Hotels and resorts on both Upolu and Savai’i were fully booked over the festive season holidays as local residents capitalised on the discount room rates on offer by operators on both islands.

The operators of the Amoa Resort and Le Lagoto Resort in Savai’i and the Saletoga Sand Resort and Spa and Taumeasina Island Resort on Upolu confirmed when contacted by the Samoa Observer that they were operating at full capacity during the Christmas and New Year long weekends due to the large number of guests.

For tourism operators in Savai’i, the long weekend holidays meant guests who travelled in from Upolu deciding to extend their nights after realising that it was a long weekend for two consecutive weeks.

Elizabeth Siaosi, the Amoa Resort Manager, told Samoa Observer that the resort was fully booked throughout the festive season as well as this week.

“Some people are stuck in Savaii and others have realised the extended holidays so they have extended their stay on the island, which is good for Savaii,” she said.

The resort was also the only operator to put on a fireworks show for its patrons and guests, according to Ms Siaosi.

She said they did not want to advertise their fireworks show due to fears it could have rained on new year’s eve and it is the second time they’ve hosted the pyrotechnics event.

The hotel now hopes to make the show a permanent annual fixture, which Ms Siaosi says would be spectacular for anyone who is on the 10km shared coastline.

Samoa Fire and Emergencies Services (F.E.S.A.) was also part of the fireworks coordination while also checking on the locations from which they would be launched.

Ms Siaosi said that F.E.S.A was very professional and ensured public safety by being there throughout the fireworks display.

The Savai’i-based resort initially had 45 staff prior to the COVID-19 pandemic but their numbers had to be reduced to 27. The busy festive season did not compel them to hire more workers, as Ms Siaosi said their employees underwent training to multitask, which enables them to focus on multiple areas of the operation.

“So sometimes we wear two hats to get things done, which meant that when the busy season arrived, our current team was ready to handle the workload,” said Ms Siaosi. “We did not have to hire extra staff as a result.”

As for the Le Lagoto Resort in Fagamalo Savai’i, the resort’s Tinei Matai’a said they were fully booked during the Christmas and new year holidays.

However, the cancellation of the ferry service between Upolu and Savai’i due to bad weather led to cancellations by people who initially planned to travel to the big island on Monday and Tuesday.

Matai’a said most of the guests who are stranded in Savai’i due to the cancellation have also checked out and moved closer to hotels closer to the Salelologa wharf. 

Accommodation businesses closer to Le Lagoto Resort such as Vacations Beach Resort, BayView Resort, and Janes Beach Fales have also benefited during the festive season, with Matai’a indicating that they recommended them to guests who were unable to have rooms due to full bookings.

“Sometimes people go next door to stay if they cannot find rooms with us,” said Matai’a. 

Matai’a said the resort had to let go 90 per cent of their staff due to the pandemic and she knows most of them have gone overseas for seasonal work while others have found work elsewhere. 

In Upolu the Taumeasina Island Resort was reportedly fully booked during the festive season with local families.

The resort’s General Manager, Tauataga Nathan Bucknall told Samoa Observer that the domestic market kept his staff of 97 employed and busy this festive season, though he also lost 74 employees at the height of the pandemic.

The recent festive season has also reaped rewards for Gavin Brightwell, the owner of the Saletoga Sand Resort and Spa, who told Samoa Observer that the holidays have led to all 75 of their rooms being taken up with the resort servicing over 200 people per day.

The resort had to also maximise the capacity for the rooms by adding extra beds due to the high demand during the festive season with some local families, who are some of their regular customers, asking the resort to provide extra mattresses for their children. 

Mr Brightwell said that they served a la carte meals to over 200 people some nights, and for two hours straight they were able to serve a meal every 45 seconds, which he says is credit to his team in the kitchen and the restaurant.

In terms of their capacity to handle the high service demand, Mr Brightwell said they had to let staff go and ended up with 40, but the busy season compelled them to hire more staff so now they have over 70 including the management. 

He said he advertised for staff from the nearby villages and employed people from Lotofaga, Salani and other parts of Aleipata and Falealili. 

The reduced rates of $250 tala per room is a more affordable rate for the locals, according to Mr Brightwell, and while the festive season ensures that some of the revenue earned will support them in the quiet weeks ahead, they are only cutting even from the hard work during the busy season. 

Ultimately the benefits of the festive season come in two ways, according to the hotelier. 

“Financially, it is actually a two way benefit, domestic tourism means that there is now an opportunity for locals to stay at resorts as they cannot fly out and it also gives revenue to local resorts and accommodation, keeping staff employed.”

Justin Parker, who owns Valentine’s Motel Fugalei, said that the festive season did bring in business but it has been a real challenge.

“Each time disaster strikes, it may set us back two steps but we keep the faith and soldier on armed with lessons learned, garner resources where possible and with renewed strength to rebuild and work a little smarter if we are to survive,” he said.

As for the Manusina Beach Fales, it has become a family after the COVID-19 pandemic strike, with its owner Taleo Vaaiga saying he and his wife and children now run the place, as they had to let their staff go.

The couple’s eldest two children are in Year 9 and assist their parents with Vaaiga adding that they are grateful for the recent festive season, as it has meant more business for his fales and other neighbouring beach fales. 

A lone beach fale owner, Tuava Levasa Ieti, said he has not entertained guests in his fales since the start of the pandemic except for a few day trips. 

Levasa Ieti said due to their financial challenges, he took out a small loan to build a kiosk, where he can make quick cash for his family as he has five kids to feed and raise. Currently he only has his children and himself to operate the Namu’a Island Beach fales as he lost his wife recently. 

But the festive season windfall for tourism operators on both Upolu and Savai’i has not been without its challenges. Some operators, who did not want to be identified, revealing a rise in the theft of hotel or resort property by guests during the pandemic in the lead-up to Christmas. 

Some of them took to social media to express concerns about the damage to rooms by guests and the stealing of towels and sheets.

There was one such incident of a resort manager stopping a guest from driving out with resort-owned property packed in his vehicle. 

“These kinds of challenges are plenty and part of the pandemic trend,” said a resort owner, who did not want to be identified.