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ABSTRACT

SINCE 2002, FOLLOWING THE LIBERALIZATION OF MACAU’S GAMING LICENSES, THE REGION EXPERIENCED A DECADE OF DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH. THIS RAPID EXPANSION RESULTED IN A HEAVY RELIANCE ON THE GAMING INDUSTRY, WHICH PERSISTED UNTIL THE FIRST ECONOMIC SHOCK IN 2014, WHEN MACAU’S GDP DECLINED FOR 26 CONSECUTIVE MONTHS. IN RESPONSE, THE MACAU GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCED “THE FIVE-YEAR DEVELOPMENT PLAN OF THE MACAU SAR (2016-2020),” DESIGNATING CULTURAL TOURISM AS A MAJOR DEVELOPMENT POLICY. LEVERAGING ITS RICH HISTORICAL BLEND OF EASTERN AND WESTERN CULTURES, HERITAGE, ARCHITECTURE, AND FESTIVALS, MACAU BEGAN EXPLORING CULTURAL TOURISM AS A STRATEGIC MEANS TO DIVERSIFY ITS ECONOMY. IN THE “MODERATE ECONOMIC AND DIVERSIFICATION PLAN OF MACAU SAR (2024-2028),” MACAU EMPHASIZED THE “1+4 MODERATELY DIVERSIFIED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY” AND LAUNCHED THE “TOURISM +” INITIATIVE, INTEGRATING TOURISM INTO MORE COMPREHENSIVE EXPERIENCES. CULTURAL TOURISM HAS BEEN DEVELOPING SINCE 2016, FACING VARIOUS ECONOMIC AND HEALTH CHALLENGES, INCLUDING ECONOMIC SHOCKS AND COVID-19. NOW IS AN RIGHT TIME TO REVIEW THE ACHIEVEMENTS AND CURRENT STATUS OF CULTURAL TOURISM, ASSESS ITS CONTRIBUTION TO ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION, AND GUIDE FUTURE RESOURCE ALLOCATION AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING. THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS RESEARCH LIES IN ITS COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING BOTH THE DIRECT AND INDIRECT ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF CULTURAL TOURISM, AS WELL AS ITS ROLE IN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY. TO ACHIEVE ITS OBJECTIVES, THE RESEARCH EMPLOYS A MIXED-METHODS APPROACH. QUANTITATIVE CORRELATION ANALYSIS, USING OFFICIAL DATA FROM 2014 TO 2024, ASSESSES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CULTURAL TOURISM INDICATORS AND MACAU’S ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE. QUALITATIVE IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS WITH INDUSTRY EXPERTS FURTHER EXPLORE THE MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH CULTURAL TOURISM INFLUENCES ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION, SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT, AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. THE FINDINGS REVEAL THAT CULTURAL TOURISM HAS A SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE IMPACT ON MACAU’S NONGAMING SECTOR, SUPPORTING JOB CREATION, SKILL DEVELOPMENT, AND CROSS-INDUSTRY COLLABORATION. IT ATTRACTS A BROADER AND MORE DIVERSE TOURIST BASE, INCLUDING YOUNGER AND FAMILY GROUPS FROM MAINLAND CHINA AND INTERNATIONAL VISITORS WITH HIGHER SPENDING POWER. BY SEIZING THE OPPORTUNITIES BROUGHT BY THE “UNILATERAL VISA-FREE POLICY” FROM MAINLAND TO INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS, MACAU CAN DEVELOP UNIQUE CULTURAL EVENTS AND EXPAND THEIR SCALE ACROSS DIFFERENT EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES. AT THE SAME TIME, THESE EFFORTS CAN BE LEVERAGED TO DRIVE CULTURAL TOURISM WITHIN SPECIFIC COMMUNITY AREAS. TO ACHIEVE THIS, CROSS-DEPARTMENTAL PROJECT TEAMS ARE NEEDED FOR URBAN TOURISM PLANNING, AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES FOR ORGANIZING CULTURAL EVENTS SHOULD BE STREAMLINED TO SHIFT THE FOCUS FROM LARGE-SCALE EVENTS TO ENCOURAGING COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT. ULTIMATELY, THIS WILL HELP BUILD SUSTAINABLE RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN SOCIETY. IN CONCLUSION, THIS DISSERTATION DEMONSTRATES THAT CULTURAL TOURISM IS AN EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC TOOL FOR MACAU’S ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT. THE STUDY RECOMMENDS PRIORITIZING MECHANISMS THAT ENSURE STRONG COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS AND INVOLVEMENT. DEVELOPING UNIQUE CULTURAL EVENTS AND EXTENDING THEIR SCOPE CAN PROLONG VISITOR STAYS AND ENHANCE THE CITY’S IMAGE, WHILE ENRICHING THE VERTICAL CULTURAL INDUSTRY CHAIN CAN FURTHER IMPROVE THE TOURIST EXPERIENCE AND ENCOURAGE LONGER VISITS. ACHIEVING THESE GOALS IS A LONG-TERM SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN THAT REQUIRES COOPERATION AT MULTIPLE LEVELS. THESE INSIGHTS PROVIDE PRACTICAL GUIDANCE FOR POLICYMAKERS AND PRACTITIONERS SEEKING TO STRENGTHEN MACAU’S CULTURAL TOURISM SECTOR, DIVERSIFY THE ECONOMY, AND ENSURE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY.