The long-awaited reopening of borders between Macau and Hong Kong saw 5,630 people from Hong Kong visit the SAR on Sunday, representing a near 300% increase over the same day in 2022.
The Hong Kong visitation figure, which came on the same day that remaining border restrictions within the Chinese territories were officially removed, contributed to the total of 39,606 people visiting Macau on Sunday – a 153.5% increase on Macau’s average daily visitor arrivals in 2022. Of these visitors, 32,860 were from the mainland, up 134.9% over the same period last year.
A total of 143,926 visitors were recorded in the past week (January 1 to 7), with a daily average of 20,561 visitors.
In all of January 2022 there were 694,430 visitors to Macau at a daily average of 22,400 arrival, although there were only 44,380 visitors from Hong Kong at an average of 1,432 in that time.
In January 2019, pre-pandemic, Macau welcomed 3.42 million visitors at an average of 110,000 visitors per day. Of these, 530,000 visitors were from Hong Kong at a daily average of 17,000.
Sunday’s figure of almost 40,000 total visitors was the highest single-day volume since 30 April last year, according to the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO).
“During the [upcoming] Chinese New Year holiday, the MGTO will hold a series of activities and it is believed that the number of visitors will increase,” the MGTO said.
Sunday saw Macau drop all testing requirements for visitors from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, while the “red” and “yellow” health code system for entry to various establishments including restaurants and casinos was also dumped.
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