Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong said yesterday that the government is planning to launch a luggage check-in service in cooperation with Hong Kong to enable passengers arriving in Macau via Hong Kong to pick up their luggage on arrival in Macau.
Lei made the remarks during an oral interpellation plenary session yesterday in the legislature’s hemicycle, adding that the luggage can be delivered both by ferry and by land, which is aimed at making it more convenient for overseas visitors and for Macau to take advantage of the fact that Hong Kong’s airport caters for many overseas passengers.
Indirectly-elected lawmaker-cum-gaming executive Angela Leong On Kei asked the government about the feasibility of turning Macau into the final destination of the government’s “multi-destination travel” strategy with Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area (GBA), which aims to extend visitors’ trips by each city promoting neighbouring tourist destinations, so that tourists may be more willing to spend more time in Macau.
Lei said that more consideration should be given to linking up with Hong Kong and the other Greater Bay Area cities to “make the pie bigger”, as well as to hold discussions with the travel sectors in different cities, which Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) Acting Director Cheng Wai Tong said during yesterday’s plenary session would be discussed in the middle of this month when tourism promotion agencies from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau will attend the Hong Kong International Travel Expo.
Lei also pointed out that the buy-one-get-one-free flight ticket discount that MGTO launched previously with Air Macau is slated to end at the end of this month, adding that the feasibility of extending the campaign was being studied in the light of market response, adding that during the upcoming summer holidays, the government would work with Air Asia to launch air ticket offers and limited-time promotions for passengers, while evaluating the effectiveness of the overall discounts and hoping to attract visitors from India and the Middle East to Macau.
Indirectly-elected lawmaker-cum-businessman Wang Sai Man suggested during yesterday’s oral interpellation that more shuttle buses should be arranged to take visitors to and from Macau’s local tourist attractions and the city’s old quarters. He also proposed to turn Lou Lim Ioc Garden into a new open space for cultural and creative activities.
Lei pointed out that the government needed to strike a balance between accommodating more visitors and residents’ quality of life, as back in 2019, when there were over 30 million visitor arrivals, residents felt the city’s leisure areas were overcrowded, with the current number of visitors recovering to about 56 percent of the 2019 level.
Lei also said the government was seeking to partner with well-known video platforms from the mainland in the near future to promote Macau’s less-visited quarters, which Lei said could create new business opportunities, but if not handled properly, could also “ruin an industry or a city as well”.
Secretary for Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong speaks during yesterday’s oral interpellation plenary session in the legislature’s hemicycle.
– Photo courtesy of TDM
