Group photo of the GVB delegation, Philippine Airlines representatives and various travel agents during the GVB & Philippine Airlines’ Guam Product Update Seminar. ()
(Tumon, Guam) In an effort to expand its reach and further diversify Guam’s source markets for tourism, the Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) participated in ITB Asia, as well as two other travel trade events in Singapore from October 17 – 21, 2022 at the Marina Bay Sands Convention Center.
ITB Asia is considered the leading travel trade show in Asia and was hosted at the same time and location as the MICE Show Asia and Travel Tech Asia. The triple events covered key parts of the travel industry dealing with leisure, Meetings, Incentives, Conventions & Exhibitions (MICE), corporate business, and travel technology. Industry leaders shared insights on key trends and how destinations can stay competitive with this year’s theme, “Go Big & Go Forward: The Travel Industry on the Road to Recovery and Growth.”
B2B event generated 27,000 appointments
The ITB Asia business-to-business (B2B) event attracted over 80 National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) and hundreds of travel-related companies that generated more than 27,000 appointments over the course of three days. GVB secured over 100 appointments to introduce Guam to influential travel trade representatives looking for new leisure travel destinations. The GVB delegation also focused on selling group travel at the MICE Show Asia event and engaged with travel tech decision-makers and suppliers during the Travel Tech Asia event.
Partnership with Philippine Airlines
In addition to the three trade shows, GVB’s team of marketing managers met with Marie Jemma B. Saranillo, Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) Country Manager for Southeast Asia, to renew its joint partnership with the airline to promote Guam in Singapore. The partnership includes a travel trade familiarization tour to bring interested travel agents to the island in the coming months so they can understand how to sell competitive Guam packages. GVB and PAL also hosted a Guam Product Update Presentation with travel agent partners while in Singapore, which was sponsored by The Tsubaki Tower, Dusit Thani Guam Resort, Dusit Thani Beach Resort, T-Galleria by DFS and Fish Eye Marine Park.
“We are looking to expand Guam’s visitor profile and have looked into Singapore and Malaysia as viable sources. With Singapore listed under the U.S. Visa Waiver Program and Malaysia listed under the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, there is a tremendous opportunity to grow interest and arrivals from these markets,” said GVB President & CEO Carl T.C. Gutierrez.
