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12/04/2025 - Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Jamika Taijeron said following recent meetings with airline partners—particularly in Korea, the CNMI’s largest market—carriers delivered frank assessments of the challenges that limit demand and operational viability for routes to the Marianas.
“They shared some honest and constructive feedback and insights that we really must take seriously,” she said while serving as guest speaker of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce monthly meeting last Dec. 3 at the Pacific Islands Club Saipan.
Three themes stood out—insufficient tourism products, high costs driven by the strong U.S. dollar, and infrastructure challenges.
Quoting airline partners, Taijeron said the CNMI does not currently offer enough compelling, modern, or culturally grounded activities that meet the expectations of today’s travelers.
She added visitors want authentic, destination-specific experiences, and partners say Saipan must diversify beyond beaches and basic tours.
The tourism body chief, meanwhile, said the strong U.S. dollar makes the CNMI expensive for both airlines and travelers from Korea and Japan.
Carriers noted that high operating costs reduce their ability to maintain or expand service and that the unfavorable exchange rate also weakens demand among price-sensitive travelers.
As for infrastructure, airline partners cited limited transportation, outdated or poorly maintained facilities, and insufficient visitor-friendly infrastructure such as restrooms and recreation areas.
“These are concerns that we must address, and they go beyond just the capabilities of a few agencies or businesses. And that is why the Governor's Council for Economic Advisers created the Tourism Recovery Task Force, which was created last month with the goal of bringing public and private partners together for one mission. The purpose is to unify efforts, remove barriers, improve the visitor experience, and drive sustainable tourism growth,” said Taijeron.
Despite the shortcomings, airline partners told MVA that they still see potential in the Marianas, but sustainable growth is impossible without stronger visitor experiences, destination-wide upgrades, cost competitiveness, and a unified, culturally rich tourism identity.
The opinion from the mainly Korean airlines becomes more important considering that the former Hermit Kingdom now accounts for 70% of all CNMI arrivals, which they view as risky and unsustainable.
Taijeron said the rise of “other markets”—Guam, U.S., the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Taiwan—to 17% shows diversification potential, but airlines stress that product quality must improve to attract these segments.
To address this, Taijeron said the Tourism Recovery Task Force has been tasked to develop a long-term roadmap for air service, inter-island travel, and visitor experience upgrades. MVA is also rolling out a new global brand, “Far From Ordinary,” built on six pillars—Chamorro and Carolinian culture, multicultural community, nature, history, sustainable practices, and adventure. She said the branding campaign uses exclusively local talent.
She urged businesses to embrace cultural values, use indigenous greetings, incorporate local ingredients, adopt brand visuals, and help create “far from ordinary” experiences. They also promoted the relaunch of the Hafa Adai Pledge and encouraged broader use of the online Marianas Calendar for events.
During an extended question-and-answer portion, Chamber members raised concerns about abandoned buildings, urban blight in Garapan, community buy-in, safety perceptions, and lack of cohesion among the government and private sectors.
“I guess you could call it the biggest complaints that our present tourists are having, and how those can be addressed. I mean, like, Ghost Town Garapan. I mean, how do we address all the vacancies? We gradually had investors, but we don't see a lot of our major players. I know that shopping isn’t our destination anymore with DFS Saipan closing, but how can we... I mean, it's a big, big ask. How can our community come together?” said businessman Del Benson.
Other suggestions included tax incentives for building improvements, consistent branding across agencies, stronger community cleanup culture, and more local promotion so residents and visitors know what activities exist.
Chamber president Joe C. Guerrero even suggested that simply changing the usual “good morning” greeting to hafa adai and ghilissou could make a big difference.
GCEA co-chair and former Chamber board member Alex Sablan acknowledged the severity of the economic situation—Garapan is estimated to be 72% shuttered, the population has dropped to roughly 37,000, and tourism recovery could take years.
“We really need to come together. This is going to be a village effort. We need a community that's going to be behind how we get back to having a viable economy that gets our people back home from the mainland, and wherever they are,” he said.
Before presenting the challenges of the CNMI’s viability as a destination, Taijeron told Chamber members that the CNMI’s tourism industry is at its weakest point since the 1980s, with fiscal year 2025 arrivals at about 160,000 and FY 2026 projected at 146,000, largely due to currency weakness in Korea and Japan, aircraft shortages, and geopolitical pressures.
She traced the long-term decline from the 727,000 arrivals peak of 1997 through the shocks of 9/11, SARS, typhoons, airline withdrawals, and COVID-19.
Report by Mark Rabago
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