MACAO — A robust tourism recovery was experienced by Macao during the just-concluded May Day holiday in the mainland as it received around 300 travel groups and nearly 500,000 visitors.

The Macao Government Tourism Office said a total of around 493,000 visitors entered the special administrative region during the five-day holiday, including 376,000 from the mainland and 89,000 from Hong Kong.

The number of visitors rose more than 262 percent from last year's May Day holiday and recovered to about 62 percent of the level in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, the office said.

The average hotel occupancy rate during the holiday reached 85 percent, up 26.5 percentage points from the same period last year. The hotel occupancy rate on Sunday, the day before May 1, shot up to 93.2 percent, a new record high this year.

Not only were famous tourist spots such as the landmark Ruins of St. Paul's and A-Ma Temple packed with tourists, but niche tourism destinations and streets also welcomed visitors, injecting vigor into local economy, officials said.

The Macao Grand Prix Museum, a popular attraction for children, received nearly 3,000 visitors during the holiday, an increase of 86 percent from a year ago.

An employee at a store selling local specialties told Xinhua News Agency that they had been working overtime every day during the holiday. "However, the wages tripled and we have something to look forward to in the future," he said.

Chan Ka Leong, director general of the General Union of Neighborhood Associations of Macao, said the number of visitors during the holiday exceeded general expectations, voicing confidence that Macao's tourism sector can help boost other sectors to generate more income.

Macao was fully prepared for the holiday tourist surge, officials said. Starting on May 1, two of the major land ports linking the SAR with neighboring Zhuhai in the mainland lifted the ban on multiple entries and exits for travelers in a single day.

The office also rolled out a series of events for this month, including the month-long 33rd Macao Arts Festival and a sports carnival on the beach. Authorities from several government departments carried out joint patrols during the holiday to curb illegal business operations.

Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of the SAR government tourism office, said officials will learn from the experience of this holiday to be better prepared for the summer holiday, a usual travel peak period for students, and the National Day holiday in October.

Ng Iong Wai, president of the Macao Tour Guide Promotion Association, said Macao should continue tapping its cultural potential to help tourists experience its charm.

Tourism recovery is bound to boost related industries and aid Macao's appropriate economic diversification, according to Li Xi, executive associate dean of the Faculty of International Tourism and Management of the City University of Macau.