Retired couple, Richard and Jean Moris, are in Samoa for a special tour.

The couple who contribute to a magazine in Sydney called Luxury Escape caught with Dear Tourist in Apia yesterday while they were enjoying a session on Samoan culture and food at the Samoa Cultural Village.

The couple had seen a promotion at the Taumeasina Island Resort and they thought to come and experience Samoa.

“We came here via Fiji and we thought we could extend our holiday a little bit and come to Samoa to see the culture and the people as well,” they told Dear Tourist.

“We have been to Fiji many times but never to Samoa so we are really enjoying it.

“What really impressed us is the Samoan fales that seem to have been everywhere. We were told that this is what people sleep in and I believe that in some families they still use these fales,” said Mr. Moris.

But if you think they have only been admiring the lifestyle, think again.

“We’ve only been here for two days but we’ve enjoyed snorkeling and listening to Samoan music as well as learning about the culture and how to make Samoan handicraft.

“So it’s just expanding our knowledge about Samoa and its people.”

Looking at the bigger picture, Mrs. Moris said Samoa needed to advertise itself as a tourist destination more.

She said many tourists would come to Samoa in a heartbeat if they knew more about this place.

“I could say that Samoa would probably increase its tourist by advertising a lot more because not many people know about Samoa,” she said.

“Another thing is that for Australia the difficulty is getting here. A lot of flights from Australia have stopovers in either Auckland or Fiji.

“If Samoa could get direct flights from Australia*, I believe that would make it a lot easier for tourists to come.”

Despite this, the couple is enjoying their short trip.

“We will be going back this Sunday but if we really enjoy ourselves here then we would be coming back but so far we are enjoying it and we would like to see a lot more,” said Mr. Moris.

“We know it’s just a short trip but we want to learn more about Samoa so that we can be able to tell our friends as well as our families of the experience that we had here.”

*Virgin Samoa flies directly from Sydney and Brisbane to Faleolo International Airport twice a week.