American Samoa's new tourism bureau wants to more than double the number of hotel beds in the country within 4 years.
The territory currently has 200 beds, and the government has created a new tourism bureau in order to grow the market.
Tom Drabble, Chair of the Pago Pago Visitors Association, says in order to grow, the focus needs to be on attracting visitors from Australia and New Zealand, taking advantage of the 12 weekly international flights from their markets into Samoa.
"We don't have sufficient airline traffic from [the] north to be really making any difference, plus it is very ,very expensive of course, from Hawaii. But I think we have a lot to offer a partnership with Apia and the wholesalers in Australia and New Zealand, because we're only 90 miles away, and it's a whole new experience, because you know, it's american territory."
Tom Drabble says the Government also needs to come up with a plan to encourage investors into the tourism industry.
