In another blow to business, Macau’s Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre has barred entry for flights arriving from overseas between 9 and 23 January in an attempt to suppress a surge in infections.
The city’s Health Bureau said it will prohibit “civil aircraft from carrying passengers from places outside China to Macau.”
Like neighbouring Hong Kong and mainland China, Macau has retained hefty travel restrictions. Non-resident visitors cannot enter the city, while all residents arriving from overseas are subject to a mandatory quarantine, regardless of whether or not they test positive for Covid.
Excepting mainland China and Hong Kong, this can range from 21 days to 35, depending on which country a resident is arriving from.
Hong Kong announced similar measures on 5 January. A two-week ban on inbound flights from Australia, Canada, France, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, the United Kingdom and the US was introduced. This will take effect from 8 January and run through 21 January.
Macau has thus far avoided any deaths and has only detected 79 cases in total, though it records asymptomatic cases separately. On 26 December, the city detected its first case of the Omicron variant, which was soon followed by a second on 29 December.
The former Portuguese colony is home to more than 650,000 people, who inhabit an approximate land area of just over 30 km2, making Macau one of the most densely populated regions on Earth.