Sample a slice of America

Duty-free shopping is another perk in Guam, whose annual shopping festival will be staged to cover New Year and Chinese Spring Festival holidays. [Photo provided to China Daily]

As for culture buffs, the Guam Micronesia Island Fair is an annual cultural event that showcases the vibrant culture of Micronesia.

Here, visitors can experience the best of Micronesia in one amazing weekend featuring master carvers, blacksmiths, traditional sailing experts, jewelers, weavers, dancers, musicians and chefs and experience customs that have been in place for a millennia.

For lovebirds, there are more than 20 churches in Guam where they can have a wedding ceremony.

"We have wedding companies to prepare everything, and help create lifelong memories," says Laguana.

When it comes to travel industry tie-ups, the Guam authority has joined hands with the Chinese travel trade and airlines.

It has partnered with China's biggest online travel agency Ctrip and popular travel information-sharing website Mafengwo to develop options for individual travelers. And it has done a number of workshops with BrandUSA in second tier cities in China, to promote the island to a wider audience.

"We will continue to engage with the Chinese media and with consumers through our events and social media platforms," says Laguana.

The Guam bureau now has offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu in Sichuan province, and is working with airlines to offer more convenient flight choices.

For those planning a trip, Hong Kong Express flies four times a week directly to Guam.

Separately, United Airlines operates a direct flight connecting Shanghai and Guam. The flight departs from Shanghai every Thursday and Sunday. The airline also has direct flights from Hong Kong, and offered chartered flights from Beijing during the Spring Festival holiday.

As for Guam's ambitions for 2017. The island wants to welcome 35,000 Chinese visitors this year, it says.