The Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) visited Manila from June 22-27, 2022 to promote and strengthen Guam’s tourism industry. Under the direction of GVB president & CEO and former governor Carl T.C. Gutierrez, GVB was accompanied by Guam government officials to attend a series of events in Manila in pursuit of strategic tourism-development goals.
The Guam delegation initially participated in the 29th Philippine Travel Agencies Association TravelTour Expo, held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. GVB had participated in the expo for over 15 years before the onset of the pandemic and was glad to rejoin what is known as one of the largest travel fairs in the country.
Aside from playing an active role in the PTAA TravelTour Expo, GVB conducted meetings with Philippine Airlines and United Airlines, both of which operate direct flights from Manila to Guam. The parties discussed adding air connections and suggested to PAL the possibility of a new route from Cebu.
GVB also arranged networking luncheons at Century Park Hotel in Manila and The Atrium at Enderun Colleges in Taguig City. These events were attended by mayoral delegations from Guam and the Philippines, national and local travel associations, and the Honorable Governor of Negros Occidental, Eugenio Lacson.
The occasion established a new sister city relationship between the village of Inalåhan and the Municipality of Dingalan, Aurora. Indeed, the visit presented an opportunity to encourage expansion of the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program at the discretion of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security while promoting the post-COVID restoration of Guam’s strategic partnership with the Philippines.
According to Gutierrez, Guam’s mission and follow-up communication are intended to help reunite the two destinations’ people by reviving the proposal of a visa waiver to Guam (and even the CNMI) for Filipinos. “Together with the Philippine mayors, we have decided that we’re building an organization from the ground up to newly elected President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. to push this win-win message through and to encourage the U.S. government to open Guam to nonimmigrant Filipinos wishing to visit without the burden of having to apply for and await visa approvals,” Gutierrez said.
“Through thick and thin, my teams and I have been working diligently to improve the labor-recruitment and work visa application process while smoothing the way toward visa waivers for business and liesure travelers from the Philippines in pursuit of Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero’s vision since the day we stepped into office in 2019, and we don’t intend to stop now!” Gutierrez said.
“We’ve come this far to rekindle and rejuvenate Guam-Philippine relations, because for the past two and a half years, the pandemic and other world events have interfered with concerted action toward adding the Philippines to the list of nations approved for inclusion in the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program,” said Angel Sablan, Executive Director of the Mayors’ Council of Guam.
“Guam wants to broaden the groundwork we’ve already laid with the relevant Philippine departments and agencies and expand our pool of relationships within the freshly installed Marcos administration,” Sablan said.
Administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security with the advice and consent of the U.S. Secretary of State, the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program allows passport holders from twelve (12) nations to enter the U.S. Territory of Guam and the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands without a visa. Presently, the list of approved nations includes Australia, Brunei, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.
Philippine mayoral delegates who attended the luncheon included Hon. Alfredo Dacumos, Jr. of Sablan, Benguet; Hon. Armando Lauro of Tublay, Benguet; Hon. Clarita Sal-ongan of Tuba, Benguet; Hon. Jerome Tudlong of Bontoc, Mountain Province; Hon. Emi Calixto of Pasay City; Hon. Vincent Soriano of Pakil, Laguna; Hon. Renato Gustilo of San Carlos City, Negros Occidental; and Hon. Nicholas Yulo of Bago City, Negros Occidental.