Macau needs more hotel rooms (HÁ OUTRA ENTRADA)
jun25
Macau must build more hotel rooms priced at MOP1,000 (US$125) or below to support the growth of non-gaming offerings, as the current shortfall in budget accommodation has exceeded 10,000 rooms, said Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) Chairman Francis Lui Yiu Tung.
In a media interview earlier this week, he told Hong Kong outlets that nearby Hengqin could help alleviate the shortfall, but said more supportive policies and infrastructure upgrades are needed to make that a reality.
This echoes comments he made during the 2025 Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia in May, where he cautioned that Macau risks losing its competitive edge as a global tourism and leisure hub if the accommodation gap persists.
“The biggest challenge in hosting more conventions, exhibitions, and concerts is the shortage of affordable business hotel rooms,” Lui was quoted as saying by Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao this week, referring to rooms priced at or below MOP1,000.
Citing industry estimates, he said that the city needs more than 10,000 additional rooms in the affordable and business categories.
“If every hotel room is overly large and luxurious, costing several thousand dollars a night, people simply won’t come,” he added.
According to the latest government data, Macau had 147 accommodation establishments as of April 2025, offering a total of 45,000 rooms, a 4.3 percent year-on-year decline. Meanwhile, the average rate across all hotel categories fell 4 percent year-on-year to MOP1,275 in April, the Macau Hotel Association said.
Win-win for Macau and Hengqin
Lui believes Hengqin, with its lower land prices and operating costs, is well-positioned to complement Macau’s tourism infrastructure.
“If Hengqin can add 7,000 hotel rooms, it will be a win-win for both sides,” he said. “Macau’s biggest asset is its 35 million visitors [last year]—some of that traffic can help support Hengqin’s business development while easing pressure on Macau’s hotel capacity.”
To make this happen, he said transport links between the two areas must be improved, and border crossing measures further relaxed.
In response to high vacancy rates, Hengqin authorities introduced a pilot scheme last year allowing vacant commercial and office buildings to be converted into hotels for an eight-year period. Speaking on the initiative, Lui suggested that the conversion window should be further relaxed to accelerate hotel supply.
https://www.macaubusiness.com/macau-needs-more-budget-hotel-rooms-to-drive-non-gaming-growth-francis-lui/
may25
Macau needs more hotel rooms to support non-gaming diversification of casino sector: Francis Lui
Macau must overcome its shortage of available hotel rooms in order to support the diversification of integrated resort businesses away from pure gaming operations. That is according to Francis Lui Yiu Tung, chairman of Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd.
“As Macau shifts towards a more mass- and events-focused model, the question of hotel rooms must… be addressed, both in Macau and through greater integration with Hengqin,” Mr Lui said, referring to an island next door to Macau that is under mainland China’s jurisdiction.
He added: “By comparison, Las Vegas has over 155,000 hotel rooms supported by 42 million visitors. This is over three times that of Macau: nearly 44,000 rooms despite 35 million visitors last year.”
Mr Lui’s comments were made during the opening day of the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia 2025 casino trade show and conference. The event began today (7 May) at the Venetian Macao casino resort, with the chairman of Galaxy Entertainment as a keynote speaker.
The chairman of Galaxy Entertainment warned that, “given that demand for accommodation will continue to outstrip supply in the years ahead, we must also come together as an industry to protect Macau’s premium positioning – not competing on prices, nor [compromising on] quality customer experience.”
He added: “If we fail to properly address the question of accommodation supply, Macau’s competitiveness as a non-gaming destination – not only regionally, but globally – could diminish.”
Mr Lui noted that economic diversification was “critical” for the long-term sustainability of not only Macau’s gaming industry, but also the city’s economy as a whole.
“However, economic diversification is not a new concept. In fact, it was an important element of our previous concession: in the early 2000s, as we were planning our resorts, we had already identified the mass market as a new growth engine for the industry, driven by the emerging middle class in Asia,” the Galaxy Entertainment boss said.
The city’s six casino operators initially pledged to commit collectively MOP108.7 billion (US$13.5 billion) to non-gaming investment as a condition of their 10-year gaming concessions, which began in January 2023.
Subsequently, that amount increased by 20 percent after Macau’s market-wide casino gross gaming revenue surpassed a predetermined threshold of MOP180 billion in full-year 2023.
In his keynote speech, the Galaxy Entertainment chairman also emphasised the importance of improving Macau’s regional and international connectivity to attract a broader range of visitors to the city.
“There’s no doubt that diversification has been – and will continue to be – the path to sustainable growth for the Macau gaming industry. Equally, we feel that gaming operators around the region could take reference from what we have achieved,” he concluded.
https://www.ggrasia.com/macau-needs-more-hotel-rooms-to-support-non-gaming-diversification-of-casino-sector-francis-lui?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=macau-needs-more-hotel-rooms-to-support-non-gaming-diversification-of-casino-sector-francis-lui + https://asgam.com/2025/05/07/francis-lui-failure-to-address-macaus-hotel-room-shortage-could-diminish-global-tourism-competitiveness/?utm_source=IAGMM&utm_campaign=cf110bf46d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_05_21_11_42_COPY_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-8564025909-131421005
Comments
Post a Comment