During China’s national holiday, the Chinese Tourism industry Macao’s Special Administrative Area (SAR), received the long-awaited continental visitors. Still, the tourist numbers and market results from Thursday to Monday suggested a soft launch.
Macao’s immigration authority estimates that in the first four days of October 2020, there were 72,684 tourists on the continent of Macao, a decline of 86.2 percent relative to the same span of 2019, but above the figure in the previous months of 2020.
A dozen visitors took a shot on Monday afternoon or took a selfie in front of the St. Paul Ruins, spread across the long stairs not so packed as years before the pandemic.
Any visitor police officers were on the brink of keeping public order. But no crowd control measures were included.
This year China will be welcoming eight days of national holidays as the Mid-Autumn Festival corresponds with the National Day of China. During the long holidays, Macau’s tourism industry had organized several events, such as a fireworks display and Macau Light Festival, to draw visitors from mainland countries.
According to the Macao Hoteliers and Innkeepers Group, Macao Hotels and Guesthouses currently have an annual room occupancy rate of around 50%, which is better than previous months yet below estimates.
The five-star hotels are higher in all types of hotels and guesthouses, thanks to a 70% discount.
Dozens of visitors sat in one of Macao’s most popular tourist spots in front of a waterfall. This year, Macao’s tourism industry claimed the Mid-Autumn Festival on Oct 1 would leave most visitors in the mainland for a family union. They could be published only on Oct 2 or Oct 3, slowing tourist numbers’ arrival.
Another explanation for this was that, though on Sept 23, the mainland authorities resumed granting a travel permit for mainland residents as visitors to Macao SAR, the application phase will last longer than previously, also slowing the introduction of mainland tourists.
