China's Macao Special Administrative Region saw a 2.5 percent decrease in April in the number of visitor arrivals in package tours over the same period of last year, according to official statistics issued on Thursday.

The figures from the Statistics and Census Service showed that in April 2005, visitor arrivals in package tours totaled 231,739.

The number of visitors from the Chinese mainland dropped 14.1 percent year-on-year at 180,995, from Taiwan surged 136.3 percent to 28,722 and from Hong Kong decreased 4.4 percent to 6,378.

Meanwhile, the number of Macao residents traveling in package tours totaled 19,372 in April 2005, a year-on-year increase of 49.7 percent. 

(Xinhua News Agency June 17, 2005)