Residents of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) have shown great enthusiasm in contributing to the boost of the market confidence by joining a tourist promotion campaign.

The Macao Foundation said Thursday that it has received 2,103 tourist groups or 68,500 people registered for the "Macao Half-Day Travel" tourist campaign, many more than the anticipated 1,500 groups.

The foundation has laid aside 7 million patacas (about 843,000 US dollars) to launch the campaign, under which local residents can get a 40-pataca (about 4.8 US dollar) per-capita rebate if they join the travel program.

The foundation recommended tourists to go on the travel route which threads 12 cultural relic sites in Macao including the A-Ma Temple, the Ruins of St. Paul Church and the Mandarin's House. These relics featuring a blending of oriental and Western styles have been nominated in a package for the World Cultural Heritage inscribed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

During the tour, travelers can take part in a series of games, enjoy photo exhibitions and art shows, which are all sponsored by the foundation.

The foundation expected the travel incentive measure to boost domestic consumption in addition to the revival of tourist market.

The foundation has planned a 50 million-pataca (6 million US dollars) special fund to facilitate the government's tourist promotion schemes, which have been aimed to wipe out the negative effect of SARS on Macao's inbound and outbound tourism.

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