Got any tips for first time overseas travellers?

[Crisis management]

Just go and enjoy yourself......

We were in Samoa last year, send me a Pm with an email or phone number and we can give you as much info as possible.

Iain

[RantyDave]

If anyone has any suggestions about how to make a good time even better, that would also be welcome.

Do some research before you get there. It's always better to know what your choices are and (IMHO) there are few things more miserable than sitting in a hotel room with a pile of flyers trying to work out what you're going to do/see. OTOH you do want to keep your options open.

Regarding being sick, find out before you go what the situation is with water. I think Samoa's fine.

Dave

[2much]

Samoa rocks! Few tips...

when drinking at bars ask for spirits by name, ie: jim beam and coke. if just ask for a bourbon n coke you'll get the home brewed crap.

don't ask for a double, their single is our double.

vialima is a good drop, just be aware that the alcohol content varies from next to none to "only 6 beers and holy fuck!"

go to the sliding rocks, bout a $15 taxi ride from apia iirc.

watch out for the fafa's they're abit pushy but mostly harmless.

hire a jeep and go for a drive round the island.

go to mcdonalds in apia... best maccas i've had so far.

snorkeling inside the reef is cool too and cheap!

*was there in '99 so things may have changed...

[NighthawkNZ:Me]

If anyone has any suggestions about how to make a good time even better,

Don't come back to this hell hole of a country... other than that have fun, don't let the tiredness of travel spoil it

[MotoGirl]

I always take an emtpy bag (or second suitcase) inside my suitcase. This allows me to buy loads of stuff and I have something secure to cart it home in.

It also pays to take a first aid kit with standard medications in it (e.g. Panadol) because you might find it tricky finding the equivalent overseas.

[hazard02]

Don't hide weed in your boogie-board bag. You have to be a little more creative...

[terbang]

Respect the country you are visiting and the people that live there. You probably have more cash in your wallet than a great deal of the population earns in a month. If you wear a security pouch don't wear it on the outside of your clothes or access it in public. And try to get off the beaten track - that is where all the magical experiences happen.

Good advice, learn the common greetings and basic customs. Samoa isn't all that radical to what we know so just the simple hello godbye type things would be fine.
It allways used to astound me, when living in indonesia, to see some well clad tourist bartering a local down to rock bottom price on some sort of local produce. The price of the item equating to a months salary for the locals and a pack of ciggies for the tourist. I allways paid full price, getting ripped off in local terms, whilst still getting a fair deal relative to my world. Everyone doing OK.
Enjoy Samoa it's a nice place with lots of nice people.

[Squeak the Rat]

• Don't eat chicken.

Some of the best feeds I've had overseas have been chicken. Or were supposed to have been chicken (sometimes rat, or guinea pig)....

If it's cooked well then it's usually ok. You've usually got more to worry about with uncooked stuff being washed in the faeces infested water that you're so careful to avoid drinking.

You should be ok in samoa - just respect the locals and take precautions with your stuff.

Sleeping on planes is a lot easier with either drugs or earplugs.

Don't argue or joke with customs officials. They have no sense of humour or mercy.

Enjoy!

[Swoop]

Don't drink tap or stream water.

You can get "Puritabs" from camping shops. These can be used to sterilise the water, but make it taste a bit "funny". Better than having the screaming shits though...

[Templar]

Most of everything is covered that I can think of. All i can add is that don't fall into the trap of staying around a pool with a bar for 9 days. A great thing to do, and your hotel will probably have something like this or there will be somewhere close that does, is to do your Open Water PADI course and learn to dive. Because where we are in NZ alot of our cheap holiday options are the pacific islands, being able to dive will add a shit load of options to any holiday around here.

Breaks up the monotony of the cocktails around the pool trap, which can be easy to fall into when you aren't really sure what to do. Diving in the tropics is fantastic and will be worth it if you like the water, we dove with Tiger and Bull sharks last year in Fiji, was fantastic, and really the thing we will remember most about our two weeks there.

So yeah, go diving! It's relatively easy if you're not afraid of the water and can keep calm when outside of your comfort zone. The fitness requirements are not great, so even if you're in moderate shape you can get your ticket. The sights you will see are amazing, and the opportunities to see new things and experience thrills or just sedate wrecks etc are amazing.

