About 40% of the 40.37 million outbound trips made by mainland Chinese tourists in the first six months of 2023 were to Macao, according to the state-backed China Tourism Academy – a research unit of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
The academy’s Big Data Report on Outbound Tourism in the First Half of 2023 suggests that mainland travelers made some 16.14 million visits to Macao between January and June.
It added that Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan accounted for almost 80% of all trips made by mainland travelers during the period, with Macao responsible for just over half of those visits.
If verified, the figures would make the territory China’s most popular destination for outbound travel. However, numbers given by the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) last month suggest that “cumulative visitor arrivals” from all markets stood at just 11.6 million for the first half of the year.
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