Macau must overcome its shortage of available hotel rooms in order to support the diversification of integrated resort businesses away from pure gaming operations. That is according to Francis Lui Yiu Tung, chairman of Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd.
“As Macau shifts towards a more mass- and events-focused model, the question of hotel rooms must… be addressed, both in Macau and through greater integration with Hengqin,” Mr Lui said, referring to an island next door to Macau that is under mainland China’s jurisdiction.
He added: “By comparison, Las Vegas has over 155,000 hotel rooms supported by 42 million visitors. This is over three times that of Macau: nearly 44,000 rooms despite 35 million visitors last year.”
Mr Lui’s comments were made during the opening day of the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia 2025 casino trade show and conference. The event began today (7 May) at the Venetian Macao casino resort, with the chairman of Galaxy Entertainment as a keynote speaker.
The chairman of Galaxy Entertainment warned that, “given that demand for accommodation will continue to outstrip supply in the years ahead, we must also come together as an industry to protect Macau’s premium positioning – not competing on prices, nor [compromising on] quality customer experience.”
He added: “If we fail to properly address the question of accommodation supply, Macau’s competitiveness as a non-gaming destination – not only regionally, but globally – could diminish.”
Mr Lui noted that economic diversification was “critical” for the long-term sustainability of not only Macau’s gaming industry, but also the city’s economy as a whole.
“However, economic diversification is not a new concept. In fact, it was an important element of our previous concession: in the early 2000s, as we were planning our resorts, we had already identified the mass market as a new growth engine for the industry, driven by the emerging middle class in Asia,” the Galaxy Entertainment boss said.
The city’s six casino operators initially pledged to commit collectively MOP108.7 billion (US$13.5 billion) to non-gaming investment as a condition of their 10-year gaming concessions, which began in January 2023.
Subsequently, that amount increased by 20 percent after Macau’s market-wide casino gross gaming revenue surpassed a predetermined threshold of MOP180 billion in full-year 2023.
In his keynote speech, the Galaxy Entertainment chairman also emphasised the importance of improving Macau’s regional and international connectivity to attract a broader range of visitors to the city.
“There’s no doubt that diversification has been – and will continue to be – the path to sustainable growth for the Macau gaming industry. Equally, we feel that gaming operators around the region could take reference from what we have achieved,” he concluded.
