Transportation, Activities, And Preparation For Visiting American Samoa

Name of the Destination

Describe about transportation required to get to the destination, activities that should be carried out while at the destination and preparation for uneventful encounters such as custom.

The destination that is being chosen here is American Samoa; a place that is located between Hawaii and New Zealand. A place lying almost 100km east of the island country Samoa, and the citizens of the American Samoa are the nationals of US but they are not the citizens (Beckman, 2015). The people of the American Samoa, although, could move around in the America Samoa as well as in the mainland of US, freely. The most important city of American Samoa is ‘Pago Pago’, where there is an international airport, although in the village of Utulei, American Samoa has the governor’s office. American Samoa is a place that consists of group of islands, and these islands are located in the South of the Pacific Ocean. The islands that form the American Samoa, include, Tutuila, Ofu, Ta’u, Olosega, Rose Island, Swaine Island and the Aunu’u.

The trip will start from the ‘Pago Pago’ international airport; therefore, it is important to have the flights ticket ready. If the round tickets are available for the trip then it will be wise to have the return tickets, because at the time of return the tickets may not be available. The tickets available for the round trip, costs around $2023. After reaching the airport, reaching American Samoa will only be possible either by boat, bus or by cars in rent. The American Samoa harbor is located near the airport (Waxman, Buenconsejo-Lum, Cremer, Feldman, Ault, Cain, & Diaz, 2016). The cruise ships for the passengers are generally inexpensive because the government is mostly controlling it. The anchorage charges of the cruise ships are as less low as $7.50 a month. Therefore, it can be estimated that a minimum price of around one or two dollars. According to the tour advisor, the boats could also be taken in rent to visits the islands of American Samoa. The rental charges of these boats are around 100 Samoan Tala, which is equal to around $39.54. If buses are taken in rent then it will cost around one or two dollars. It is better to take the boats in rent; it will give a better feel of the place. There are beach fales and resorts in American Samoa, and the rent of these resorts are around $150. The beach fales, although is not very expensive and the rent of these beach fales are around $54 to $60. Therefore, it can be estimated that the trip would cost around $4500 to $5000.

Total Cost of the 2 Week Trip

The trip to the America Samoa will start from the “Pago Pago” airport, therefore one of the most important transport system for this trip, is the plane. After reaching the America Samoa, the time comes to visit different destination. There are many islands in America Samoa, which the people could visits and could have their stay there. The people could visit the island in four possible ways; this includes the airways the buses, the boats and the cars in rent (Taumoepeau, 2015). The airways are the most convenient way of transport, because it takes not more than 30 to 40 minutes for transportation through airways.

The buses can also be used for transportation, especially if the budget is limited. The cost of travelling through the buses is not at all expensive, It takes only or two dollars, to move around in the buses. If relaxation is something that should be given more importance, then renting a car should be given more importance. The feel of the whole trip could be enjoyed most by travelling through the boat. The boats are not at all very expensive and at the same time, it is a very useful means of transport for visiting the island.

If a visit to the America Samoa is made, then a positive visit should be made to the “Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary”. It is one of the most important destinations, because it consists of tropical relief, and it is filled with bright colored tropic fish. Among the tropical fishes that are there the butterfly, parrot and the damselfish forms a part of it. The national sanctuary also consists of a sea creatures like octopus, crabs and lobster (Lau, Musso, Fournier,  Parola, Raoult & Weinstein, 2016)..

Apart from the National Sanctuary, the National Park of America Samoa is an important destination where, a visit can be made. The finest landscapes and the seascapes of the island make the place not only beautiful but at the same time serene at the same time. The initiative of making the landscape and seascape beautiful is taken by the US Congress and the leaders of the Samoan village (Harrison & Pratt, 2015).

Activities like snorkeling can be carried out in beaches like those that the To’aga where exploring the pristine coral reef will be a real fun. Adventure activities like hiking can be carried out in the rain forests that are there in the mountains. There is a hiking trail on the right-hand-side of the “Pago Pago” uphill that will lead to the Mt. Alva in two hours. The view that is there from the Mt. Alva is the best view of the whole destination. There is although, a risk related to this particular adventure sports. The trail that is there on the other side of the uphill, leads to the village of Vatia. The availability of buses in the village of Vatia is very less therefore, returning to the capital city, “Pago Pago” could be a challenge. The nightlife activities in America Samoa are also very interesting and therefore, these activities should be carried out in this particular trip. Shopping is another important activity that could be carried out in America Samoa, where there are several kiosks, which would help in this shopping (Koth, 2015).

Transportation Required to Get to the Destination

The trip to America Samoa will be a visa-free entry for the citizens of United States, although the passport is required for the entry. The departments of the customs, which work under the America customs, make sure that the excise duties and the tax duties are carried out properly (Connell, 2015). They make sure that all the person entering and leaving the place is searched properly along with their baggage. The customs make sure that there are no illicit imports of the goods like arms and ammunition, narcotics or any other kind of weapons. The America Samoa not only has their customs officers in airport but they are also present in the seaport as well. The customs officers in the seaport make sure that they search both the cargo and the passenger ships. The baggage of almost thousands passengers are checked daily. It is in the “Pago Pago” harbor, where the task of immigration as well as customs clearance is being carried out (Crews & Lawson, 2015).

During the time of trip, therefore, it should be kept in mind that while travelling things containing narcotic should not be carried. Proper preparation should be taken so that the customs are being avoided and the trip is a peaceful visit (Romero, 2015). The immigration department of America Samoa goes through a thorough inspection of the cargo and the baggage and accordingly they collect the excise tax as well. Daily operations that are being carried out in the immigration department, include, daily immigration operations and enforcement and at the same time, it include alien ID issuance as well.

References

Beckman, M. (2015). Pilot study: influence of the Samoan dog population on visitors.

Connell, J. (2015). Samoa and Tonga: Migration and Remittances in the Twenty-first Century. Migration and Development: Perspectives from Small States, 122-185.

Crews, D. E., & Lawson, A. J. (2015). International migration, population structure and economic development in American Samoa. Migration and Development, 4(1), 23-38.

Harrison, D., & Pratt, S. (2015). 1 Tourism in Pacific island countries.Tourism in Pacific Islands: Current Issues and Future Challenges, 48, 1.

Koth, B. (2015). 13 Hosting bluewater sailors. Tourism in Pacific Islands: Current Issues and Future Challenges, 48, 219.

Lau, C., Musso, D., Fournier, P. E., Parola, P., Raoult, D., & Weinstein, P. (2016). Absence of serological evidence of Rickettsia spp., Bartonella spp., Ehrlichia spp. and Coxiella burnetii infections in American Samoa. Ticks and tick-borne diseases.

Romero, V. C. (2015). Everyday law for immigrants. Routledge.

Taumoepeau, S. (2015). 11 Air transportation and tourism linkages in the South Pacific islands. Tourism in Pacific Islands: Current Issues and Future Challenges, 48, 183.

Taumoepeau, S. (2015). 11 Air transportation and tourism linkages in the South Pacific islands. Tourism in Pacific Islands: Current Issues and Future Challenges, 48, 183.

Waxman, A. G., Buenconsejo-Lum, L. E., Cremer, M., Feldman, S., Ault, K. A., Cain, J. M., & Diaz, M. L. (2016). Cervical Cancer Screening in the United States–Affiliated Pacific Islands: Options and Opportunities. Journal of lower genital tract disease, 20(1), 97-104.