Fish Eye Marine Park General Manager Akihiro Tani and Acting Governor Josh Tenorio were optimistic about Guam’s tourism recovery, while noting that there is still much work to be done to meet the increased visitor numbers in the coming months, including helping with tourism Associated businesses reopened, hired and trained staff to improve customer service, and cleaned parks and opened public restrooms.
Once Japanese airlines resume flights in the spring and the Japanese government downgrades COVID-19’s classification to common flu by May 8, Guam’s pandemic-hit tourism industry will see a higher level of recovery — but unique benefits to enjoy Attractions will be reduced, according to some businesses.
“Japan Airlines is the flag (carrier) of Japan, and when they started flying, it sent a strong message to the Japanese people,” said Akihiro Tani, general manager of Fisheye Marine Park.
Fisheye Marine Park general manager Akihiro Tani shared the challenges facing this unique tourist attraction and hopes that Guam will be able to meet the needs of tourists, including the expected return of more Japanese tourists in the coming months.
But when tourists return in droves, they may not be able to see and experience some of the sights and activities that were previously available, including Cocos Island, submarines, helmet diving and other sea sports, just to name a few, Tani said .
He said there wasn’t much discussion about it.
Tourist attractions in Guam have struggled with temporary closures, limited operations, facility repairs and the loss of skilled workers due to the pandemic.
After nearly three years of contraction, tourist attractions are in need of capital injections to fix facilities, including replacing air-conditioning systems and bringing back skilled staff to reopen.
“Unfortunately, a lot of businesses have closed because of the pandemic, and I don’t think they’re coming back. There’s a lot less places that tourists can visit or some activities that tourists can enjoy. It’s reduced a lot,” Tani said. “So we need to do some kind of preparation or some kind of support for local businesses to restart those tourism-related businesses. So that part, I don’t see much discussion, so we really need to focus on that as well.”
As an example, Tani said Seawalker helmet pilots are tenants at Fish Eye Marine Park, which hasn’t reopened since the pandemic hit.
limited operation
Talofofo Falls Resort & Park is one of Guam’s limited unique tourist attractions that includes a cable car ride with views of lush jungle, waterfalls, and historical sites, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and certain holidays only from 9am to 5pm
Kimberly Kim, manager of Talofofo Falls Resort & Park, said minimal operations are due to tourism still being limited.
“It’s still not good enough,” she said of the arrival of tourists and visits to their parks.
Resuming the seven-day operation will depend on a significant increase in the number of Japanese and South Korean tourists visiting Guam, she said.
Fisheye, the only underwater observatory of its kind in this part of the world and a popular destination for Guam residents, military personnel and tourists, continues to maintain a Japanese customer base at around 10% of its pre-pandemic volume. Its Korean customer base is now about 50% of what it was before COVID-19, Tani said.
These numbers are also reflected in overall visitor arrival trends.
Valley of the Latte Adventure Park at Talo ‘fo’fo’, another unique tourist attraction in Guam, has started seeing more visitors but has still not returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Not only are tourist attractions permanently closed due to the pandemic, but there are also many local hangouts, from bars and restaurants to Chuck E. Cheese at Guam Premier Outlets, and the Tango Theater and Sky Zone at Agana Mall.
spring or summer
South Korean arrivals to Guam are about 50% of what they were before the pandemic, while Japanese arrivals are still about 10% of what they were before COVID-19 hit.
The Japan Association of Travel Agents expects Japanese airlines to return to Guam in the spring, generally March to May.
“If not, the other goal we’re anticipating is before the summer break starts, which is the end of July,” Tani said.
United Airlines has been operating the Japan-Guam route, as well as charter flights from other airlines, but travel businesses point out that the return of JAL will greatly increase tourists from Japan, he said.
Effective May 8, the Japanese government plans to reclassify COVID-19 into a category closer to that of seasonal influenza. Currently, masks are still required in Japan, and people entering the country are still required to show proof of at least three COVID-19 vaccinations or a negative COVID-19 test.
The mentality of the Japanese is different from that of other tourists, Gu said. They tend to be conservative and it takes them quite a while to change their lifestyle or behavior.
“But once they start coming back, it’s pretty stable and the numbers are going to increase, which is a good thing,” Tani said. “It’s just a matter of time.”
customer service
Japanese tourists also demand a certain level of customer service, he said.
Unfortunately, he said, many tourism businesses in Guam are still struggling to maintain the required level of customer service after a nearly three-year hiatus because they have lost many employees.
“So we’re trying to hire new staff and need training, but it takes a few months for our new hires to reach a certain skill level. So that’s our first challenge,” he said. “We need to meet the expected level of customer service, so we’ve started doing that.”
Fisheye Marine Park had about 130 employees before the pandemic, and that number has dropped dramatically over the past few years. There are 90 employees.
A family of tourists enters Fisheye Marine Park in Pitti, and Fisheye General Manager Akihiro Tani (right) shares the challenges facing this unique tourist attraction and hopes that Guam will be able to meet the needs of visitors, including the expected More Japanese tourists return.
Important area
Tani said there are two areas of focus when it comes to tourism recovery: marketing Guam to its source markets; and preparing Guam’s facilities and attractions to welcome tourists back.
He said the Guam Tourism Authority has been leading the marketing and promotion of Guam as a tourist destination, including successfully welcoming JATA executives to the island for key conferences.
“Japanese travel agencies will focus on selling Guam. This is very good news,” he said, referring to JATA’s announcement that its three priority regions for outbound tourism marketing are South Korea, Taiwan and Guam.
“barely open”
In addition to reducing attractions due to the pandemic, Guam also needs to clean public tourist attractions and make restrooms open, clean and usable.
For example, the government-run public toilets at Fisheye Marine Park have rarely been opened in the park’s 27 years of operation, Tani said.
“Barely open,” he said. “I think it’s a problem with sewage.”
While Fish Eye Marine Park is happy to accommodate everyone who needs to use the restroom, it’s also putting a strain on private sector resources, Tani said.
Many government-owned and operated public restrooms in parks and other public areas are either permanently closed or in dire need of cleaning and maintenance.
Acting Gov. Josh Tenorio said last week that Guam’s tourism industry is “recovering fairly well” and will get a major boost once Japan Airlines resumes its scheduled flights, but acknowledged that “there’s a lot of work to be done … to boost our The product”
“There are a lot of parks and recreation areas that are going through repairs that not only need to come back online, but really need to make these improvements for our visitors and, more importantly, for ourselves and our children,” Tenorio said. “I say this is a good year to focus on those efforts and get everyone back to work.”
Inalåhan’s famous tide pools and parks, also a popular tourist attraction, have not reopened since closing for refurbishment in late 2021.
Additionally, GVB has been plagued by conflicting leadership over ethics, legality, and board terms and appointments. Two GVB meetings scheduled for 13 February to help resolve the issue have been postponed.
