The head of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, has shot down suggestions of a limit to the number of tourists entering Macao at any one time.
Speaking in a TDM interview, the MGTO chief said a quota would have an adverse effect on Macao, given the city’s heavy reliance on tourism. She also questioned how such a scheme could be implemented.
“If there is a limitation, then it means you have to choose between why this person can come or why that person cannot come,” she said.
Overtourism is an increasing problem for many cities around the world as they struggle to balance income from holidaymakers with quality of life for locals.
[See more: Are there too many tourists coming to Macao?]
Last month, Venice began charging tourists 5 euros (US$5.30) each to enter the city during peak periods. Amsterdam has banned the building of new hotels in order to limit tourist numbers. Mass protests against overtourism have meanwhile swept Spain’s Canary Islands.
During peak periods in Macao, crowd control measures have to be put in place around major attractions like the Ruins of St. Paul’s and Taipa Village in order to cope with the numbers. The overcrowding has led to complaints from residents of tourist districts.
Instead of limiting numbers of visitors, Senna Fernandes suggested that the city expand its infrastructure and tourism offerings as a way of luring holidaymakers out of tourist hotspots and into less crowded districts.
This year, the government aims to attract a total of 33 million visitors or nearly 5 million more than 2023.
