Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes said that Macau received more than 4.96 million visitors in the first quarter of this year, of which about 3.25 million were from the mainland, an increase of nearly 89 percent compared to the same period last year, reflecting a significant increase in the desire of mainlanders to visit Macau.
Senna Fernandes made the remarks during yesterday’s promotion conference called “2023 Enjoy Xiamen”, adding that Macau will continue to strengthen tourism cooperation with mainland provinces, cities and autonomous regions, and strive to deepen the cross-border integration of “Tourism+”.
Xiamen lies some 530 kilometres northeast of Macau, and has 5.3 million inhabitants.
The Xiamen Cultural and Tourism Bureau has launched promotional and exchange activities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), and yesterday organised a special cultural and tourism promotion meeting in Macau to introduce Xiamen’s cultural and tourism characteristics and new business models.
Speaking during the meeting held at Macau Fisherman’s Wharf, Senna Fernandes pointed out Fujian and Macau are both members of the China Silk Road Tourism Promotion Alliance and have close exchanges in promoting Mazu culture, the “multi-destination” itinerary between Fujian and Macau, and Silk Road tourism.
According to Wikipedia, Mazu or Matsu, A-Ma, also spelled Ah-Ma (“Mother” or “Grandmother”), a popular name in Macau, is a Chinese sea goddess also known by several other names and titles. She is the deified form of the legendary figure Lin Mo or Lin Moniang, a Fujianese shamaness whose life span is traditionally dated from 960 to 987. Revered after her death as a tutelary deity of seafarers, including fishermen and seafarers, her worship spread throughout China’s coastal regions and overseas Chinese communities throughout Southeast Asia and overseas, where some Mazuist temples are affiliated with famous Taiwanese temples.
Senna Fernandes also said that MGTO will join hands with the local tourism industry to participate in the 18th Strait Tourism Expo in Xiamen next month to actively increase tourism interaction between the two places.
A speaker addresses yesterday’s promotion conference “2023 Enjoy Xiamen” at Macau Fisherman’s Wharf. – Photo by Ginnie Liang
