The first group of travel wholesalers from New Zealand under a familiarization programme funded by the United States government will arrive in American Samoa this week.
Six wholesalers and one media representative will spend two days in the territory.
The American Samoa Visitors Bureau executive director, David Vaeafe says the familiarization group is the first of three planned this year.
Mr Vaeafe says when a potential traveler visits a travel agent and asks about going to a particular destination for their holiday, a travel agent is 100 times more likely to sell it to them if they have had a chance to visit and experience the destination themselves.
He says 99 percent the world's travel industry has no idea the territory exists, so the visits are important to educate them on what American Samoa has to offer.
