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Macau’s visitor arrivals expected to exceed 38M in 2025

Macau’s visitor numbers are projected to reach between 38 million and 39 million in 2025, bringing the region close to pre-COVID levels, according to Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, Director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO).

This is particularly significant, as Macau’s tourism peaked at 39.4 million visitors annually in 2019. Fernandes attributes the expected increase to policies such as the “One Trip Per Week” and “Multiple Entries” schemes, which have boosted tourism from Zhuhai, Hengqin, and the Greater Bay Area.

According to recent data, over 66,000 multiple-entry visas have been issued for travel to Macau’s neighboring cities in less than two weeks. Since January 1st, 2025, Zhuhai residents have made 257,000 trips to Macau, reflecting a 26.1 percent year-on-year increase, according to China’s National Immigration Administration.

For the upcoming Chinese New Year Golden Week, expected to last eight days, Senna Fernandes anticipates daily arrivals of approximately 185,000, with international visitors accounting for around 8,000 of that number.

This updated outlook surpasses earlier projections, including those from CLSA. The investment bank had initially forecast a more modest 36.4 million visitors for 2025, or 92 percent of 2019’s record numbers.

In comparison, preliminary data from the Macau Security Police Force show that Macau welcomed 34.9 million tourists in 2024, although MGTO’s statistics, which typically differ, have yet to be released. The 2024 figure represents 24 percent year-on-year growth.

According to its research, CLSA predicts a 4 percent growth, bringing the total number of visitors to 36.4 million in 2025, with a more optimistic projection of 39.9 million visitors in 2026. This increase is likely to be supported by a rebound in the mainland Chinese property market, boosting the figure to surpass 2019’s visitation.

On the revenue front, Macau’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) per visitor was relatively low in 2024. CLSA forecasts minimal growth for 2025, with the GGR per visitor projected to reach MOP6,483 ($810), followed by a modest 1 percent increase in 2026, bringing the average to MOP6,525 ($816) per visitor.

Viviana Chan
Viviana Chanhttps://agbrief.com/
Viviana Chan is an editor, interpreter, and journalist. With over a decade of experience, she writes in English, Chinese, and Portuguese. Viviana started her career in Macau-based newspapers, where she became passionate about the region's social, financial, and cultural development. Her writing focuses on the economy, emerging industries, gaming development, political affairs, and cross cultural-exchange in the business and cultural domains. She is avid for news and eager to discover and cover stories that generate public relevance.

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