CHINA (MACAU). Macau tourism authorities are planning to distribute 120,000 free air tickets this year, in partnership with airlines, in a bid to promote visits to the Special Administrative Zone, Macau Business has reported.
It follows a move by Hong Kong yesterday to launch a major tourism campaign offering 500,000 free air tickets to potential visitors.
In preparation for the return of package tours from Mainland China, Director of the Macao Government Tourism Office Helena de Senna Fernandes revealed that authorities had prepared a tourism campaign fund which will benefit 88 local travel agencies.
The campaign fund includes vouchers worth up to MOP400 (US$49) to be given to tour groups who spend more than one night in Macau.
Macau authorities are also planning a large-scale tourism marketing campaign including promotional tours to cities such as Guangzhou, Jiangmen and Shenzhen later this month.
In a bid to bring back Southeast Asian tourists, tourism officials are also planning roadshows in Thailand to promote Macau tourism.
Authorities are also planning to team up with Hong Kong to co-promote tourism.
Local government earlier revealed its ambitious target of 40 million visitors to Macau this year as it seeks to revive the pandemic-hit tourism sector. This would be higher than the 39.4 million arrivals the city recorded in 2019.
After the “Hello Hong Kong” tourism campaign launched yesterday with the 500,000 free tickets giveaway, Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) said that the distribution of tickets will start on 1 March in Southeast Asia. This will be followed by Mainland China, Northeast Asia and other markets over the next six months.
A big marketing and promotion push by airlines will begin in late February.
AAHK also said that inbound travellers who won the free air tickets will receive special offers on hotel accommodation, shopping and entertainment offered by business partners who join the promotional activities.
AAHK Chairman Jack So said: “We bought the tickets from the airlines during the most difficult time under the pandemic, and that is a testament to our confidence in the future of Hong Kong’s aviation industry. The campaign will generate a multiplier effect on boosting air traffic and enormous publicity for Hong Kong.
“Since the relaxation of travel restrictions and quarantine requirements for inbound travellers last year, passenger traffic at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has started to pick up, especially in the last quarter. We also have had a good start in 2023 with the resumption of normal travel with the Mainland. HKIA has always been a major international aviation hub. We are confident that passenger traffic will continue to rise.” 
