Håfa Adai! The Guam Visitors Bureau’s laser focus in Japan is aggressive target penetration, higher yield per visitor and improved cost efficiencies.
In fact, last week I traveled to Tokyo with Tourism Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Jesse Anderson Lujan and Tourism Committee member Sen. Telo Taitague of the Guam Legislature as part of the GVB Japan delegation to the Nihonbashi business district of Chuo, Tokyo to help kick off the official reopening and relocation of GVB’s streamlined new Japan office. To save money and protect our Japan personnel and office visitors from contracting the novel coronavirus, the GVB office shut down our central Tokyo office in 2020 while our Japan staff and management continued to work remotely.
The physical presence of a Guam office in Japan is essential to our message of in-market commitment, especially now that travel restrictions are easing up and tour packages are now being developed and progressively promoted. Naturally, GVB is aggressively marketing the message that Guam is ready to welcome Japanese visitors.
And as the Japanese get back to traveling abroad, the timing is right to accelerate Tokyo operations at a scale designed to meet burgeoning demand. While the government of Japan gets COVID variants under control and outbound tourism continues to open up from airports throughout the country, GVB is wasting no time making our intentions known.
Naturally, that means following through on Destination Guam’s rock-solid commitment to this primary source market. Our longstanding tourism covenant with Japan was strong before the pandemic struck almost three years ago and remained unshakeable even through the worst of the coronavirus outbreak. In the waning days of COVID travel restrictions, we continue to engage with our Japan staff and management as well as marketing vendors, regional tourism executives, air carriers and government officials. We know that once outbound excursions rev up velocity again, our shared relationship maintenance efforts will be paid off by the planeload.
Taking care of business
We began our mission with a Shinto blessing of the GVB Nihonbashi office, followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony, photo opportunities and media interviews.
The following day, our joint delegation gathered at the Bayside Azur Hotel to host the Guam New Year Industry Mixer and share our upcoming programs with the Japan travel trade. The new #HereWeGuam video presentation kicked off the evening with an intriguing look at the future direction of Guam’s tourism, including a summary of FY22, marketing and promotional activities planned for the remainder of FY23, plus a long-term outlook that will gradually see Destination Guam USA replicated in the realm of virtual reality—full tilt in the online metaverse!
Vice Chairman Lujan opened the evening with a clear message to Japan’s travel industry stating, “my colleague Sen. Taitague and I joined GVB on this trip and this function to demonstrate that Guam is united in its recovery and is fully ready. We have our arms open wide to once again welcome Japanese visitors to our shores. Japanese tourists are a critical component of a successful Guam visitor industry, and one could even say the foundation of Guam’s visitor industry. Japanese investors in Guam’s tourism industry and Japanese travelers to Guam have been and will continue to be vital to a successful and vibrant Guam tourism industry.”
After a warm toast, or “kanpai,” the guests enjoyed a Japanese calligraphy performance by artist Koji Takano, who painted a compelling emotional message that reads “Senkyaku Banrai,” meaning “thousands and millions to come”.
Our Japan team welcomed guests that consisted of industry partners, media, and influencers with light entertainment, and we offered our greetings for the New Year.
Going forward
From the bureau’s new Tokyo office, the resident GVB team will help our Shintsu SP Marketing vendor continue the transition from traditional media to highly effective, low-cost social networking with the help of digital media influencers. Personalized firsthand experiences posted by Japan’s TikTokers, YouTubers, and other social media platform stars have proven so effective that Guam’s “most desired destination” ranking has shot up from 17th to 7th over the course of the last three months!
This is thanks in large part to GVB flinging the doors wide open to social media influencers last fall, with Island Fiesta Tours beginning in the southern villages of Humåtak and Yoña and extending north to Dededo in October, then culminating with the arrival of 100 influencers and a central fiesta in Agaña Heights in November.
Lawmakers support our recovery
I thank Republican Sens. Taitague and Lujan of the 37th Guam Legislature for accompanying GVB so they could get an up-close look at our in-country operations, meet our key partners on their home turf, and engage with the trade. Our senators’ presence at official events lent an air of stateliness and credibility and underscored the depth of Destination Guam’s commitment to revitalizing tourism for the mutual benefit of outbound Japanese travelers and the people of Guam who play host to every arrival.
GVB looks forward to the legislature’s support on the road to recovery as we win back the hundreds of thousands of Japanese visitors who normally choose Guam for vacation, relaxation and business. And I especially welcome an opportunity to take up where Sen. Lujan left off during his previous terms in the legislature in the early 2000s, when he made his mark as a champion of airline competition to help drive safety, cargo throughput expansion, and business and consumer price reductions.
JATA Tour
Japan Association of Travel Agents board members and support staff totaling 20 will visit Guam from Feb. 4-7. GVB will host our guests with an airport greeting, a meet-and-greet with Guam’s elected officials and a welcome cocktail event with travel trade representatives, plus an island tour rounded off with a farewell dinner. The board will be on island to conduct their next meeting, inspect the island, get a little golf in and pay Lt. Gov. Josh Tenorio a courtesy visit.
Former Gov. Carl T.C. Gutierrez is the president and CEO of Guam Visitors Bureau, Guam Permit Czar, and chairman of the Governor’s Economic Strategy Council. Send comments or questions to GVB at
communityrelations@visitguam.org.
By: Carl T.C. Gutierrez
Source: Pacific Daily News