According to the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) Director, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, as of yesterday, the Legend Palace Hotel, Pousada Marina Infante Hotel, Broadway Hotel and the Sun Sun Hotel at the Inner Harbour still had their operations suspended in different levels, due to damages caused by the passage of Typhoon Hato.
Of the four properties, two include gaming facilities, with Broadway Hotel in Cotai being operated by casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd, and Legend Palace Hotel – which opened in February of this year at Macau Fisherman’s Wharf complex – being operated by Macau Legend Development Ltd.
“Legend Palace said last week that they would require at least two to three weeks to clean up damages from the flooding […] After the typhoon, every property was affected in different extent due to the interruption of energy and water supply,” she added.
Two of the properties also requested a temporary suspension of their license, with Ms. Fernandes not disclosing which ones.
Previously the MGTO head said at the first day of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Travel Mart trade show more than 90 per cent of hotels and 80 per cent of travel agencies in the MSAR have already resumed operations.
As of July of this year there were 107 hotel establishments and 223 travel agencies operating in the MSAR, according to data from the MGTO.
Aiming low
Ms. Fernandes also admitted the territory might see less than 30 million visitors at the end of the year due to the effects of the Typhoon on August 23 on the local gaming industry, an amount not seen since 2014.
“We’re very cautious with predictions for the second half of this year, we hope to be able to keep the same number registered in the same period of last year but there will be a bit of a setback due to the recent typhoon,” she added.
Last year Macau received 30.95 million visitors, with 18.48 million having visited the city in the first seven months of this year, more 5.3 per cent than in the same period of last year.
After the typhoon, MGTO requested tour operators to suspend the arrival of tour groups, from August 25 until September 2, in order to allocate more resources to rescue missions and restoration work in the city.
However international travel agencies still maintained their activity, with the city receiving at least 60,000 visitors daily during the exclusion period, MGTO informed.
Ms. Fernandes added that although several events had to be cancelled due to Typhoon Hato – such as 29th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest – several upcoming events such as the 31st Macao International Music Festival, this year’s Grand Prix and the Light Festival will maintain entertainment offerings for visitors.
“We need to build back the image that we’re back in business and our tourism offers haven’t been severely affected […] The government wants to maintain at least one large event every month,” she added.
