bill sets up minimum requirements for the restaurants and bars. 

In addition, a higher penalty will be applied to hotel operators who provide illegal hotel services. 

However, the penalty only applies to hotels which are not yet licensed and are already providing services. The penalty is not related to illegal guesthouses.

According to Leong, 80 percent of Macau’s hotels are currently classified as four stars or above.

Turn heritage buildings into hostels ‘to open possibilities’

Commenting on the recent news that the government aims to allow the use of UNESCO heritage listed buildings, Helena de Senna Fernandes, said the law may consider this possibility but it is subject to the approval of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC).

“This law aims to consider such possibility, in resemblance to what already happens in many other countries and regions,” the MGTO head said, remarking that this fact does not mean that all buildings could “in a flash, be transformed into hostels. It is a long process and above all it always depends on the authorization from the Cultural Affairs Bureau.”

“What we want to do is to create a law that is adequate and that considers such provisions [for the future],” she noted, recalling that Macau already had two of these examples. The first is the Bela Vista Hotel in the Sai Van Lake area, which is currently used as the Official Residence of the Portuguese consul in Macau but was previously used as a hotel, and Pousada de São Tiago, which is currently undergoing renovation.

Regarding whether the revitalized Lai Chi Vun Old Shipyards would finally include any establishments of this kind, Fernandes said: “There is an ongoing study by the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau and we need to have it concluded so that we can draft the general plan [for that area]. Only after that general plan will we be able to consider any other steps.”  RM