The number of guests staying at Macau hotels and guesthouses in September increased by 20.2 percent year-on-year to nearly 1.03 million, according to data released on Monday by the city’s Statistics and Census Service.
The bureau noted that during the reporting period there were “new hotels commencing operations”.
The 1,700-room Wynn Palace resort, developed by Macau casino operator Wynn Macau Ltd, opened on August 22. The 3,000-room Parisian Macao resort from Macau casino firm Sands China Ltd, opened on September 13.
There were 107 hotels and guesthouses operating at the end of September 2016, up by four venues judged year-on-year, and up by two establishments judged month-to-month.
The number of guest rooms market wide in Macau increased by 20.7 percent year-on-year to about 36,000 by the end of September: three-star hotel rooms totalled 5,500 units, a rise of 116.9 percent measured year-on-year.
As the number of hotel guests and hotel rooms went up in September, the number of visitors coming to Macau on package tours went down year-on-year during that month.
Investment analysts have noted that overnight visitors staying in hotels – especially the hotels in casino resorts – are in general worth much more to the city’s economy than package tourists either staying in budget accommodation or arriving for day trips.
Of Macau’s nearly 1.03 million hotel guests in September, 62 percent came from mainland China; nearly 15 percent came from Hong Kong; approximately 5 percent from Taiwan; and 3 percent from South Korea. The year-on-year growth in those segments was, respectively, 20.9 percent; 12.5 percent; 40.6 percent; and 75.5 percent.
The average occupancy rate of hotels and guesthouses stood at 82.1 percent in September 2016, up by 3.7 percentage points year-on-year. Four-star hotels had the highest average occupancy, at 86.5 percent, up by 10.5 percentage points.
The number of package arrivals in September totalled 596,000. In the first three quarters of this year, the number of package tour visitors decreased by 27.8 percent year-on-year to 5.42 million, according to the statistics service.
In the 9 months to September 30, guests of hotels and guesthouses in Macau increased by 12.9 percent year-on-year to approximately 8.59 million. The average occupancy rate in the period rose by 1.2 percentage points from the prior-year period to 81.2 percent, said the statistics bureau.
