Regions in Brief

Apia

The town of Apia sits midway along the north coast of Upolu, which makes it a centrally located base from which to explore the main island. The Cross Island Road runs 23km (14 miles) from town, across the range of extinct volcanoes that form Upolu, thereby bringing the south coast within easy reach of town.

Don't Leave Apia Without a Map -- If you're driving around the island, be sure to bring a map, available from the Samoa Tourism Authority.

The Mulinu'u Peninsula

Beyond the market, Beach Road becomes Mulinu'u Road, which runs about a mile to the end of Mulinu'u Peninsula, a low arm separating Apia Harbour to the east from shallow Vaiusu Bay on the west. About halfway out on the peninsula stand the American, British, and German Memorials, one dedicated to the German sailors who died in the 1889 hurricane, one dedicated to the British and American sailors who were drowned during that fiasco, and one to commemorate the raising of the German flag in 1900.

The Mulinu'u Peninsula is home of the Fono, Samoa's parliament. The new Fono building sits opposite a memorial to Samoa's independence, the two separated by a wide lawn. The Fono's old home is next to the road in the same park. A tomb on the lawn holds the remains of Iosefa Mataafa, one of the paramount chiefs.

Beyond the Apia Yacht Club stand the tombs of the Malietoa family of paramount chiefs, which makes this the burial grounds of Samoa's incumbent "royalty." At the end of the paved road, a dirt path goes left past a gravel quarry to the tombs of Tuimalaeali'ifano and Tupua Tamasese, two other paramount chiefs. At the end of the peninsula you'll find the Apia Weather Observatory, originally built by the Germans in 1902 (they apparently learned a costly lesson from the unpredicted, disastrous hurricane of 1889).

Exploring Upolu

To travel along the roads of Upolu away from Apia is to see Polynesia relatively unchanged from the days before the Europeans arrived in the islands. Bring your swimming gear, for you'll also visit some of the South Pacific's most stunningly beautiful beaches.

Savai'i

Although it lacks first-rate accommodations, you will wish you had stayed longer on Savai'i. Green mountains rise out of the sea and into the clouds across the 21km-wide (13 mile) Apolima Strait that separates it from Upolu. Savai'i is half again as large as Upolu, yet it has only a quarter as many people as its smaller and more prosperous sister. On Savai'i, rural Samoan life is very much like it always has been. People reside in villages mainly along the east and south coasts.

The northern part of Savai'i has practically deserted lava fields and forests. The last major eruption from its 470 volcanic craters occurred between 1905 and 1911. According to geologist Warren Jopling, there's a cycle of activity of about 150 years, so the next eruption should be due in another half century.

The other attractions on Savai'i are its long, white beaches, especially on the north side around the village of Manase, where you'll find some of Samoa's most popular beach fales.

Getting There & Getting Around -- Air service to Savai'i is provided by Polynesian Airlines, while the Samoa Shipping Corporation operates two ferries between Mulifanua Wharf on Upolu and Salelologa, the commercial center on Savai'i.

You can organize a trip to Savai'i yourself, but the easiest way is to contact one of the tour operators in Apia. For example, Oceania Travel & Tours (tel. 24-443; www.oceania-travel.ws) has day trips for about S$300 (US$100) by ferry, S$350 (US$116) by plane, including breakfast and tour. It also has 2-day, 1-night packages.

Ecotour Samoa (tel./fax 22-144 or 25-993; www.ecotoursamoa.com) has 2- and 3-day expeditions around Savai'i, with an emphasis on exploring the volcanic craters, lava fields, wetlands, and rain forests. See "Environmental Tours," earlier in this chapter, for more information about this company.

Taxis meet the planes and ferry. One-way fare from Maota Airstrip to Safua on the east coast is S$15 (US$5). From the ferry wharf to the east-coast hotels costs S$8 (US$2.65) one-way. The one-way fare is F$60 (US$20) to Manase, and S$100 (US$33) to Asau village, 89km (55 miles) on the opposite side of Savai'i.

Local buses going around the east and north coasts to Manase meet the 8am and noon ferries arriving from Upolu. The fare to Manase is S$4 (US$1.35).

Savai'i Car Rentals (tel. 51-392; fax 51-291; cars@samoa.ws) rents cars and SUVs for about S$165 (US$55) per day. A deposit of S$350 (US$117) is required. You can pay by MasterCard or Visa, although the company reluctantly takes credit cards. The round-island road is completely paved.

Manono & Apolima

You will pass the small islands of Manono and Apolima on the trip across the Apolima Strait to Savai'i. The top of an extinct volcano, Apolima is the more scenic of the two. Its picturesque beachside village of Apolima-tui sits inside the crater that collapsed on one side, causing the island's half-moon shape. Small boats shuttle between Apolima Island and the village of Apolima-uta on Upolu's western end. Boats to Manono leave from Mulifanua Wharf. Samoa Scenic Tours (tel. 22-880) at Aggie Grey's Hotel & Bungalows operates popular day trips to Manono and its beautiful surrounding reef, and Ecotour Samoa (tel./fax 22-144 or 25-993; www.ecotoursamoa.com) has sea-kayaking expeditions to Manono.

The East & North Coasts

Leaving the Safua Hotel, the east-coast road soon passes a memorial to the Rev. John Williams, then goes up a rise to Tuasivi, the administrative center of the island and site of the hospital and police station. From there it drops to Faga and Siufaga, two long, gorgeous beaches. Many villages along this stretch have bathing pools fed by freshwater that runs down underground from the mountains. Only the south side of Savai'i has rivers and streams. Rainwater seeps into the porous volcanic rock elsewhere and reappears as springs along the shoreline.

Mount Matavanu last erupted between 1905 and 1911, when it sent a long lava flow down to the northeast coast, burying villages and gardens before backing up behind the reef. Today primitive ferns primarily populate the desertlike Matavanu lava field. The flow very nearly inundated the village of Mauga, which sits along the rim of an extinct volcano's cone. The villagers play cricket on the crater floor. Past Mauga is the Virgin's Grave, a hole left around a grave when the lava almost covered a nearby church. The steeple still sticks out of the twisted black mass. The villagers charge S$3 (US$1) to visit the grave.

The north-coast road past the lava fields is picturesque but holds little of interest other than gorgeous tropical scenery.

On the north coast, the village of Manase has a gorgeous white-sand beach, which has made it the beach fale capital of Savai'i. It also has a Turtle Conservatory, where you can swim with the turtles in freshwater pools -- after paying a S$5 (US$1.65) custom fee.

The South Coast

On the south coast near Vailoa, on the Letolo Plantation, stands the ancient ruin known as Pulemelei Mound. This two-tiered pyramid 72m (240 ft.) long, 58km (193 ft.) wide, and 14m (48 ft.) high is the largest archaeological ruin in Polynesia. It is similar to the ceremonial temples, or maraes, in French Polynesia and the Cook Islands, but it is so old (more than 1,000 years) that the Samoans no longer have legends explaining its original function. Shortly before his death in 2002, Thor Heyerdahl, of Kon Tiki fame, visited the mound and organized an archaeological expedition, which cleared the pyramid of vegetation. More work was scheduled in 2006. A narrow dirt track, which passes Olemoe Waterfall, ends some 300 meters (300 yards) from the mound. A steep and often muddy track leads down to the waterfall.

From the mound, the south-coast road continues to Gautavai Waterfall, a lovely black-sand beach at Nu'u, and the geyserlike Taga Blowholes on the island's southernmost point.