[Dilligaf]

Was in samoa a month ago...
Customs were actually quite strict especially when it comes to alcohol. You are allowed a litre per person and THAT"S IT. (Other countries usually have 1125 ml of spirits and then allow you wine as well - Samoa Does NOT). Basically if you are a wine drinker then good luck....
Also remember that Duty free stores usually ONLY sell the 1125ml bottles thus already putting you over the limit. Buy at a bottle shop before you go.

don't know where you are staying but comparably, we found Samoa much more expensive than Asia. Take a small pack of detergent with you as the hotel prices (Aggie Grey's Resort and Spa) were beyond a joke (and we have worked in hospitality for many years).

Take along any snacks you want to enjoy. Don't know if you have kids but even if you aren't and are likely to have afternoon drinks (wine o'clock), you will save a fortune if you sling a few packs of crackers in your bag.

For sure take sunscreen, after sun gel, panadol, immodium and quick ease. Your hotel should give you two bottles per day - we always hide the unused ones to provide a nice stock should we need it later during our stay.

Rather than hiring a car (they drive on the wrong side you know... And as a foreigner you are NEVER going to be in the right come an accident) we hired a local taxi guy for the day then asked him to take us places. We had already picked out a couple of places - Robert Louis Stevenson's house, beach on other side as well as sliding rock (that place will give your quads a good work out) but he also took us to a much nicer waterfall where the water was clear and a shorter distance to the car and also he was able to wait while we checked out the markets. Don't expect a shopping mecca.....

If you do really start to miss your Kiwi food, there is a place in town - a shop that is blue and aqua coloured place I think it was AQM - chop off your arm and leg now in preparation for the bill though....

And whoever said that Maccas was the best - well the golden arches again lived up (down?) to its record of being the ONLY place to give me the squits. Happens in every developing country I visit - not the local food that troubles me but the local Maccas.... could be the ice thing - i.e. don't have ice in your drinks as sometimes it is made from tap water.

[Templar]

I would thoroughly recommend Rarotonga as a pacific destination.
I have been to Vanuatu, Fiji twice and Raro once. Raro by far the best.
You can also get your bike license in Raro for $10 I think it was, just ride a scooter up to the shops and back with a gruff lookin geezer following you. Then when you come back to NZ you can convert this straight to your Full motorbike license, without having to have periods in learners/restricted. (Helpful to some I am sure - was to me, I did it). You still have to do your full test, and a theory as well if you have NO NZ license (I went from 6L to 6F).

Also Raro is cheap, and the water is beautiful, and the tourism is the most casual of all of them, in that it is still laid back and not in your face. I thin kthe rule is you can only build a building on your property as high as the tallest tree or something like that, so it is really still very non built up. You also have to be Rarotongan or married to one to be in business there, so it is not full of foreigners and foreign hotel chains.

I love it, we are going back in October for a wedding, and for two weeks it is costing the two of us $2500 total. That is hiring a place there with Air Con close to the beach, and including flights. That is super cheap.

Never been to Samoa, the GF does not want to go there, so we stick with the other islands.

[Biff]

Check the latest rules re' carrying liquids on the hairpyplane.
Download this pdf and read: http://www.transport.govt.nz/assets/...gsbrochure.pdf

Then get yourself a decent seat on the hairyplane by checking out the planes seat configuration hers: www.seatguru.com

[sels1]

Insect repellent - industrial strength - Samoa is a great place to visit but boy they have some pretty determined mosquitos!

[MisterD]

All I know is when I came through customs last I had a lot more then the allowed amount, they knew it too but didn't care. In fact everytime I come through customs I've been over the allowed limit. If you're not an arsehole they have little interest in pulling you up. Don't even joke with the word 'bomb', apparently to them it's not a joke. Regarding baggage weight, they are generally pretty casual about this too, once again if you're not an arsehole. 2 or 3 kgs over isn't going to stop you going anywhere or face more fees, but you wouldn't want to push it. And no matter what airline I've flown with the food is always crap, so take your own. Mind you I'm a fussy eater.

All of which I agree with, but the one thing our folks are tough on is the whole bio-security thing. If in doubt with your interesting native wooden artifact, declare it