Gaming operator Melco Resorts aims to attract more Korean visitors to Macau

Jennifer Lai, director of innovation and public relations at Melco Resorts, shared these insights during a media gathering with the Korean press in Seoul, the nation’s capital, on Wednesday.

“Korea is actually one of the top five international tourist markets for Macau, and now, the flights between the two [locations] have normalised to around four to five per day, so we expect the number [of Korean travellers] to grow even more,” she was quoted as saying by Korea JoongAng Daily.

According to another Korean media outlet Etoday, the gaming operator has restarted full-scale marketing campaigns in the nation in the post-Covid era to attract more visitors to Macau.

“Korean customers are mature, sophisticated, and appreciate artistic experiences,” Lai said. “We are developing various strategies tailored to the digital marketing era and are also preparing customised packages for the Korean market.”

In line with these initiatives, Melco Resorts anticipates more Korean visitors will visit its Macau resorts, including the City of Dreams Macau, Studio City Macau, and Altira Macau.

Recent government data shows that the tally of Korean visitors to Macau reached 341,497 in the first nine months of 2024, marking a substantial increase from over 110,000 Korean visitors during the same period in 2023.

Nonetheless, the most recent figures only reached about 56 percent of the pre-Covid level recorded in the first three quarters of 2019.

Korea has emerged as the second-largest international tourist source market for Macau this year, closely trailing behind the Philippines, according to the latest government data.

Overall, international visitors to Macau surged by 95.1 percent year-on-year to 1,677,550 in the first three quarters of 2024, representing a rebound to 70.7 percent of the 2019 level.

“Macau has changed a lot post-Covid-19,” Lai was quoted saying by Korean media outlets. “Tourists visiting Macau are shifting from gaming-centred to non-gaming experiences… They seek resorts where they can stay overnight, not just engage in day trips.”

Entertainment offerings set to debut at the Macau resorts in the upcoming months, as highlighted by Lai during the press gathering on Wednesday, include a new skateboard park at Studio City Macau, the skateboard event “International Festival of Extreme Sports (FISE): Battle of the Champions (BOTC) 2025” scheduled for next March, and the revival of the House of Dancing Water.

The House of Dancing Water, a longstanding resident show at City of Dreams Macau, has been on hiatus since June 2020 due to the adverse effects of the pandemic.

The anticipated comeback of this show, conceptualised by the late Italian theatre maestro Franco Dragone, was initially slated for this year but has been postponed to the following year.

“We will be adding some exciting changes early next year, including The House of Dancing Water show… [and] we will also continue to present art exhibitions,” Lai said.