(Hagatna, Guam) - The Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB), led by President and CEO Régine Biscoe Lee, delivered a comprehensive presentation at the Special Economic Services (SES) meeting hosted by the Guam Legislature today.  The update highlighted topics such as  destination support of local events, revised tourism forecasts, some current marketing efforts, and the Bureau’s aim for fiscal recovery and growth.  However, the main issue brought forth by GVB President Lee was the need for support in order to sustain new flights and seat capacity into Guam, which has grown from over 39,000 seats in June to 50,629 seats in July and 60,000 in August 2025 for Korea alone.

The Bureau shared both original and revised forecasts for visitor arrivals through FY2025 and FY2026, highlighting optimistic, moderate, and conservative scenarios for key markets including Japan, Korea, the U.S. mainland, the Philippines, and Taiwan. GVB emphasized that while the return of flights and increased airline seats are major wins for Guam, they are only part of the equation.

“Securing more flights was a critical first milestone, but it is only the beginning,” said GVB President and CEO Lee. “We started providing incentives to airlines in December and met face to face with them in April. Now we are finally seeing the gains, but these gains are not guaranteed. Without continued funding and strong support, we risk losing these seats altogether. Once we lose them, it will be much harder and more costly to rebuild this air capacity than to sustain it now.”

“This is a crucial moment for our island,” Lee continued. “If we want to maintain and grow the additional airline seats, we must fund these incentives and support efforts to fill the seats. Losing this momentum would mean falling short of our goals to restore and grow tourism. With the right investment, we can keep our economy moving forward and support the many local families and businesses that rely on tourism.”
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