Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) announces the launch of four new walking tour routes under the theme “Step Out, Experience Macau's Communities”, available starting from tomorrow (16 February). Together with the four existing routes which have been redesigned, a total of eight walking tour routes are presented for visitors’ choice. Encouraging visitors to explore different neighborhoods, the routes are expected to balance visitor trends around Macau and foster community tourism.

Suggest parish-oriented routes
Taking the poll result and community development into consideration, MGTO redesigned and proposed eight parish-oriented walking tour routes which cover different parishes on Macau Peninsula, Taipa and Coloane. The parishes include Cathedral Parish, St. Lazarus Parish, St. Lawrence Parish, Our Lady of Fatima Parish and St. Anthony Parish on Macau Peninsula as well as Our Lady of Carmel Parish on Taipa and St. Francis Xavier Parish on Coloane.

The eight suggested routes are as follow: Footsteps into the Historic Centre; An Experiment of Creativity; Crossroads of China and Portugal; A Legacy of Arts and Culture; Enchanting Stories of Our Lady of Fatima Parish; The Marriage of East and West in St. Anthony’s Parish; Bygone Days of Taipa Village and Nostalgia in Coloane.

Promotion for the routes
A themed guidebook (in Traditional and Simplified Chinese language) about “Step Out, Experience Macau's Communities” walking tour routes will be made available starting from tomorrow (16 February). The guidebook presents the eight routes and relevant information including sightseeing attractions, dining options, transportation, shopping, performance activities and public facilities. Visitors can obtain the printed guidebook for free from local hotels or MGTO’s Tourist Information counters while the electronic version is available for download on MGTO’s website: http://www.macautourism.gov.mo. They can also check out the routes and relevant information on the website. In addition, there is a mobile App (Android & iOS versions to be launched soon) for “Step Out, Experience Macau's Communities” walking tour routes. In terms of promotion, the Office is advertising the routes on WeChat, light-box advertisements and through short TV promotional videos, among others.

MGTO has arranged different performances at certain sightseeing points along the tour routes during weekend, further enhancing livelihood to their specific neighborhoods. Moreover, the Office joins hands with local organizations to present community tourism activities and boost the charm of the communities. With the variety of activities offered, visitors can enjoy a more fantastic stroll along these routes and explore different local quarters for hidden gems and a glimpse of the city’s aroma.

Listen to opinions and keep improving
Back on 27 September 2013, MGTO launched the first four walking tour routes under the theme “Step Out, Experience Macau's Communities” with the purpose to highlight the attractions in different local districts for visitors to explore. Since the project was launched, different social sectors have offered many valuable opinions concerning community tourism development. MGTO therefore also carried out a poll to collect public opinions regarding the new walking tour routes last year. Based on an analysis and summary of these suggestions collected from different sectors, the Office has optimized the existing routes together with new routes designed. As a result, a total of eight walking tour routes are now launched based on the idea of parish.
 
As an important subproject in the “Community Tourism Development Plan”, the “Step Out, Experience Macau's Communities” walking tour route project aims to promote community tourism, industry development in different neighborhoods as well as moderate diversification of economic development. In the future, MGTO will make continuous efforts to optimize the tourism signage system and local tourism environment through inter-departmental work force for the welfare of both locals and visitors.