“Tour Macao Carnival” shines the spotlight on city’s reputation for safety

Efforts by the Macao SAR Government to re-energise tourism and the economy have been further enhanced by destination promotions aimed at Mainland Chinese visitors seeking to travel to Macao. The Macao SAR Government presented in November a new project, “Tour Macao Carnival”, to spotlight Macao as a safe destination.

The project aimed to boost the destination’s appeal and revitalise the local tourism industry by weaving together several events. The majority of them were held in November. The “Tour Macao Carnival” project included collaboration with Mainland Chinese media outlets, such as the CCTV-5 sports channel, key opinion leaders (KOLs), and social media platforms, to help promote Macao’s charm as a destination.

According to Macao SAR Government Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Ao Ieong U, the local authorities are paying close attention to the recovery in tourism. “Beijing Macao Week”, in September, helped activate the first stage of a plan to foster tourism’s revival; and the “Tour Macao Carnival” aimed to capitalise on mega events such as the Macau Grand Prix and Macau Food Festival to further promote the city as an attractive destination, she said. 

Organising mega events not only benefits Macao’s tourism industry but also other sectors of the economy by creating employment opportunities, Secretary Ao Ieong added. It is estimated the Macau Grand Prix, Macau Food Festival and other November activities in the “Tour Macao Carnival” series created job opportunities for more than 100,000 workers/day in construction, catering, wholesaling, retailing, advertising and manufacturing.

Social media publicity

With the full reinstatement of travel permit issuance for Mainland residents to Macao in September, the Macao SAR Government organised the “Beijing Macao Week” campaign in Beijing to express a cordial welcome. Visitor arrivals from the Mainland have since gradually resumed, and the “Tour Macao Carnival” came into the spotlight in November to further encourage Mainland residents to visit the city.

MGTO capitalised on the activities under the umbrella of the “Tour Macao Carnival” to promote Macao as a destination, ahead of the peak travel season around New Year’s Day and Chinese New Year. The promotional campaign was carried out in stages, with news released on social media in the Mainland and MGTO’s WeChat ID to create a buzz before the series started. Events featured in the Carnival were broadcast and gained news coverage on major media platforms in the Mainland. Captivating event highlights broadened the coverage and enabled netizens to experience the ambience of the events.

“MAK MAK Flash” activities saw Macao Tourism Mascot MAK MAK greet residents and visitors in local communities at different times.

The Office made use of leading social media and travel platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Douyin, Xiaohongshu, Ly.com and Tuniu.com to promote the “Tour Macao Carnival”. Online games, posts from KOLs and push notification ads boosted awareness.

KOLs and other influencers from the Mainland were invited by MGTO to live stream during the Carnival and to promote the project on television, enabling people from across China to feel the festive vibe. Event highlights from the Carnival were filmed for outreach marketing, designed to bolster visitor confidence and intentions to travel to Macao.

MGTO also sent Mainland Chinese visitors an array of pandemic prevention information and reminders regarding travel to Macao. The message was conveyed that visitors from low-risk regions in Mainland China are exempt from medical quarantine upon arrival in Macao. As of end-November, no local case of COVID-19 infection had been detected in Macao for almost 250 days. The Macao SAR Government has been working to foster economic recovery, while implementing strict measures to control and prevent the COVID-19 pandemic.