Riot police in standoff with angry Macau visitors
MACAU – Riot police in China’s enclave of Macau have been called in to calm mainland tourists angry they were being shown too many shops and not enough sites.
BBC Online reported that more than 20 police armed with riot shields and batons were involved in a five-hour standoff with 100 tourists from Hubei province.
The last straw came at a windy beach where the tourists were not allowed to retrieve warm clothing from coaches.
From Asia to Australia, conflict between unscrupulous tour operators, tour guides and their guests has at its heart the proliferation of “zero commission” tours in which an inbound tour operator makes his or her money by preying on unwary tourists – often Chinese on a first overseas trip.
The operator, in the absence of commission, makes a living from kickbacks from duty free shops, or by enticing tourists to pay for free events and by boarding them in sub-standard accommodation.
In one recent instance, a tour guide at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport was caught in the act of cheating his Chinese customers by using fraudulent Tourism Authority of Thailand documents listing obscene girlie shows as non-optional tours.
Other extreme examples have included tour operators in Australia asking Asian tourists to pay to walk on Sydney’s Bondi beach
The gambling hotspot of Macau has become a key destination for mainland tourists.
The Chinese mainland tourists had complained to their guides that they wanted to see more of the former Portuguese colony’s historic sites.
They said they were being pressured into buying goods.
A scuffle broke out at the beach when the tourists were not allowed to re-board their four locked coaches to get some warmer clothing.
Police tried to push back the angry tourists with batons and detained at least four.
“Some tourists refused to let some of our colleagues go and attempted to use violence,” one police officer told the South China Morning Post.
Macau tourism officials said the incident was a “one-off situation”.
Tourist figures show that some 22 million people visited Macau last year, most from the mainland.
-by Ian Jarrett
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season