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Macao tourist arrivals up 3% in 2003
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2004-04-01 14:27 Despite outbreak of SARS
(severe acute respiration syndrome) in the first half of 2003, Macao registered
a record 11.89 million tourist arrivals last year, up 3 percent over the
previous year, according to a government news release issued Thursday.
Due to the Chinese mainland's facilitated individual travel (FIT) policy on
Hong Kong- and Macao-bounded tours that came into effect in late July 2003, the
total number of tourists coming with traveling groups declined 27 percent from
2002.
The average expenditure of tourists in Macao in 2003 is 1,518 patacas
(US$190), up 4 percent over 2002, said the news release issued by the Statistic
and Census Services of the Macao Special Administrative Region.
The average expenditure of mainland tourists is the highest among all
travelers to Macao, reaching 2,847 patacas (US$356) last year.
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