Macau logged 8.88 million visitors in the first quarter of the year, with 585,000 being foreign visitors. To know more about the experience of foreign visitors in Macau, the Post interviewed some in the city centre yesterday, with interviewees remarking on what they liked and the improvements they hoped to see.
Most of the interviewees said they were only here for a day, with many visiting from Hong Kong.
‘Mega-superb’
A Hungarian man and woman, both 46 and living in Germany, said they overall enjoyed their day trip to Macau, where they visited several integrated resorts, Taipa Village and the city centre.
The couple described the people they encountered as being “fantastic” while noting that the city was “mega-superb”, highlighting that this would not be their last visit to the city. However, their trip was not without its hurdles, with transport being the biggest issue for them.
Starting from the ferry terminal, they described an experience with seemingly over-insistent taxi drivers, using the word “harassment” while recalling it. Moreover, they ran into issues with some payment methods, noting that the experience was not as smooth as it was in Hong Kong. They also pointed out that they did not find enough information on how and where they could obtain a Macau Pass, the city’s contactless smart card.
A tourist-friendly city
Tasay, Daria, and Anna, three Russian women aged between 24 and 25 who are staying in Macau on a five-day visit starting yesterday said that they were really happy. Coming from Saint Petersburg, Tasay noted that they had endured a 16-hour flight as they were “really motivated to be here”.
The three women said that they found Macau to be tourist friendly and were impressed by the mix of cultures and architectural styles. “It’s an interesting city for us”, Anna said. Unlike the Hungarian couple, the women collectively agreed that transport was convenient and that it was easy for foreign visitors to make payments, particularly after getting a Macau Pass card.
Familiar, yet new
Luca, a day-tripper living in Guangzhou who is of mixed Italian and Brazilian descent, said that while Macau is nice, one thing that he found weird is that Portuguese is not widely spoken.
Moreover, Luca, who is in his thirties, noted that a lot of tourist attractions he had visited had signs that were mostly in Chinese or Portuguese, while very few were in English, describing an instance where he overheard two visitors from the UK complaining that they did not understand anything. However, Luca said that he liked Macau, particularly highlighting his visit to the city centre, the food, nice people and the cleanliness. Luca also compared Macau to Hong Kong in terms of spending, saying that it is “way cheaper” in Macau.
Luca added that he would probably come back to the city, wanting to explore it further and meet more locals.
‘One day is not enough to explore any place in the world’
Coming from Toronto and vacationing in Hong Kong for five days, 63-year-old Mike said that Macau is a unique and amazing city, wanting to see the casinos and mix of cultures. He added that a day was not enough to explore Macau, saying: “One day is not enough to explore any place in the world”.
On what he hopes could be improved, Mike said that something that would be beneficial for tourists was to make it easier for English speakers to find transport. This includes providing information on how to get to certain places, the fastest way to get somewhere, and how to pay for the buses.
City of culture
A 62-year-old Russian named Igor said he thinks Macau is a very interesting city with a rich culture. “I think that if you live here in Macau, your life will be very, very interesting”, noting that he would recommend others to visit the city. However, one thing that he found to be a bit inconvenient was that not all places had Wi-Fi connection available.
Meanwhile, teachers Tim and Rome, who are from Australia and the Philippines respectively, said that they were pleasantly surprised with the city. “The culture was not what we expected,” Rome said, pointing out the mix of cultures that surprised them.
“It’s an interesting historical city”, Tim added, who also highlighted a “pretty cool” visit to the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre. Both concluded that their experience was good overall.
Visitors take a selfie at the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Ruins of St. Paul’s yesterday afternoon. – Photo: Rui Pastorin
