Macau’s tourist numbers in July returned to 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels, with increase led by mainland Chinese and Hong Kong visitors.
According to the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Macau received over 93,000 visitors daily in the first three days this month, with an average of 89,000 daily visitor arrivals in July.
The Deputy Director of Macau’s tourism bureau, Cheng Wai Tong told the media that the government is expecting higher visitor arrivals in August, as he believes that the July figures are a ‘good start’ and that more amusement choices in the second half of the year will help to boost the tourism market.
Macau had an aggregate of 11.6 million visitor arrivals in 1H23. The government expects 24 million tourists by the end of the year.
Even though there was no official statistical data for July visitor arrivals, Macau’s casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) hit a 42-month high, topping MOP$16.66 billion ($2.07 billion).
MGTO noted that the daily number of visitor arrivals from Hong Kong has recovered to 90 percent of pre-COVID levels, so the government’s focus will shift from Hong Kong and mainland China to the international market.
