Inland Tourists Rush to Macao in May

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 ◆ Inland Tourists Rush to Macao in May

An average of 8,600 tourists from China's inland visited Macao each day during a week-long holiday starting May 1, the International Labor Day, a 5 percent rise over the daily average for 2001, according to figures from the Macao Government Tourist Office.

Hotels recorded a rarely-seen high occupancy rate -- 87.5 percent -- on average in the special administrative region (SAR) from May 1 to 7, soaring from 63.8 percent for the first quarter and 62.4 percent for last year. Room charges rose as much as 32 percent from 2001's average.

The tourist office moved to crack down on illegal activities in the market over the "golden tour week", punishing two travel agencies that forced tourists to go shopping at particular sites and seven travel services that provided tour guides with no licenses.

Inlanders, with more money in their pockets and ready to travel overseas, made up roughly 30 percent of the total tourist arrivals of Macao SAR.

In the first quarter, the SAR received 2.67 million tourists in total, a 9 percent jump from a year ago; visitors in tour groups surged 60 percent on the year to 517,900, statistics show.