Bill Goodwin's Travel Guides

Frommer's South Pacific

My own love affair with the South Pacific doesn't go back quite that far, but Tahiti and French Polynesia, Fiji, The Cook Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, and the Kingdom Tonga have conjured up romantic images of an earthly paradise since European sailors brought home tales of their tropical splendor and uninhibited people in the 1760s. When I washed ashore two centuries later, I quickly understood why these remote outposts came to have such a reputation. These are some of the most beautiful islands in the world—if not the most beautiful. They are blessed with some of most gorgeous beaches the planet has to offer, and their lagoons offer some of the globe’s most divine diving and spectacular snorkeling.

If you have ever thought of running away to one of these South Sea islands, I help you pick the best one for you. I give my outspoken opinions on what's worth your time and what's not. I quote exact prices, so you can plan the perfect trip whatever your budget. And I take you to off-the-beaten-path experiences and undiscovered gems, plus my take on the top attractions.

On the beach in Fiji

What's In the Book

• The best islands, beaches, honeymoon destinations, family vacations, cultural experiences, dining, nighttime entertainment, shopping, diving and snorkeling, sailing, Old South Sea towns, and off-beat travel exeriences. • Complete information to plan your trip: visitor information, visa and custom requirements, money, when to go, getting there and getting around, health and safety, online and specialized resources, even how to configure your laptop to get your email in the islands. • Money-saving tips on airfares, accommodations, and dining. • Suggested itineraries to help you make the most of your valuable time. • Details—and my opinions about—hotels, resorts, and restaurants in all price ranges on every island. • The best places to sunbathe, swim, snorkel, dive, sail, fish, hike, mountain bike, ride horseback, and play golf and tennis.

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An Excerpt from Frommer's South Pacific:

Not yet 40 years old, Robert Louis Stevenson was already famous—and wealthy—for such novels as Treasure Island and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde when he arrived in Samoa in search of a climate more suitable to his ravaged lungs. Stevenson and his entourage stayed to build a mansion known as Vailima on the slopes of Mount Vaea, overlooking Apia, where he lived lavishly and wrote more than 750,000 published words. He learned the Samoan language and translated "The Bottle Imp," his story about a genie, into it. It was the first work of fiction translated into Samoan. Stevenson loved Samoa, and the Samoans loved him. Great orators and storytellers in their own right, they called him Tusitala, the "Teller of Tales." On December 3, 1894, while preparing mayonnaise on his back porch, he suddenly clasped his hands to his head and collapsed. He died not of tuberculosis but of a cerebral hemorrhage. More than 200 grieving Samoans hacked a "Road of the Loving Hearts" up Mount Vaea to a little knoll below the summit, where they placed him in a grave with a perpetual view overlooking Vailima, the mountains, the town, the reef, and the sea he loved. Carved on his grave is his famous requiem: This be the verse you grave for me: Here he lies where he longed to be; Home is the sailor, home from the sea, And the hunter home from the hill.