Campaign to Lure Indonesians to Macau Launches Despite Hong Kong Protests


Skift Take

Macau wants to diversify its China-heavy arrivals. Indonesia is a good bet, as many Indonesians already visit Hong Kong. But the timing of the campaign isn't good.
A campaign to drive more Indonesian visitors to Macau has launched despite the  protests in Hong Kong, the gateway for Indonesians to Macau. WebBeds, together with the Macau Government Tourist Office and several prominent Macau hotels including MGM Cotai and Hotel Lisboa, have gone ahead to launch the campaign, which encourages travel agents in Indonesia to book room nights in the enclave by offering incentives such as a tripling of WebBed reward points and special room rates from August 1 to December 31. But Daryl Lee, CEO Asia-Pacific of WebBeds, denies that the campaign is a means to increase bookings to Hong Kong. Indonesia is Hong Kong’s seventh largest short haul market (excluding mainland China and Macau), contributing 267,712 arrivals in the first half of this year, a 3.7 percent increase over the same period last year, according to Hong Kong Immigration fi