20230126 MGM Cotai in Macau

Macao's gambling industry, a key pillar of its economy, has taken a beating from COVID and a crackdown on VIP bettors. © Reuters

Macao gambles on diversification after crackdown on high rollers

VIP rooms out, vanilla tourism in as city seeks to steer economy in new direction

MACAO -- Chinese tourists are once again streaming into the gambling enclave of Macao, breathing life back into the centuries-old neighborhoods that lay quiet during three years of COVID restrictions. Taxis are now nearly impossible to flag and restaurant reservations are a must.

Inside the glitzy casinos such as the Venetian and Casino Lisboa, players crowd around the dozens of baccarat tables that sat empty throughout the pandemic.

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