Macao recovery. The latest increase in operating hours for the machines comes “in response to increasing demand of citizens,” notes local media.
As JP Morgan Securities, predicted at the time this ‘significant step towards Macau’s normalization’ could lead to a ‘meaningful recovery from December.’
And now it´s happening, resume this machines It is also aimed at making it easier for Chinese citizens to apply for the visas to enter the SARs, after both regions fully opened up to mainland Chinese visitors.
Previously, applicants had to apply in-person, with the eVisa system for Macau only coming back online in November. The move was hampered by waves of COVID in the mainland, slashing the expected uptick in outbound travel.
City welcomes 1.39 million visitors in January
The number of visitor arrivals in January 2023 surpassed the one million tally for the first time in three years, as the city’s tourism industry benefited from the lifting of pandemic restrictions and the Lunar New Year holidays.
The Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) reported that the city welcomed 1,397,748 tourists, which was double the figure from a year ago and 259 percent more than in December 2022.
Visitors from mainland China increased by 54.5 per cent year-on-year to 991,641, with those travelling under the Individual Visit Scheme surging by 321.6 per cent to 707,360, DSEC added. Visitors from Hong Kong and Taiwan also experienced significant year-on-year growth, with 356,958 and 18,868 visitors, respectively, representing an increase of 704.3 per cent and 139 per cent.
Macau saw 5.7 million visitor arrivals in 2022, accounting for just 14.5 per cent of the pre-COVID 2019 figure when it reached a record high of 39.4 million tourists.


