Macau will this week host one of the region’s most important tourism-related gatherings, with the 13th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Tourism Ministerial Meeting taking place alongside the 67th APEC Tourism Working Group Meeting.
Running from 24 to 28 June, the meeting will bring together senior tourism representatives of the APEC member economies with the goal of developing closer communication and cooperation for the future development of the tourism industry in the Asia-Pacific region.
In comments to regional media last week, the Director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, said the meeting serves as an opportunity for Macau top showcase its extensive offerings including its hospitality and capability, local cuisine, creative industries and the integration of Chinese and Western cultures.
According to Chinese state-run media outlet Xinhua, Macau has been working closely with the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the APEC Secretariat in preparing for the meeting. This has included the training of staff and preparations for various sideline events.
Senna Fernandes added that the meeting will also offer an opportunity to highlight the development of the SAR since liberalization in 1999, specifically “the development opportunities that come with the very strong support from our country.
“This time, it can be said that this truly reflected both China’s overall national development and Macau’s significant progress under the ‘one country, two systems’ policy,” she said.
Xinhua noted that the meeting represents some of around 300 APEC-related meetings and events taking place across China this year, with China to also host the 33rd APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Shenzhen in November.
In comments reported by the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, Senna Fernandes also called for greater cooperation between the two SARs, suggesting that Macau and Hong Kong should work together on tourism development rather than viewing each other as regional tourism rivals.
“We should continue thinking about how to make better use of everyone’s resources and tell the Greater Bay Area story well,” she said.
Visitation to Macau has soared post-COVID, exceeding more than 40 million annual visitors for the first time in 2025 and on track to comfortably break that record again in 2026.
The Public Security Police Force also revealed recently that, as of midnight on 24 May, the cumulative volume of passenger clearances across all local checkpoints for the year had officially surpassed 100 million threshold – reaching the milestone a full 14 days earlier than last year.
