Guangdong province has imposed a 14-day mandatory quarantine for all arrivals as of 6am on Friday 27 March as it looks to stop the flow of imported cases of COVID-19 into the country. According to the Disease Control and Prevention Headquarters of Guangdong, the measure includes arrivals from Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan plus transit visitors.
The latest policy requires all arrivals entering via the Guangdong border to receive a COVID-19 virus test and spend 14 days in a designated quarantine hotel, indicating that Macau residents and mainland visitors have to be quarantined if entering Zhuhai.
Macau’s Public Security Force has also confirmed the latest mainland China entry policy.
Only specific personnel, such as drivers and crew, who must sustain cross-border supplies and normal operations between Guangdong, Macau and Hong Kong are exempt from quarantine but they are still required to receive virus tests.
Visitor numbers to Macau plummeted again this week to a record low of just 2,300 on Wednesday – the first day after Macau authorities imposed mandatory quarantine on all arrivals from Hong Kong and Taiwan. During the 15-day closure of Macau’s gaming industry in February, the lowest visitation recorded was 2,600.
Around 90% of all visitors on Wednesday were from the mainland, which remains the only group allowed to enter Macau without such strict quarantine restrictions. Mainland visitors do, however, have to undergo a six to eight hour medical observation if entering from high risk areas. Those from low risk areas can enter as normal.
The number of hotels in Macau designated as quarantine hotels reached 10 on Thursday, with Chan Meng Kam’s Royal Dragon Hotel joining Pousada Marina Infante, Golden Crown China Hotel, Regency Art Hotel, Grand Coloane Resort, Treasure Hotel, Metropole Hotel, Grand Lapa Hotel, Grand Harbour Hotel and the two-star guest house San Tung Fong Commercial Inn. Royal Dragon said its casino remains operational for the time being.
News of the closure saw chaotic scenes at the border gate as thousands of mainland Chinese nationals living in or visiting Macau rushed to return home before the new measures set in.
Current entry restrictions to Macau:
