• About Us
  • The Team
  • Advertise with Us

The latest news on the gaming industry in Asia

() () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () ()
  • Home
  • Macau
  • Philippines
  • Singapore
  • Japan
  • Rest of Asia
  • World
  • Industry Talk
  • Trends & Tech
  • iGaming
  • follow
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • RSS Feed
    • LinkedIn

No plan to cut tourist numbers: Macau official

Jul 14, 2014 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck  


No plan to cut tourist numbers: Macau official

Macau’s senior official responsible for tourism gave the clearest indication to date that the city was not looking to reduce the total number of tourists coming to Macau when judged year-on-year.

“We are not trying to reduce the number of tourists. That is not our goal. We are working towards sustainable tourist numbers in this sector. We are trying to diversify our tourism markets,” stated Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes (pictured), director of the Macau Government Tourist Office, indicating the city would like to welcome more visitors from outside the Greater China region.

The director added the government was to commission a study “this year” into the local tourism market before making any decision on policy.

She was speaking on Monday at a press conference to announce the next edition of the Global Tourism Economy Forum – an international event in collaboration with the World Tourism Organization, UNWTO, and to be held at the Venetian Macao from October 27 to 29.

In late June the territory’s government confirmed that Macau’s Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Cheong U, and mainland officials had discussed whether changes should be made to the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS). It allows mainland passport holders to visit Macau and Hong Kong as independent travellers rather than as part of a tour group.

In May, 727,356 mainlanders travelled to Macau on their own, up 21 percent year-on-year. IVS tourist numbers are up by 20.9 percent year-on-year in the first five months of 2014 to 3.8 million, according to GGRAsia calculations based on official data.

Full up?

Local residents have expressed concerns in mainstream and social media about the growth in visitor arrivals and the ability of the city’s infrastructure to deal with the numbers. Some tourism experts and tourism industry insiders have called for a strategic plan to ascertain the city’s capacity to receive more visitors.

Some gaming analysts in turn have wondered since the June revelation on the IVS talks whether changing the structure of the local tourism market – possibly by tweaking the rules on the IVS visas for mainland tourists, even if total tourist numbers still rise year-on-year – would have a negative impact on the year-on-year growth of gambling revenue.

Also of concern to some investors was a clampdown – reported in mid-June – of alleged abuses in the transit visa system. This is where what’s thought to be a small but generally well heeled number of mainland visitors obtain visas for a third party destination – sometimes to a developing country – citing a business trip, then allegedly use it just to gamble in Macau.

Ms Senna Fernandes, speaking to GGRAsia on the sidelines of Monday’s press conference, confirmed that she also attended the meeting in Beijing where issues including the IVS programme were discussed.

“We reflected on the different opinions in the sector, not just from the business sector but from the citizens, the Macau residents, in general. So it’s not just going to be a simple solution such as open [the border] more [to ease congestion],” she told us.

Stability needed

“We discussed various different scenarios, but all of these need to be studied very well. The last thing you want to do is cause any instability to the market altogether,” Ms Senna Fernandes said.

She declined to be drawn on whether reducing duration of stay for individual visitors had been discussed.

“You have to carefully study what’s the impact on the industry as a whole. You can’t just say ‘Right let’s cut down on the number of visitors’.”

She added: “Any limitation [imposed] and then people would say ‘You’re limiting my right to travel’. It’s not going to be a simple solution like let’s cut down to ‘x’ number.”

Investment bank Morgan Stanley said at the Global Gaming Expo 2013 held in Macau that its research indicated that of the 28.1 million visitors to the city in 2012, only six million were unique visitors.

“We don’t have stat [istic] numbers [on repeat visitors] unfortunately,” Ms Senna Fernandes told GGRAsia.

“Probably there would be quite a number – especially from Guangdong – who actually come here quite often. But even Guangdong doesn’t make up all mainland visitors. It supplies something like 40 percent of mainland visitors.”

According to the World Tourism Organization, Macau was 20th globally and 5th in Asia Pacific region in terms of international tourist arrivals in 2012; in terms of tourism income in 2012, Macau ranked 5th around the world and 2nd in the Asia Pacific region.

“We shouldn’t always be looking [only] at the numbers themselves,” the tourist office director said.

“We have to see what kind of tourists we are getting. Probably with the same [stable] number of visitors, if they stay longer, you will get a better spend in terms of your visitor spend here in Macau.

“Right now the many of them [mainland tourists] come from Guangdong. How should we develop the international tourism but also [the tourism] within the Chinese mix? That’s a lot of work still to be done.”

Also during the press event, Pansy Ho Chiu King, co-chairperson of Macau casino investor MGM China Holdings Ltd and secretary-general of the annual forum, said Macau junket operators were helping to try and diversify Macau’s economy by investing in sectors other than gaming.

“They are starting now to move into different areas. It is natural that once they get to certain economies of scale they need to also reinvent their own ‘game’,” Ms Ho said.


  • tweet
Related articles
  • SJM hosts seminar in Indonesia to promote Macau offerings
    SJM hosts seminar in Indonesia to...

    Sep 26, 2023  

  • Hengqin-Macau tour reboot for mainland consumers: MGTO
    Hengqin-Macau tour reboot for mainland...

    Sep 19, 2023  

More news
  • Macau September GGR down 13pct on August: govt
    Macau September GGR down 13pct...

    Oct 01, 2023  

  • Sands China to revitalise firecracker factory, old streets
    Sands China to revitalise firecracker...

    Sep 29, 2023  


Latest News

Macau September GGR down 13pct on August: govt

Macau September GGR down 13pct on August: govt

Oct 01, 2023  

Macau’s September casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) fell by 13.2 percent month-on-month, to MOP14.94 billion (US$1.85 billion), according to a Sunday announcement from the local regulator, the...
Read More
Sands China to revitalise firecracker factory, old streets

Sands China to revitalise firecracker factory, old streets

Sep 29, 2023  

Bloomberry aims to raise up to US$99mln via share sale

Bloomberry aims to raise up to US$99mln via share sale

Sep 29, 2023  

Sign up to our FREE Newsletter

UB8V5.qr.16(Click here for more)

Pick of the Day

”The Philippines has been the primary growth driver, but really the broader Asian gaming industry is something that’s really important to us”

Matt Wilson

Chief executive of casino equipment provider Light & Wonder



Most Popular

  • International Ent to invest at least US$1bln in Manila IRInternational Ent to invest at least US$1bln in Manila IR September 28, 2023
  • Galaxy Ent to build ice rink, bookshop at Macau old shipyardsGalaxy Ent to build ice rink, bookshop at Macau old… September 28, 2023
  • Light & Wonder to expand facilities in the Philippines: CEOLight & Wonder to expand facilities in the Philippines:… September 29, 2023
  • S.Korea Daegu Casino fined US$776k for AML breaches S.Korea Daegu Casino fined US$776k for AML breaches  September 29, 2023
  • Osaka, MGM-Orix sign implementation deal for IROsaka, MGM-Orix sign implementation deal for IR September 28, 2023
Copyright 2014-2023 TEAM Publishing and Consultancy Ltd / All rights reserved
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Useful Links
  • Contact Us