Macau has officially set a new tourism record for the first quarter of 2026, welcoming over 11.2 million visitors between January and March. According to data released by the Statistics and Census Service, this figure represents a significant 13.7 percent increase compared to the 9.86 million visitors recorded during the same period last year, marking a new milestone for the region.
This performance stands as the highest visitor volume for the first three months of any year in the territory’s history, officially surpassing the previous pre-pandemic record of 10.4 million set in 2019. To put the growth into perspective, the region received approximately 7.5 million visitors in 2016 and just 5.2 million in 2006, highlighting a dramatic long-term upward trend in visitation.
The breakdown of visitors shows strong growth across key categories, with excursionists totaling approximately seven million, a surge of 20.3 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile, the number of traditional tourists reached roughly 4.2 million, marking a steady 4.1 percent increase, reflecting the continued and diversified appeal of Macau as a major travel and entertainment destination.
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Mainland China remains the primary source of visitors, contributing 8.4 million arrivals, which represents a 16.4 percent increase compared to the previous year. Significant gains were also observed from Taiwan, with a 29.1 percent jump in visitors, while arrivals from Hong Kong grew by 1.8 percent, and international visitor numbers climbed 10.7 percent to reach over 755,000.
This robust start to 2026 underscores the resilience of Macau’s tourism sector as it continues to expand its reach beyond traditional markets. The sustained growth across multiple visitor demographics suggests that the region’s ongoing strategy to diversify its tourism appeal is effectively drawing both regional neighbors and an increasing number of global travelers.
