Samoa to court agents

PLANS are underway by the Samoa Tourism Authority (STA) to mobilise a dedicated sales team to support and grow targeted sales incentive programs in the Australian market.

While the full details of the trade ramp-up are yet to be revealed, STA CEO Tupa’i Robert Ah Sam told Travel Daily that Aussie travel agents will “play a very important role” in the country’s full recovery from the travel shutdown, as it confirms its ambition to reopen borders to tourists from 01 Aug.

The Pacific Island nation has been furiously preparing for its travel restart, undertaking a series of developments to ensure the destination is safe and ready for arrivals, including the creation of its own contact tracing app, bolstered testing facilities, and improving the training and recruitment of tourism workers.

Ah Sam also hailed recent moves by Qantas to apply for direct services between Sydney and Brisbane to Apia, confirming intentions to court more carriers if the opportunities arise.

“Currently the national tourism office’s goals on air connectivity is to rebuild to pre-COVID levels as quickly as possible while we are continuing to maintain close engagement with current and potential air partners,” he said.

Samoa will also continue to pursue an eco-friendly image in its attempt to attract Australian travellers, as well as focusing on “authentic culture and food” in its marketing collateral.

Samoa noted it was expecting the VFR market to be a strong driver of inbound travel this year as Aussies take the opportunity to reunite with loved ones after more than two years of closure.