Macau’s inbound visitor volume is expected to rise following the latest easing of the Covid-19 test validity rules for people coming from Guangdong province, said the director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes. She said she hoped the number of tourists could increase to nearly 40,000 a day.
Since June 2, people intending to travel to Macau from neighbouring Guangdong province, in mainland China, must hold a nucleic acid test certificate issued within seven days proving they are ‘negative’ for Covid-19 infection. That was a relaxation from the previously-maintained 72 hours.
The updated rule applies to travellers to Macau from Guangdong via any land or marine checkpoints, according to the Macau authorities.
On Friday, Ms Senna Fernandes (pictured in a file photo) said that based on past experience, the number of visitor arrivals to Macau ranged between 30,000 and 40,000 whenever the test validity rule for Guangdong travellers stood at seven days. She was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a public event.
Ms Senna Fernandes said additionally that the MGTO would continue its promotional campaigns offering discounts for air tickets and hotel bookings to mainland tourists, in order to attract more visitors to Macau during the summer holidays.
The tourism bureau boss said also that the Macau authorities were planning a “Macao Week” promotional event to be held in Qingdao, Shandong province, in August. The MGTO was considering holding similar roadshows elsewhere in the mainland in the second half of the year, she added.
