Since the Hengqin-Macao Tour Group policy was introduced on a trial basis in May 2024, the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin has seen 40, 830 outbound tour groups and received more than 204,400 group travelers as of June 30, 2026. Compared with the early stage of the policy, the numbers of tour groups and participants have increased more than ninefold and 14-fold, respectively.
Up to now, about 93,600 travelers have joined Hengqin-Macao tour groups this year, nearly matching the total for the whole of 2025 and marking a year-on-year increase of 168.7 percent.
Tourism services have continued to improve. The number of authorized Hengqin-Macao tour agencies has risen to 58 across 8 provincial-level regions in China and is expected to reach 61 by the end of the year.
Three new hotels opened in June, bringing Hengqin's total hotel room inventory to nearly 10,700. The average hotel occupancy rate reached 60.61 percent in the first half of 2026. During the same period, about 96,000 inbound foreign visitors entered China through Hengqin Port, up approximately 76.9 percent year on year.
The Cooperation Zone has further strengthened cooperation with Macao's convention and exhibition industry, integrating Macao's exhibition brands with Hengqin's venue resources. As of June 30, 11 joint events were held this year, twice as many as in the same period last year. The events covered green development, cultural tourism, trade and investment as well as academic exchanges. Their formats expanded beyond traditional exhibitions to include forums, business matchmaking and industry networking.
Hengqin is converting event attendance into consumer spending. During the second Hengqin Auto Lifestyle Carnival, held from July 3 to 5, auto sales reached nearly 75 million yuan in just three days, up 20.05 percent year on year, boosted by a combination of auto exhibitions and government consumer voucher incentives.
Reporter | Dai Bosi
Photos | Hengqin Online
