Bridging the connectivity gap

14 Jun 2018 2048 | World Travel News

The 42km Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB) is promising to open the floodgates to new source markets and travel segments when it kicks off later this year, linking three of the most prosperous centres in the South China region.

A Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) spokesman said: “The new competitive advantage (HZMB) provides lies in its ability to offer visitors a new option for travelling to Macau from neighbouring mainland cities and Hong Kong.

HK-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (Photo from Government Information Bureau of Macau)

“This will be strongly bolstered in terms of connectivity with many international flights operating from the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), where the constraint of having a single mode of transportation to HKIA by sea would soon become liberated.”
The new bridge will present an additional option linking Hong Kong and Macau. “Some visitors find the existing ferry connection complicated so we’re hoping the bridge will offer greater convenience,” said Manuel Wu, managing director of Macau Explorer Cultural Travel.

Besides further integrating the three regions physically, the bridge is also expected to change visitor profiles, travel patterns and average length of stay in Macau and Zhuhai.
The Macao Tourism Industry Development Master Plan projects that by the year 2025 the average stays of visitors will be 2.3 days, compared with only 1.2 days in 2017.

Wu said: “I am sure it will stir up demand for lengthier visits here. The bridge may also help divert the traffic from China which currently jams up the existing cross-border gates.

“Also it may further intensify and promote the established multi-destination travel concept across the Pearl River Delta.”

He believes the bridge will also bring more FITs and day-tripper traffic, especially for longhaul travellers arriving at HKIA.

“In the past, they treated Hong Kong as the main destination while Macau was only a getaway escape. Hopefully, the fact that the Hong Kong side of the bridge is adjacent to HKIA will change this perception.”

Beyond improving access, the bridge will also be treated as an attraction in itself.
MGTO is looking into working with partner travel agencies and airlines to develop commemorative and themed tours incorporating the bridge as a novel component in their Macau and multi-destination tour packages.