The Macau Metro Monitor, September 14, 2012
HOTEL PRICE WAR MIGHT OCCUR AT LOW SEASON THIS MONTH Macau Daily Times
Chan Chi Kit, President of the Macau Hoteliers & Innkeepers Association, said the traditional low season of September this year coincides with the launch of over 1,800 rooms and suites by Sheraton in Sands Cotai Central with promotional prices very close to those of the 3 or 4 star hotels. According to some operators, this could trigger a price war between hotels as visitor numbers fall and no major new attractions are launched during this low ebb to draw extra tourists. Chan pointed out that in the first ten days of September, some hotels recorded occupancy rates as low as 50 –70%, and individual establishments even saw record 20 – 50% lows. While a price war is possible in September, the hotel industry leader hoped the Golden Week holiday starting October 1 would bring some relief to the hospitality industry by bringing more mainland visitors, as it always has done in past years.
PACKAGE TOURS AND HOTEL OCCUPANCY RATE FOR JULY 2012 DSEC
Visitor arrivals in package tours increased by 19.5% YoY to 825,464 in July 2012. Visitors from Mainland China (606,120) went up by 20.4%, with 256,537 coming from Guangdong Province; besides, those from Taiwan (75,261); Hong Kong (35,395) and Japan (24,717) increased by 54.2%, 14.4% and 66.1% respectively. On the contrary, visitors from the Republic of Korea (25,491) decreased by 17.9%. In the first seven months of 2012, visitors in package tours totaled 4,908,359, up by 24.8% YoY to account for 30.6% of the total visitor arrivals. The average length of stay decreased by 0.18 night to 1.2 nights.