January 23, 13

NEWS / Guam opens representative office in Russia

The US territory of Guam has opened its first representative office in the far-eastern Russian city of Vladivostok. The territory experienced a surge in the number of tourists from Russia last year following the implementation of a visa-waiver program.

The Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) also appointed CONNECTWORLDWIDE (CWW), a global representation company with over 35 offices around the globe, as its public relations and marketing representative in Russia. CWW will be tasked with promoting Guam’s image as an easily accessible and visa-free vacation destination for Russians, especially those living on the Pacific coast in the east, Travel Daily News Asia reports.

Guam experienced a staggering rise in the number of Russian tourists coming to enjoy its very un-Russian weather. The data available for November 2012 shows that 3,469 Russians visited Guam – up from just 485 over the same period last year, making for an astonishing rise of 615 percent. The main reason why Guam suddenly became a dream destination for so many Russians is the introduction of a visa-waiver program in January 2012. It is currently the only US territory to allow Russians to enter without a visa.

The organized, unincorporated territory of Guam was first populated by the Chamorros some 4,000 years ago. It was discovered by Ferdinand Magellan, who made a stop on the island during his historic naval expedition in 1521. Spain set up a colony on Guam in the 17th Century, but was forced to cede the island to the United States after losing the Spanish-American War of 1898.

Since then, the island has been under US control, although Japan occupied it for more than two years during World War II. Its main source of revenue is tourism, with the majority of visitors coming in from Japan. The steps that the administration has recently undertaken appear to indicate their desire to diversify their corps of tourists.

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