The first cruiseferry linking Hong Kong and Macau in ~ 3 years left Hong Kong Island’s Sheung Wan terminal at 7:30 am on Sunday, January 8th, to arrive ~1 hour later at the Taipa Ferry Terminal carrying 130+ passengers.
Visitors arriving on the ship with a carrying capacity of 400 travelers were excited to return to Macau, as it had been 3 years since they last visited the port city.
Ferry services had been suspended since early February 2020, at the onset of the COVID crisis.
On December 30th, ferry transfer service between SkyPier, Hong Kong International Airport, and Macau resumed serving sea-to-air/air-to-sea passengers.
Some said they would go straight to a casino, while others would be seeing friends/relatives. Among those who arrived in Macau were those who missed the distinctive cuisine of the city.
According to the Marine and Water Bureau, ~1500 ferry tickets were booked in advance for the first day of the easing of restrictions. Authorities no longer require proof of a negative COVID test to enter the city for those arriving from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and mainland China.
Ferry operator TurboJET is offering 16 day-time sailings, with the earliest at 7:30 am from Sheung Wan to Taipa, and the last at 5 pm from Taipa to Sheung Wan.
The operator, Cotai Water Jet, is providing 6 sailings, the first leaving Hong Kong at 9 am and the last from Taipa to Sheung Wan departing at 5:30 pm.