Guam Targets 2027 Opening for Its Own Olle Trail Network

Guam has set 2027 as the opening year for its own Olle walking trail network, and its tourism leadership has gone to Jeju to learn how the model works. Governor Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero and Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) President and CEO Régine Biscoe Lee led a delegation to the Jeju Olle Walking Festival, held November 5–7, with a family night on November 4 preceding it.

The benchmark is substantial. Jeju Olle's network spans 27 routes covering roughly 437 kilometers, linking coastlines, forests, villages and cultural sites. It has become South Korea's internationally recognized walking tourism program — the closest thing the industry has to proof that trails can move visitors beyond beaches and into village economies.

The ribbon-cutting in Jocheon drew more than 10,000 international participants and tourism representatives. Joining Guam's governor at the ceremony were Jeju Governor Seong-gom Wi and delegations from Japan, Mongolia and Taiwan. Guam's contingent also included GVB Board Director and Sinajana Mayor Robert Hofmann, Malesso' Mayor Franklin Champaco, and GVB staff.

Who runs what in the partnership?

The division of labor is clear. GVB will oversee Guam Olle's development and operations, while the Jeju Olle Foundation advises on route design, branding, signage and trail management. In effect, Guam is licensing institutional know-how rather than reinventing it.

The commercial logic is familiar to anyone tracking destination diversification: walking tourism spreads visitor spending beyond resort zones and channels it toward villages, wellness tourism, outdoor recreation and cultural practitioners. For a destination whose revenue is heavily concentrated in beach-and-hotel products, trails are a distribution play — moving demand into parts of the island that currently see little of it.

"Guam has so much to offer beyond our beaches and resort areas," Governor Leon Guerrero said. "Our villages, landscapes, history and culture are part of what makes this island special, and walking trails give people another way to experience those things more closely." She framed the project as both a resident amenity and a visitor draw: "We want Guam Olle to be something our residents can enjoy and take pride in, while also giving visitors another meaningful reason to explore our island."

Biscoe Lee emphasized the knowledge-transfer angle. "Working with the Jeju Olle Foundation gives us an opportunity to learn from a program with years of experience and apply those lessons to something that reflects Guam and our people," she said, adding that the delegation aims to "bring what we learn in Jeju back home."

What infrastructure already exists?

Guam Olle won't start from zero. GVB is already developing the Sella Bay Overlook Trail in Humåtak with Guahan Trail Stewards and local communities, addressing access, safety, environmental protection and cultural stewardship. The bureau is also backing pedestrian and heritage trail connections in Hagåtña to improve access to the capital's historical and cultural attractions.

The visit also carried a media dividend in Guam's key source market. Leon Guerrero sat for interviews with KCTV Jeju Broadcasting and Jeju MBC, while Biscoe Lee spoke with E-Daily and the Jeju Olle media team. Korean coverage of a Korea-inspired trail project is, conveniently, marketing that funds itself.

The hard part remains ahead: converting Jeju's template into accessible, well-maintained trails that fit Guam's own environment, heritage and village life by 2027.