Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a series of articles in which the Guam Daily Post takes an in-depth look at Guam’s struggling tourism industry.

Guam Visitors Bureau Chairman Carl Gutierrez “was surprised” when he received a letter of concern from Guam Economic Development Authority Administrator Melanie Mendiola regarding the state of the the island’s tourist economy.

In a letter dated Nov. 1, Mendiola relayed GEDA leadership’s concern about the economy after receiving “numerous” letters in response to an article by GEDA President David John. His letter also claimed that “comments” from GVB management downplaying the state of tourism troubled GEDA. Gutierrez suspected there was a reason Mendiola chose to relay his concerns through a letter.

“You are one of the brightest and most gifted members of this administration. Please accept my answer below. I was quite surprised to receive your letter. We could have met and discussed as two agencies of our administration, but I suspect there is more at stake here,” Gutierrez told Mendiola in the letter.

In the letter, Gutierrez discussed GVB’s efforts to ramp up marketing through the unique selling point that Guam is an “American community with a unique cultural heritage.”

Although this differentiates Guam globally, Gutierrez said local businesses are not living up to the hype created by GVB.

“Our marketing efforts are seriously undermined by the failure of local businesses in the tourism value chain to deliver the destination experience promised in our messaging, such as modern hotels, excellent restaurants, branded stores and tours quality options,” Gutierrez said.

He noted that GVB has “responded” to many negative remarks about “old and tired hotel facilities, poor quality of food, high restaurant prices relative to value and service, and retail facilities at the deplorable detail and restoration.”

“We are doing more than our part to improve Guam’s physical appearance, public parks, beaches, visitor safety and security, all of which are essential factors in our destination image, solar lights, beach cleaning and non-slip sidewalks, to name a few.

He acknowledged that some local businesses, particularly in the Pleasure Island area, are doing their part to modernize their appearance, but most businesses are not.

“Unfortunately, with few exceptions, most other tourism businesses in Tumon still have remnants of Typhoon Mawar. Others invite crime on private property due to insufficient lighting and inadequate security, risking serious crimes like the murder of a Korean tourist earlier this year,” Gutierrez said.

“Make no mistake, we are fighting to maintain the cultural integrity of Guam’s brand and not just spend money to attract visitors who will not have the amazing and authentic tour that will entice them to come back,” he added, emphasizing that “we need to fix our product and invest more to showcase a competitive brand identity.

Gutierrez told Mendiola that “it’s a shame that you seem to agree with the tourism sector business groups, whose public comments and the recovery plan being circulated and promoted reflect a blatant ignorance of what GVB has already done or planned to generate arrivals.

The Guam recovery plan he referenced was shared at the GVB board meeting in October, along with a report on the state of Guam tourism generated by a collective of tourism business executives private and industry professionals, which was cited by Governor Lou Leon Guerrero during the same meeting. The governor noted that Guam accounted for only 50% of pre-COVID tourist arrivals.

The plan offered recommendations to revive tourism on the island, including offering incentives to airlines.

“The initiatives that have recently appeared in the local news are projects that we at GVB have been working on for months, if not years. Attracting more airline seats to the island is a long process based on profitability and trusting relationships. Incentive programs for airlines already exist. With each new fiscal year, plans evolve to best adapt to the current situation,” Gutierrez said.

He stressed that GVB staff, who strive to “move Guam’s tourism industry forward,” do not deserve the recent negative criticism.

“These are all seasoned professionals who do not deserve the discredit brought upon them by some ill-informed and selfish companies who may have made poor investment decisions and expect GVB to bail them out. Despite their comments negatively affecting morale, my team continues to innovate, such as reaching out to new and existing airlines to increase Guam’s seat capacity,” Gutierrez said.

He said a meeting was planned with Donghai Airlines to potentially begin flights from Shenzhen and Beijing after authorization.

But this is just one of the many initiatives that GVB is preparing.

“Two weeks ago, under the leadership of Director Ho Eun, we unveiled our national incentive plans for airlines and travel agents in Korea. On November 10, we will leave for an air mission to Japan and Korea. We shared our Japan airline plans last month and we are already moving forward with promotions with United Airlines and Japan Airlines. Japan Airlines has already announced additional service to Guam. Also in Japan we will meet Japan Airlines, T’way and Jetstar. In Korea, we will meet Korean Airlines, Jeju Airlines, Jin Air and T’way Air,” Gutierrez said.

In his November 1 letter, Mendiola offered assistance to GVB in its efforts to revive the tourism economy. Gutierrez accepted his help and told him exactly how GEDA could help him.

In Tumon, there are dilapidated buildings, unmaintained vacant lots and poorly maintained hotel facilities that Gutierrez said could benefit from a “revived qualification certificate program,” and GEDA could help.

“GEDA could help by funding solutions to solve this problem and make Guam a better place to live, work and visit.” Guam should expand its economic base and GEDA should explore other opportunities on the island. Governor Lou Leon Guerrero emphasized that tourism is a very sensitive market,” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez also said GEDA could explore airline QCs for new or underserved routes.

“These tax breaks could go a long way in attracting new carriers to our island,” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez again expressed dismay upon receiving Mendiola’s letter, suggesting she was not well informed.

“I encourage you to read our detailed board reports. If you had done this before sending your unwarranted letter, I am sure you would have hesitated to do so. We will not give in to the selfish individuals who have directed GVB funding for decades while paying insufficient attention to improving our beautiful island destination,” Gutierrez said.