Macao University of Tourism organises 2026 High-Level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development Spotlighting on Wellness Tourism and the Silver Economy

MACAU, April 10 - The 2026 High-Level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development, jointly organised by the Macao University of Tourism and the China Tourism Academy (Data Center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism), was held with great success today (10 April) at the 14th Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo.  Centred on the theme “Vitalising Silver Economy with Wellness Tourism”, the forum brought together experts from government, industry, academia, and research institutions to explore pathways for the high-quality development of the tourism sector in the Greater Bay Area.

Several distinguished speakers delivered insightful keynote addresses at the forum. Professor Liu Xiangyan, Director of the International Research Institute of the China Tourism Academy, noted that the silver tourism market is undergoing a shift from quantitative growth to qualitative transformation.  She observed that older travellers naturally gravitate toward wellness tourism and long-stay travel.  With its abundant wellness resources, strong economic fundamentals, and open policy environment, the Greater Bay Area is well positioned and fully capable of taking a national lead in the development of wellness tourism and the silver economy.

From the perspective of public health and health management, Professor Wang Peiyu, the former Deputy Dean of the School of Public Health at Peking University and Professor of Guangzhou College of Commerce, analysed how to elevate the quality and depth of wellness tourism offerings.  He emphasised that genuine wellness tourism should go beyond being “a single trip” and instead encompass the entire process of health data collection, risk assessment, and health intervention, thereby enabling safer and more sustainable healthy lifestyles for older adults.

Speaking from the front lines of industry practice, Ms. Tracy Liang, Chief Financial Officer of Serensia Woods, a wellness resort in Hengqin, shared her views on the Greater Bay Area’s strong potential and international reach.  She noted that the wellness market is currently exhibiting new trends, including younger participation, more family-based travel, and increasingly blurred boundaries between medical services and wellness tourism.  At the same time, she highlighted key challenges such as product similarity, insufficient supply of high-end services, and a shortage of professional talent, calling for cross-sector collaboration to break through these bottlenecks.

The latter half of the forum featured a lively roundtable discussion, with Mr. Zhai Ming, Deputy Director of the Zhuhai Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports; Ms. Cai Tao, Vice President and Secretary General of the Guangdong Tourism Association; and Dr. Jenny Guan, Associate Professor from the Macao University of Tourism, joining the three keynote speakers.  The panel engaged in in-depth exchanges on a range of core issues, including enhancing cross-border travel convenience for visitors from Hong Kong, Macao, and international markets; leveraging Zhuhai’s intangible cultural heritage and public spaces to enrich wellness tourism experiences; strengthening the role of industry associations in setting service standards; and how enterprises can balance heavy asset investment with long-term returns to establish viable and sustainable business models for wellness tourism.

Driven by the release of China’s first national policy document on the silver economy, the successful hosting of this forum not only deepened stakeholders’ understanding of the diverse needs of older adults, but also provided robust intellectual support and practical guidance for integrating healthcare and cultural tourism resources across the Greater Bay Area, with the aim of building a world-class wellness tourism destination.