SOMETIME during this past night, while most of us were asleep, Guam welcomed the one-millionth visitor to our island for this year. We’re on track to top 1.3 million by Dec. 31, the best year we’ve had since 1997.

The Guam Visitors Bureau sent out a release notifying us that symbolic visitor number one million would be arriving on a flight from Korea, not Japan, at around 1:30 this morning. They planned to have a special welcome, to include Lt. Governor Ray Tenorio, tourism committee chair Sen. Tina Muña-Barnes, and other officials.

Of special note is that the visitor to be identified and honored came in from Korea. Japan still is the home country of the large majority of our visitors, more than 80 percent. But the other markets are growing steadily, notably Korea and Taiwan, so it’s appropriate to recognize someone from one of those countries.

This visitor may well be part of a family group vacationing on Guam, and if that turns out to be the case, it will make a great story for we try to portray our island as a family-friendly destination. As this is written, of course, we don’t know who it is, but the milestone is important.

No matter what is happening with our off-again, on-again military buildup, it’s good to be reminded about the bedrock of our economy, the underlying major industry that fuels everything that happens economically on Guam.

We’re a leisure travel destination, within three or four hours flying time from some of the most populous regions in Asia. We offer economical travel from Tokyo, Taipei and Seoul as well as Manila, Hong Kong, and many other cities in Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Our tourist area in Tumon is bustling with activity. Hotels are full, shops and restaurants are busy, and optional tours and activities have lots of customers.

We must never forget that this is our basic business. The golden strand that is Tumon Bay is the shining jewel, our major attraction, and we’re fortunate to have it. There are a lot of other beach areas in our region, but Guam’s location just three hours or so from Japan is unique and ideal. We share with Saipan the distinction of being the closest sun, sand and surf to Japan, and that’s worked to our benefit for decades.

So welcome to Guam, visitor number one million. We hope you have a wonderful time here, and we hope when you leave to return to Korea, it will be with the thought that you would like to visit us again. Congratulations!