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Guam Visitors Bureau
401 Pale San Vitores Road
Tamuning, Guam 96913
(671) 646-5278
www.visitguam.org
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Introduction
Guam is a territory of the United States and is located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is the largest and southernmost island of a chain of volcanic islands in part of Micronesia known as the Marianas Archipelago. Despite being the largest island of the group, Guam is just 30 miles long and less than 9 miles wide. It is located 6,000 miles southwest of San Francisco, 3,700 miles west of Honolulu, and 1,500 miles south of Tokyo.
Guam has been inhabited for more than 3,500 years. Its discovery by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 was the reason behind Guam coming under Spanish rule. In 1565, Spain claimed Guam and the Marianas. Spain established a supply station on Guam the following year and in 1668 created the first permanent Spanish settlement. As a result of the Spanish-American war, Spain ceded Guam to the United States by the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898.
Aside from a rich culture influenced by Spanish, Micronesia, Asian and western societies, Guam boasts beautiful and isolated beaches, world-class diving and snorkeling and, for the less adventurous, historical sites are abound, just waiting to be explored.
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