The daily average of visitors to Macau during this year’s October Golden Week was down 93.7 percent on the daily average in 2020, according to data issued on Friday by Macau’s Public Security Police. The decline coincided with new cases of Covid-19 confirmed in Macau either just before the holiday, or during it.
The aggregate of tourist arrivals for the festive period was 8,159. For this year, the daily average – measured over the seven days of the break, from October 1 to October 7 inclusive – was 1,166.
In 2020, the holiday break was actually eight days, which is why the authorities compared daily averages, rather than aggregate visitors in the same festive periods across the two years. Visitor arrivals during last year’s October Golden Week period totalled 156,300, according to official data.
October 7 for this year’s holiday saw the lowest total, a mere 418 arrivals. October 6’s tally was also low, at 498, with October 5 additionally stuck in three figures, at 669.
Daily numbers steadily tailed off from the peak of 1,749, achieved on October 1.
The sharp decline from 1,668 visitors on October 4, to 669 on October 5, coincided with an October 4 decision by the neighbouring mainland city of Zhuhai – the main land route to Macau from Guangdong province – to maintain its 14-day quarantine inbound to Zhuhai, from Macau.
With effect from October 6, Macau also tightened its own rules on inbound travel.
During October Golden Week, the total of visitors using mainland travel documents to enter Macau, stood at 7,393.
The daily average for such visitors was 1,056, down 93.9 percent on the daily average for 2020’s October Golden Week.
