A new ocean liner cruise route and direct flights between Guam and Kaohsiung, Taiwan are now under consideration following talks between Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-Mai Thursday.
Leon Guerrero and Chen signed a sister city agreement, establishing a framework for continued collaboration in tourism, trade, investment and cultural exchange, according to a news release from Adelup and Taiwan media reports.
Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s third largest city with a population of some 2.7 million, according to its official website.
The governor’s office said meetings were held as part of a joint Guam Visitor’s Bureau, Guam Economic Development Authority, and Guam International Airport Authority trade and investment mission to Taiwan. The new ocean liner cruise service from Kaohsiung could bring up to 1,000 passengers per trip.
The Kaohsiung Times newspaper reported that Leon Guerrero previously visited the city last year, and the new agreement formalizes efforts to build a long-term partnership between the two sides.
In remarks, Guerrero said tourism remains Guam’s most important economic sector and expressed hope that the sister-city relationship will increase travel and exchanges between residents of both places, the newspaper reported.
It also reported that Leon Guerrero praised Kaohsiung’s strengths in industries such as semiconductors and aquaculture, and that Guam hopes to deepen cooperation in tourism, agriculture, fisheries, health care and smart-city governance.
The governor’s office said Chen will also advocate for direct flights between Kaohsiung and Guam via China Airlines, which followed Leon Guerrero’s talks with the carrier in Taipei earlier this week.
“Strengthening transportation links between Guam and Taiwan opens the door to greater tourism, trade, and investment opportunities,” Leon Guerrero said, “These connections make it easier for visitors to experience Guam and for our island to build stronger partnerships across the region.”
In addition to tourism, the Taiwan mission has included discussion on potential aquaculture and hydroponic investments in Guam. Both aquaculture and hydroponics are components of Taiwan’s world-leading high-tech sector, and any expansion to Guam would fit into the Leon Guerrero-Tenorio administration’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) training initiatives, the news release stated.
This was Leon Guerrero’s second official visit to Taiwan. In her first trip as the sitting chief executive of a U.S. territory in May 2025, she met with President Lai Ching-Te “to reaffirm Guam and Taiwan’s longstanding partnership and explore opportunities for expanded cooperation in tourism, health care, and economic development,” according to a news release at the time.