Exploration of Macau Residents Support for Event Development: Destination Image and Perceived Tourism Major Impact

Macau, a former Portuguese colony, was returned the territory of Macao to the People’s Republic of China  in 1999. It was one of the most prosperous ports in the Far East from the late of sixteenth Century to the early of seventeenth Century. Tourism, hospitality and gambling are main parts of economic structure and  revenues. In 2005, Macau was written into the Historic Centre of Macau on UNESCO’s World Heritage List  because of Macau’s rich history and diversity of cultures. This study explores the importance of residents' destination image and perception of tourism impacts in shaping their supporting for event development. TheSocial Exchange Model (SET) proposed residents’ perceptions of tourism impacts influence destination and  in turn their support for tourism development. This research aims to explore Macau local residents support  for event tourism development and to examine the various impacts from conducting event tourism development in Macau. A qualitative approach adopted with a sample of 30 respondents .Semi-structured  questions are asked through in-depth interviews, and recommendations are made based on the results to  provide insights for industry practitioners. Result indicated resident support the event base on reduced and  considered environmental impact for future suggestion. Implication for destination marketer need to make  use of innovative marketing strategies such us adopted technology via social media platform as result create  positive word of the mouth.

 Keywords: Macau residents, event tourism, destination image, tourism impact.