For Australian Rodney Roemermaa, the visit to Samoa and the one-week stay that included visits to the country’s top tourist attractions, was worth the money.

In an interview with the Samoa Observer on the eve of him and his wife’s return to Australia, the 74-year-old said they had a wonderful experience and he will recommend the country to friends back in Queensland.

He said he first learnt of the country when he read about it in a travel newspaper. 

"Samoa is such a lovely country and I will recommend this to all my friends back in Queensland. I first discovered [reading about] Samoa in our newspaper back home and I wanted to come and check it out personally so here I am," he said, smiling.

Looking back on their one-week stay, Mr Roemermaa said they visited most of Samoa’s top tourist attractions . 

"I explored the country a little, me and my wife came here for only one week and we visited the flea market, Robert Louis Stevenson Museum, the Mulivai Cathedral, the Tosua Trench and the Piula Cave Pool," he added.

But of all the places he visited here, it was his tour of the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum, which had an immediate impact on him. According to the Australian, the historical displays enabled him to learn more about Samoan culture and history.

"I am really happy with this one week trip and I am flying back to Queensland tonight and I would recommend this place and country when I return," he said.

With the country preparing itself for a possible tropical cyclone last week, the couple said the bad weather did not stop them from making the best of their one-week stay. 

Mr Roemermaa also praised the Samoa Government for being proactive to the global novela coronavirus threat. 

"One thing is when we arrived at the airport and we were asked to present our medical certificates to confirm us being checked in Australia before we came to Samoa, and they also measured our temperature as well, this is a very good move by Samoa," he added.