Claire Saunders
General manager,
EventClicks Group
Macau is a phenomenon unto itself. On the one hand you have this fascinating, glittering
destination, purporting to be the place for MICE groups to visit, which has sprung out
of a sleepy town. On the other you have a destination which has seemingly just appeared, rather than having evolved, with all the inevitable hiccups this brings.
As an event agency we have experienced both sides, hosting groups who can’t fail to
be impressed by the sheer size and ambition of some of the new casinos and resorts but
who are also frustrated by the difficulties faced by corporate groups getting to and from
Macau, not to mention the service levels as hotels struggle to maintain a complete and
satisfied work force.
There is no doubting the huge interest in Macau at present from the corporate MICE
market however the jury is still out as to whether or not that interest will endure.
Michael Dreyer
Managing director,
Koelnmesse
Koelnmesse organised Wine & Gourmet Asia 2007, which was held last November at
the Venetian in Macau. We had 8,000 trade visitors which we found is quite good for a
first-time event. We received great support from both the Macau Government Tourist
Organisation (MGTO) and the Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM)
as well as from major players of the Macau hospitality community.
The venue management and operations team at the Venetian proved to be very professional and helpful. Given that the entire complex was opened less than three months earlier, it must have been quite a challenge to coordinate the requirements of a visiting master chef like Jeremy Leung.
The only downside to mention is that Venetian accepted to have two food and hospitality events in their venue within the same month. This does not entirely comply with the participation regulations the Venetian themselves imposed. A number of our customers commented negatively about having to decide between these two events.
Ferry and flight capacities might become a major bottleneck if capacities are not increased in the near future. Immigration facilities are a problem already now and need urgent expansion. The queues are very long during peak hours.
Accommodation is not a problem for the time being and probably will not be soon, given the number of new hotels that have gone online recently. In all, we are happy with our activities in Macau and the situation we encountered. We hope that the hiccups mentioned can be improved soon.
Paul Woodward
Principal, Business Strategies Group and
Asia/Pacific Regional Manager of UFI
The development of the Venetian represents one of the most exciting opportunities in
recent years. From the outset there was little doubt that the building would be a great
success. What was more in doubt was just what types of business events would thrive
there and how the rest of Macau’s infrastructure would cope with the pressures.
It is clear that corporate meetings at the Venetian are already a huge success. Every time I’m in the building, one of the major financial institutions or pharmaceuticals companies has an event underway.
Conventions activity takes longer to build but Macau already includes a number of interesting events on the calendar for 2008.
Exhibitions in Macau so far are more of a mixed bag. The first major event at the Venetian, the Macao International Trade and Investment Fair (MIF) was able to expand hugely from its former location at the Macau Tower and clearly benefited from that.
Some events have struggled to attract the visitors they need, particularly the shows modelled on Hong Kong fairs. CMP Asia has, though, reported itself pleased with the performance of its first Macau jewellery fair in mid-January and it does appear that specialised events attracting relatively smaller numbers of high-end visitors work well there.
