Macau, Taiwan Warn Residents Against Travel To HK

Macau has warned its people not to travel to Hong Kong due to the "serious" coronavirus situation here, although it says it has no plans to implement any restrictions on Hong Kong visitors for the time being.

The Macau authorities said around 60 percent of the 4,700 visitors to the gambling hub on Friday were from Hong Kong.

The government said it was continuing to evaluate the situation in Hong Kong, in terms of the number of virus cases and how the infection is spreading.

It said it does not rule out compulsory health checks on Hong Kong visitors.

Due to travel restrictions aimed at reducing the spread of Covid-19, Macau is currently the only place in the world where Hong Kong people can travel without ending up in quarantine, either when they arrive at their destination or when they return to Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Taipei has issued a Level 3 warning for the entire world – its highest alert level – advising Taiwanese people against all non-essential travel.

The island's Mainland Affairs Council said the warning covers Hong Kong and Macau mainly due to an increase in the number of imported Covid-19 cases in the two cities.

Hong Kong does not require arrivals from Taiwan to undergo quarantine, but Taiwan requires all visitors to the island to self-isolate for 14 days.

By Saturday evening, Hong Kong had 273 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus. Macau had recorded 17 and Taiwan 153.