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(Seoul, South Korea) The Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) was one of 43 different countries that participated in the 38th Seoul International Travel Fair held at COEX from May 4 to 7. Approximately 55,000 people attended the fair during the 4-day period, enjoying a variety of attractions at the Guam pavilion, including cultural performances by local CHamoru group Guma’ Taotao Tåno’, photo opportunities with Kiko and Kika the Guam Ko’ko’ bird mascots, and interactive social media events.
The Guam pavilion also had a reservation feature that allowed visitors to purchase Guam travel products and enter to win round-trip tickets to Guam through a stamp program. In total, 133 Guam packages were sold at the travel fair.
The Guam delegation was joined by the following GVB members — Baldyga Group, Crowne Plaza Resort Guam, Core Tech (Bayview Hotel Guam, Dusit Beach Resort Guam, Dusit Thani Resort Guam), Guam Travel & Tourism Association (Fish Eye Marine Park, Guam Ocean Park, Hertz Rent A Car, Guam Plaza Resort, Guam Premier Outlet, Valley of the Latte), Hoshino Resort Risonare Guam, PHR (Hilton Guam Resort & Spa, Hotel Nikko Guam, The Tsubaki Tower, Righa Royal Laguna Guam Resort), and Skydive Guam.
“Guam participates in the fair every year to engage directly with consumers in Korea and to show that we are fully prepared with our Guam partners for a rapid recovery of the Korea market. As overseas travel gradually increases, I hope that Koreans will choose to visit Guam to experience the warmth of the CHamoru people and the charm of our island,” said GVB Director of Global Marketing Nadine Leon Guerrero.
Among the 284 companies, organizations and DMOs at the Seoul fair, GVB was able to win the Best Parade Award and Best Booth Contents Award for Guam.
GVB forges new partnership with Jeju
As part of the South Korea mission, GVB signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Jeju Tourism Organization to pave the way for a more sustainable tourism industry in the South Korea market.
Jeju Tourism Organization is a government-invested corporation that was established in 2008 to promote Jeju Island as a competitive destination in both domestic and global tourism markets. The signing of the MOU took place at Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas in Korea on Thursday, May 4. The GVB delegation was led by Korea Marketing Committee Chairman Ho Sang Eun and members of Jeju Tourism Organization were led by President & CEO Eun Sook Koh.
Under this MOU, both organizations plan to foster strategic partnerships and facilitate cooperative mechanisms for the promotion of Guam and Jeju. Future marketing projects will focus on ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) campaigns as well as content production for sustainable tourism that highlights the safety of both destinations.
“As we continue with our tourism recovery efforts, GVB’s mission in South Korea is to expand our source markets and to develop our resources,” said GVB Korea Marketing Committee Chairman Eun, Ho Sang. “In this regard, we are very excited to build the bridge with Jeju Tourism Organization, which will lead us to active engagement in tourism, culture, and business. We look forward to solidifying our partnership with Jeju and seeking mutual prosperity by working together.”
Main photo caption:
Top row (L-R): Myounghoon Lim, GVB Korea Travel Trade Manager; Michael Arroyo, GVB Web & IT Coordinator Assistant; Dana Q.C. Kim, Guma’ Taotao Tåno' cultural performer; Soljin Park, GVB Korea Assistant Manager of Sales & Marketing; Saehyun Park, GVB Korea Sales & Marketing Coordinator; Myung Hie Soun, Nextpaper Media & Communications CEO; Dee Hernandez, GVB Director of Destination Development; Nicole B. Benavente, GVB Marketing Manager- Korea; Margaret Sablan, GVB Marketing Manager- Korea; Jihoon Park, GVB Korea Country Manager; and Vincent San Nicolas, Guma’ Taotao Tåno' cultural performer. Bottom row (L-R): JD Cruz Kim; Ashley Nicole Johnson; Vivian Amon; and Jayvier Quenga, all Guma’ Taotao Tåno' cultural performers.
