International package tour visitation to Macau is increasing, particularly from South Korea, but a fall in Chinese visitors in September led to a slight decrease yearly, at 134,000.
According to official statistics from the DSEC, package tour visitors from mainland China declined by 4.4 percent year-on-year to 117,000, while international tour visitors rose significantly, increasing by 51.7 percent to reach 14,000. Among these, arrivals from South Korea reached 7,000, up by 49.1 percent, and visitors from India grew markedly, with an 184.6 percent increase to 1,000.
In the first three quarters of 2024, the total number of inbound package tour visitors surged by 101.2 percent year-on-year, reaching 1,497,000. This growth was mainly driven by visitors from mainland China, which rose by 91 percent to 1,332,000.
International arrivals saw even stronger growth, jumping 276 percent to 142,000, with notable gains among visitors from South Korea, up by 387.1 percent to 58,000, and India, up by 929.8 percent to 19,000.
Hotel guest numbers dip in September
In September, the average occupancy rate of hotel guest rooms rose by 6.4 percentage points year-on-year, reaching 84.7 percent. Despite this increase, the total number of hotel guests fell by 2.1 percent year-on-year to 1,112,000, with the average length of stay holding steady at 1.6 nights.
By the end of the third quarter, Macau had 144 hotel establishments, an increase of seven from the previous year. The total number of available guest rooms decreased by 3.3 percent to 44,000.
Over the first three quarters of 2024, the average occupancy rate of guest rooms rose by 4.8 percentage points year-on-year to 85.4 percent. Five-star hotels recorded an occupancy rate of 87.5 percent, while four-star and three-star hotels saw occupancy rates of 81.2 percent and 82.9 percent, respectively, marking increases of 3 and 2.4 percentage points, respectively.
During this period, Macau’s hotels welcomed 10,889,000 guests, reflecting an 11.2 percent year-on-year increase and a 3.3 percent rise compared to 2019 levels. International guests accounted for 779,000, up by 86.8 percent from last year.
Significant increases were observed among visitors from South Korea, totaling 229,000 and up by 143.5 percent; Japan, with 60,000 visitors and an 80.8 percent rise; Malaysia, with a growth of 85.2 percent to 57,000; Thailand, up by 61.2 percent to 47,000; and Singapore, which rose by 47.7 percent to 43,000.
