by It was a simple sketch that Treasure Island took shape first in the mind of Robert Louis Stevenson. In Scotland, in the summer of 1881, he drew an imaginary, romantic island. This would be the setting for his children’s story of pirates, rebellion and buried treasure. However, it was not until seven years later that he discovered his own treasure, an island that he would fall in love with and make his home until his death in 1894.
Upolu is Samoa’s main island – there are nine others, all but tiny and a few uninhabited. It was on Upolu that Stevenson built his colonial-style villa, Vailima, complete with two Scottish baronial fireplaces – although, for obvious reasons, these were never lit. Sitting just below the Equator in the heart of the South Pacific, this is a tropical climate, the volcanic peaks covered in recklessly abundant vegetation. (Thought itself, then, for Stevenson and his family, buttoned up in their Victorian attire.)
Now as it was, it is a country full of natural wonders. The rainforest drops down to a coastline ringed with pearly white beaches and turquoise waters where turtles swim alongside you just offshore. In the mountains, waterfalls create natural pools for swimming. You can swim in the azure waters of the To-Sua Ocean Trench, which is accessed by climbing down a 30m ladder and, from there, through caves to the sea.
On the second island of Savai’i, there is a great roar as the blowholes force thousands of liters of sea water spectacularly into the sky. (Occasionally, local children add coconuts to the top for an extra-explosive effect.) And nearby lava fields are the dark remains of the flow that followed the 1905 eruption of Mt Matavanu. The molten lava engulfed five villages as it made its way to the coast – a roofless church is still there, although the lava was rising through and around it. Amazingly everyone survived, the locals escaping into the sea using coconuts as makeshift life jackets.
Samoans seem to take most things in stride. Life is quiet, crime is low, the roads are empty, everyone goes to church (“Have a blessed day” is a common form of farewell, with no Bandmaid overtones). Village life is central – and everything from permission to build a house to punishment for misbehavior is decided by the village. The gatherings take place with walls, which stand on stilts and poles supporting their thatched roofs – there are no walls. Until a decade or so ago, all Samoan houses were like this, but gradually walls are becoming more common – and now they are painted in Technicolor colours, surrounded by riotous colorful gardens and the neatest of lawns . I’d swear that after the birdsong, striders are the most common sound here. This is the Samoan fa’a – the Samoan way, a culture that has lasted 3,000 years and is still going strong.
You can get a glimpse of Samoa fa’a at the capital Apia’s Cultural Village, where you learn how to weave a plate from leaves (on which you will eat lunch cooked in an umu, an underground oven), meet the wood carvers. , enjoy the singers and dancers and – undoubtedly, one of the most likely entertainments – witness a traditional tattoo. A traditional tatau is a Samoan obligation and is highly regarded as a rite of passage and an expression of inner strength. For men, it is a dense pattern that completely covers the body from the waist to the knees. Women get a little lighter because theirs only run from the knee to the upper thigh. Both are executed in the traditional way with a needle tapped by a block of wood and, judging by the wincing, that respect is hard-earned.
Apia may be the capital but, in reality, it’s just a small town (population around 35,000). Beyond its borders, there are only villages and that beautiful coast, where most of the hotels can be found. However, Samoa is not a place where you will find anything approaching mass tourism, and the accommodations are largely local businesses. If you want a lot of entertainment – or indeed late nights – Samoa is probably not the place for you.
Most of the hotels here are small and Samoan owned and run, favoring the traditional Samoan oval or round design, with open public spaces to enjoy the steady cooling effects of the Trade. This doesn’t mean you don’t get creature comforts – you’ll find great pools, spas and restaurants at Le Lagoto (which means “sunset” as it’s always great here) on Savai’i or Sinalei (pronounced “sing- a-” lay”) with his restaurant over water on Upolu. You won’t be disappointed with the food either. Samoa has an abundance of delicious dishes, although perhaps the most typical (and totally addictive) is Oka I’a, fresh tuna marinated in lemon or lime juice, mixed with some onion, tomato and cucumber and drenched in straight coconut milk. picked from the tree.
It would be wrong, perhaps, to suggest that nothing will happen here. One of the big occasions is the Sunday service, where everyone dresses in white and sings their hearts out in four-part harmonies that fill the coral limestone churches. There are churches everywhere in Samoa and, even in the smallest villages, they are as big as cathedrals. If you’re lucky, you might be asked to join the traditional family lunch that follows, the Toanai.
But perhaps the most exciting entertainment in Samoa is dancing. The men are warriors, as in all Polynesian cultures, and have a particularly impressive fire dance, while the women’s dances tell lyrical stories of myth, the sea and love. The dance is called fiafia, and it says a lot about the Samoans that the word also means “happy”.
To get under the skin of the Samoan fa’a, you could stay at the family-run beach. It might not be what most of us would immediately picture for a long-haul holiday but you wake up on a mile of sparkling sand, steps away from a blue lagoon, gorgeous coral and a seabed scattered with bright blue starfish. Your lie on the beach will have a thatched roof, a mosquito net, a mattress on the floor and that’s about it. There is a bathroom (usually across the road from where the family lives) and, sometimes there are actual walls, but generally there are woven mats that you can lay down for shelter from the weather or – an unknown concept in Samoa – privacy. The first time I stayed in one, many years ago, the whole family would visit in the evening just to make sure I wasn’t feeling lonely.
No wonder then, it was not just the beauty of Samoa that fascinated Stevenson, but also the warmth of the local people. Something that was a champion for the rights of Samoa (the local people were treated badly by the German traders who made their base, and would become a German colony in 1900), he was very loved. He died in Vailima in 1894 and, on his orders, was buried there at the top of Mt Vaea, above his home. You can still visit today. It is a steep walk through the dense rainforest and under the shade of magnificent beech trees. As a mark of respect, the locals moved his coffin from hand to hand up the hill to the final resting place of Robert Louis Stevenson – or, as the Samoans called him, Tusitala: “the story teller”.
Fundamentals
Book a trip
DialAFlight (dialaflight.com) has a 10-night trip to Samoa from £2,995pp, based on two adults sharing. It includes four nights at the Sinalei Reef Resort, three nights at Le Lagoto Beach Resort, three nights at Return to Paradise Resort, all transfers, and international flights (via Fiji).
Do it yourself
DialAFlight offers daily flights from London to Nadi (Fiji). Go via Los Angeles (with United Airlines and Fiji Airways) from £1,951 return, or via Singapore (with Singapore Airlines and Fiji Airways) from £1,349 return.
Fiji Airways (fijiairways.com) flies from Fiji to Samoa from £400.
Sinalei Reef Resort (00 685 25191; sinalei.com) has villas (sleeps two) from £78 per night, including breakfast.
