Tourism stakeholders participate in a work session on June 12, 2025, at Marianas Beach Resort in Saipan as part of global branding and tourism development planning for the destination.
MVA photo
(MVA) — How does The Marianas see itself as a destination, and what experiential promise can it honestly make — and keep — for visitors?
The Marianas Visitors Authority is engaging the community to help answer that question as it works to create a clear and unique global brand for the destination that speaks to a worldwide travel market. Award-winning creative agency B Corp Circul8 has been tapped by MVA to lend its expertise to the project, with key project members in Saipan, Tinian, and Rota this week to hear from dozens of stakeholders across the public and private sectors and the community. The team is also visiting major historic and cultural sites, as well as evaluating visitor attractions and other tourist amenities.
With several weeks of research already under their belts, Circul8 has hit the ground running this week, bringing their experienced insights to MVA’s work of articulating who we are as The Marianas destination,” said MVA Managing Director Jamika R. Taijeron. “With their experience working with other Pacific Island destinations like Tahiti Tourisme, Vanuatu, Tourism Fiji — as well as international organizations like the World Health Organization and Amnesty International — they bring a level of expertise that will help create a clear global brand for The Marianas that will resonate with visitors, tourism stakeholders, and the local community. It’s an exciting time for us!”
The new brand — to include a destination mascot — will be developed based on ongoing strategic research and analysis, including a series of meetings and workshops over the next week in Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. The project also includes the production of videos for the initial rebranding of the destination, as well as photography and marketing templates for eDM, social media, print, and more. New destination maps and destination brochures will be created in key languages, official websites will be updated, trade show design materials will be provided, and social media cover pages will be updated. Brand guidelines and training will also be provided for implementation of the new brand.
The project will also produce a research-based tourism development outline highlighting each islands’ business and economic climate, historic and cultural sites, and tourism amenities.
“We can all look forward to the upcoming tourism development report to be roadmap for practical, achievable steps across both private and public sectors toward making The Marianas a world-class destination,” said Taijeron. “As we say, ‘Tourism is Everybody’s Business,’ and this report — along with an accompanying video — will be tools that anyone can use to plan infrastructure, attract new investments, come up with new business ideas, and more. We look forward to everyone’s thoughts this week.”
The global branding project is funded by a federal Community Development Block Grant — Disaster Recovery and will be completed by the end of the year.
