Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and a Macao trade delegation showcased Macao’s diverse and attractive elements of “tourism +” to Singaporeans at the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS) Holidays Fair at Singapore Expo Hall from 11 to 13 August. The Office held a travel trade networking event concurrently to attract Singaporean visitors to Macao, as part of the unreserved effort to tap into international visitor markets for tourism and economic revival.

Enchanting experiences of Macao’s “tourism +”

MGTO Deputy Director Cheng Wai Tong joined hands with the delegates of some ten tourism-related enterprises and association from Macao to participate in this travel fair in Singapore. Running a booth in the 20,000-m2 exhibition space of the NATAS Holidays Fair 2023, MGTO promoted Macao’s World Heritage, events, hotel facilities and leisure travel experiences, in a showcase of the diverse destination. Visitors were drawn to experience the colorful glamour of “tourism +”. The booth featured a VR experience zone, the Macau Grand Prix simulator and fun game for interactive experience. Lucky draws were also held to spark the interest of Singaporean residents in visiting Macao.

Mounting intent of Singaporeans to visit Macao

On the first day of the travel fair, MGTO held a networking session at the booth for Macao and Singapore trade delegates, who seized the opportunity to know each other, build a wider business network, explore cooperation and brainstorm new design of Macao tourism products.

In speaking at the networking session, MGTO Deputy Director Cheng Wai Tong expressed that with the progressive increase of direct flights between Macao and Southeast Asia destinations, MGTO has been actively promoting the city to international visitors including Singapore. The interest of travelers from Singapore to Macao is rapidly increasing as airlinks rebound. Singapore is already on Macao’s top 10 visitor source-markets, according to visitor arrivals in June.

President for NATAS, Steven Ler, and Secretary-General of the NATAS Executive Committee, Charles Tan, also attended the occasion and welcomed MGTO and Macao’s trade delegation at the Association’s travel fair in Singapore.

Destination marketing at international travel fairs

The activities coordinated by the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS) include two annual travel fairs for consumers, seminars, workshops and familiarization tours for members at different times in the calendar. Subsequent to its past participation for destination marketing, MGTO once again marked its presence in the NATAS Travel Fair this year to tap into the Singaporean visitor market. The Office also joined NATAS’s General Membership Meeting in March 2023, leveraging the Association’s expansive network to rebuild connections with tour operators in Singapore.

In 2019, Macao welcomed 115,742 visitors from Singapore. As the city lifted travel restrictions early this year, airlines successively resumed international flights to and from Macao. MGTO is actively forging ahead with marketing initiatives in the international markets to attract more visitors from worldwide.

Committed to the SAR Government’s development strategy of “1+4” adequate diversification, MGTO will keep steering forward the development of the tourism and related industries, deepening integration of “tourism +”, branding the destination in diverse ways and diversifying the range of visitor markets for economic revival in Macao.