According to Bloomberg, after five months of exhaustion because of near-net sales, casinos in Macau expect Chinese visitors to massively pull in during "Golden Week." Starting from China National Day on October 1, the "Golden Week" holiday will last up to 8 days.

During the annual "Golden Week", the Asian gambling capital attracts twice as many visitors as the population of this special administrative region. However, hope is fading. Although Beijing relaxed travel restrictions for people arriving in Macau two months ago, the number of visitors from the mainland to the special economic zone remained sparse.

Most casinos are empty, cold. Macau authorities now expect only "Golden Week" to attract 500,000 visitors, or 50 percent of last year's figure. This will be a very disappointing result with the economy in recession up to 68% in the second quarter.

Casinos in Macau have been shaking up for months because of the Covid-19 epidemic. Photo: AP.

Lost to Las Vegas and Cambodia

Bloomberg quoted expert Ben Lee of consulting firm IGamiX as noting that the September revenue of Macau casinos was only 11-14% of last year's figure. Linda Chen, Vice President of Wynn Macau, admits the Macau gambling industry only hopes to achieve revenue of 30-50% last year during "Golden Week."

"No one expected sales to recover immediately. We only have a step-by-step way and achieved sales in part last year. A successful 'Golden Week' will help change people's views on travelling to Macau," Chen stressed.

Those figures are bleak considering that casinos in the U.S. gambling capital Las Vegas reached 60 percent sales in the same period last year in July after reopening in June. In Cambodia, a new Asian gambling center, NagaCorp sales reached 90% of pre-epidemic levels in August.

This situation has raised investor concerns about Macau's future. Sales of Macau casinos have declined since before the outbreak of the pandemic, partly because of competition from other gambling centers in Asia such as Cambodia, a declining Chinese economy, and political instability in Hong Kong.

Revenue from gambling services in Macau fell sharply from earlier this year. Photo: Bloomberg.

China International Capital analyst Shengyong Goh explained: "Macau recovered slowly due to its domestic visitors being mostly mainland Chinese visitors. The Covid-19 epidemic has exposed Macau's thorny problem for years. It's an economy that's too dependent on tourism and gambling."

According to travel companies, macau tourism demand has plummeted because of new regulations for mainland Chinese tourists, for example testing negative for the novel coronavirus. If a new outbreak breaks out, China could immediately restore border controls, so visitors would face the risk of being stranded in Macau.

Meanwhile, many emerging tourist destinations in mainland China such as Hainan Province attract many tourists in the country. According to a Morgan Stanley survey, only 5 out of 23 Macau hotels are booked during "Golden Week".

Find ways to attract visitors

On the travel website Qunar.com, hotel room rates in Macau decreased by 40% compared to 2019 during "Golden Week". "We don't expect travelers to be packed with Macau between now and the end of the year," Bloomberg quoted Versiglia Chong, Sales Manager at travel agency VT Travel Agency Co, as lamenting.

Others try to hold on to hope. "The entire Macau tourism industry was in crisis in the first 9 months of the year. Therefore, the remaining 3 months are an extremely important time", said Vincenzo Carrieri, Asia-Pacific Director of Canali (Italian fashion label). Canali believes sales will reach 70% compared to the time before the epidemic. "Macau casinos and retailers both invest strongly in marketing to entice customers back," he said.

The Macau Tourism Office is also racing against the time. To attract mainland Chinese visitors, the Office launched a promotion with $36.3 million in coupons through weekly draws from September to December.

Macau casinos also face the risk of losing VIP guests because brokerage companies are promoting new locations in Cambodia and the Philippines. Over the past year, Chinese authorities have launched a campaign to crack down on these brokerage companies. Over the past few months, Beijing authorities have arrested tens of thousands of suspects involved in cross-border gambling lines.

Sales of the world's largest gambling centre remain bleak despite relaxed travel restrictions. Photo: CNN.

However, this campaign has caused many wealthy gamblers to be concerned, not going to Macau even though gambling here is legal. Mr. Lee of IGamiX is concerned that this phenomenon will slow the weak recovery of macau gambling.

To overcome the current situation, macau authorities propose promotional strategies that show that the city is not only a gambling paradise but also a tourist center. Many casinos open more shows, build entertainment parks and shopping malls to attract tourists.

Ms Chen of Wynn Macau said: "We want to generate more revenue from tourist attractions, food and retail services. On a single trip, there are many aspects that can be exploited outside the casino. In the near future, Macau will focus on developing services beyond gambling".