Macao will renew its focus on non-casino attractions and target middle class and family travellers to prop up business following successive years of declining gambling revenue.
While Macao’s 35 casinos-resorts are some of the most glamorous in the world, the former colony experienced an 8.7% decline in gaming revenue and an overall 7% drop in visitor spending in the first nine months of 2016 as against the previous period in 2015.
The MGTO has always highlighted its non-gaming attractions; now resorts are putting a greater emphasis on these to attract a more diverse market.
Recent family attractions that have opened on Cotai include the Parisian Macao’s half-scale model of the Eiffel Tower complete with rides to the top, the Golden Reel figure-of-eight rollercoaster at the Studio City complex along with a Batman Dark Flight ride and the House of Magic. Over at the Wynn Palace, guests arrive at reception via a cable car and can wander through foyers filled with balloons made of flowers.
On the horizon are more celebrity chef restaurants, hotels that echo Hollywood glamour with suites dedicated to Marilyn Monroe and others with interiors designed by Donatella Versace and Karl Lagerfeld. All are hoped to appeal to the burgeoning middle class Chinese and others who love a dash of panache. Most resorts offer free shuttles from the Macao ferry terminal and the China border gate.
