July visitor arrivals top previous year

“Tourism continues to thrive, providing jobs to the people of Guam as part of a growing economy. To maintain these record breaking numbers, we must continue to reinvest in our island to ensure we have a world class destination for our visitors and a beautiful place that all of our residents can be proud to call home.”

— Governor Eddie Baza Calvo

 

Third best July in tourism history

Guam’s visitor arrivals for July 2016 reached 122,996, a 6.9% increase over the previous year. It is the third top July in the history of tourism.

Daily arrival increases were noted in the days leading up to GVB signature events such as the Guam BBQ Block Party and Guam Summer Beach Fest.

"Guam welcomed previous island residents and visitors who came to celebrate Liberation Month as well as along with GVB’s signature events. It is great to enjoy another month of records being broken in tourism,” said Lt. Governor Ray Tenorio. “On behalf of Governor Calvo and our administration, I sincerely thank our hard working men and women in this growing industry.”

As Guam’s second best visitor market, Korea arrivals for the month of July also enjoyed a 38.1% increase over the previous year, with arrivals from the Philippines recording a 94.5% boost when compared to 2015.

“We are proud of the achievements made in 2016, but there’s still so much more to accomplish for the remainder of the year,” said GVB President and CEO Nathan Denight. “The more the island community understands how our way of life is supported by tourism dollars, the more we can do to sustain positive growth and a healthy economic environment.”

Summary of arrivals

Guam welcomed 122,996 visitors in July 2016, which is a 6.9% increase when compared to 2015. Total Fiscal Year-to-Date arrivals are 10.5% higher than the previous year, while total Calendar Year-to-Date arrivals have increased by 10.2%.

Japan arrivals have declined by 7.5%, while Korea arrivals increased by 38.1%. Events like the Guam Summer Beach Fest and Guam Ko’ko’ Road Races are anticipated to help boost arrivals further, but GVB continues to work with travel agents and travel trade professionals to help improve Japanese visitor arrivals.

Meanwhile, Guam’s other visitor markets demonstrated continued growth and diversification. Hong Kong arrivals increased by 6.8%, while Palau arrivals saw a boost of 8.2%. Additionally, increased arrivals included the U.S. mainland by 13.4%, CNMI by 36.1%, Vietnam by 150%, Canada by 10.1% and Europe by 28.8%.

Media Contact: JOSH TYQUIENGCO - Public Information Officer