Visitor arrival numbers for May show visa restrictions are clearly a thing of the past, as mainland arrivals jumped 43%, driven almost entirely by those coming in on the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS). The composition of the 2.09 million visitors in May was largely unchanged in percentage terms: 52% are still day-trippers, and about the same percentage are from the mainland. Growth in mode of transport was evenly spread between ferries and land (16% year-on-year up for each). Noteworthy was growth in air arrivals (up 9.6%), while Indians continue to show their passion for Macau, as numbers more than doubled over last May at 25,000, roughly the same as Koreans.

Analysis: The trend we spotted back in January is continuing, as more mainland visitors realize they no longer need to circumvent IVS curbs by going through travel agencies and getting tour-group visas. Overall, the mass market is where the future lies, but more so for some than others: we note a correlation with good revenues on the mass gaming floor in May for MGM (up a whopping 30% over April), Wynn (up 18%) City of Dreams (up 9.6%) and Venetian (up 8% on a big base). Meanwhile, growth in Indian visitation is continuing to please the folks at Venetian, but not necessarily all of them. Casino management would probably prefer to have Chinese in the hotel rooms, as they gamble a lot more, but mall management is pleased as the shops seem to be doing very well. This source market still has a lot of room to grow, even with the opening of Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.

Used with permission & copyright to IntelMacau Photos source: Macao Govt Statistic & Census Service