A waterfront capital and the island of Upolu
Apia, on the north coast of Upolu, is Samoa's easy-going capital, with a waterfront, a busy produce market and a colourful fish market at dawn. Just above town is Villa Vailima, the home of Robert Louis Stevenson, who is buried on the summit of nearby Mount Vaea. Around Upolu, the south coast has beautiful beaches such as Lalomanu, where simple open-sided fale huts sit on the sand, and the To Sua Ocean Trench, a deep swimming hole reached by a long wooden ladder.