When it comes to choosing a Pacific Island holiday destination, the islands of Samoa are hard to beat. They are located to the north of Tonga and close to the island groups of Fiji and the Cook Islands. The nine islands of Samoa are made up from two main larger islands which are home to the bulk of the population and a number of smaller outlying islands. The largest are Savai’i and Upulu. The capital of Apia lies on the Island of Upolu and 35000 of Samoa’s 177000 inhabitants live here. Apia is a great place to stay with lots of great resort accommodation, plenty of restaurants and great night life. The beaches in Samoa are white sand, palm tree lined and lapped by crystal clear waters and surrounded by beautiful coral reefs. Everything you have ever dreamed of in a Pacific Island paradise is true about Samoa. International flights arrive at Upolu’s Faleolo airport from Australia, the USA and other island destinations. Both Air new Zealand and Pacific blue have regular flights from all Australian east coast capitals. Local flights and ferries connect to Savai’i and the other islands in the Samoan archipelago.
The Samoan scenery is breathtaking. The islands are mostly volcanic in origin and the interior is covered in rainforest. Savai’i interior is mostly uninhabited and there are magnificent waterfalls and fresh water pools to bathe in and the Alofaaga blowholes provide a fantastic spectacle as they shoot water high into the air. The Pulemetei step pyramid can be found on Savai’i and is a mysterious monument built by the ancient Samoan people. At the Afa Aau falls you can swim in a jungle waterhole at the foot of the falls. Savai’i has a population of 42000 and is the third largest Polynesian Island after New Zealand and the main island of Tahiti. The most recent volcanic activity on Savai’i was the eruption of Mt Matavanu around 100 years ago and it has a left a fantastic lava field covering around 50 square kilometres of the island.
The Samoans are basically a Christian people and the local church services are the place to go on a Sunday. Everyone dresses up for the day and the harmonised singing is a true pleasure to listen to. The traditional Sunday meal will include a pig or similar , cooked in an underground rock oven with local vegetables like yams and sweet potato. After lunch the locals will play football or their own version of cricket. Savai’i lies almost on the international date line, so it is the last place on earth to witness the sunset.
Surfing is a popular attraction for international travellers and both Upolu and Savai’i have wonderful surfing beaches and accommodation that cater for the surfing fraternity. There is a charge made for the use of surfing beaches on the islands, that is put towards he education of Samoan children. Diving is another of the major drawcards for island visitors and local dive operators can take you to some of the best dive sites that you could possibly imagine.
Your next holiday should be the one you have always dreamt about, relaxing on a beach in a balmy Pacific Islands resort and Samoa is the place where these dreams can come true.