Patricia Harwood had to come to the ‘heart of the Pacific’ to celebrate her 70th birthday.

And having all her children in Samoa for the occasion makes it extra special for the New Zealand mother.

Getting away from the freezing temperatures in New Zealand was a welcome relief, and the last six days since their arrival in Samoa has been surreal. Some of Patricia’s children reside in Australia.

Speaking to the Dear Tourist team, she said seeing a cultural show is the highlight of the trip.

“We have been further south of the island and the cultural show has been the best so far. We are originally from England but we have migrated to New Zealand. We heard stories that it is a lovely place, which is the reason we have come here to see it for ourselves. We felt that it would be good to bring our family here for a holiday. Three generations that have come here to celebrate Patricia’s birthday.”

“She turns 70-years-old this Sunday,” said husband Robert, while adding that they searched for a perfect holiday escape and this is exactly what they found in Samoa.

“It is lovely here and it is a good place to celebrate my birthday. We are staying in the south coast at the moment. We would definitely miss the warm weather because it is cold in New Zealand and also the relaxed and easy going atmosphere here – we knew that before we came.”

In all their years of travelling around the Pacific, Samoa was the most unique trip they made due to the birthday celebration.

 “We have been to the other islands Fiji and Rarotonga, Tahiti and we have never been here thought that we would come and try out Samoa.”

“Samoa has been advertised a lot in New Zealand, which is more than it used to be.”