Beach Fales: Practical Details?

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping to visit Samoa next summer, and I'm planning a (mostly) low-budget trip.

Three questions about fales:

1) Where do people normally keep their backpacks/luggage? Where do people store important belongings like passports?

2) Do fales typically have shared showers? I realize that showers would almost always be cold, but just wondering if I could expect them in a low-budget fale.

3) I'm guessing that fales typically don't have electricity or internet connection. Am I right?

Thanks in advance!

H

Reading your questions I am very uncertain if you have a proper idea about what a Beach Fale is. 'Fale' is the Samoan word for "house", so basically a Beach Fale is a house at the beach. Traditionally, Samoan fales (houses) are a rectangle or circle of wooden posts with a roof on it. No walls. And many of the beach fales are just that:

You sleep on a mattress on the floor under a mosquito net. No furniture, except a chair maybe. So your baggage is left in the open. Maybe you put a towel on it. If you have a vehicle, use the trunk.

You keep your valuables with you. If that is not possible you hide them as good as possible. Make it hard to get to them. Don't trust anyone with them, not other travelers too. In my traveling life I've experienced more theft from fellow travelers than from locals.

Of course there is no shower in it. Where could it be? All sanitary facilities are shared. The water is not heated. Never. Not really cold either though. Nothing is cold in the tropics.

Usually there is a lamp in the fale, so there is electricity. Not always a plug though. Some few resorts have a WiFi hotspot. You can buy dongles for prepaid Internet access. Smartphones will give you access too, almost everywhere in the country. At least that should not be a problem.

Having said that, I need to mention that there are closed Beach fales too, nowadays, to allow more privacy and more safety for the baggage. You will miss what is the real point with staying in a Beach Fale though, the breeze and the openness. But one cannot have it all.

Some of the closed fales might have a fan. The Savaiian Hotel even has some with own bathrooms. All these are fales (houses, bungalows), but I would not include them in the term Beach Fales anymore. A real Beach Fale is like a wooden tent, not more than that ...

Hi there,

Thanks for your reply, and sorry if my questions were misworded.

I do understand that fales don't have walls. My question re: showers was whether I could expect fale compounds/resorts to actually have shared showers on premises generally. My assumption was actually that I would have to access showers separately (eg. that I could only really stay at a fale for a night or two, and would then have to return to town for such amenities). Anyway, thanks for the clarification. I gather by your response that I could probably expect showers/bathrooms onsite.

Are there businesses/organizations that offer storage of items such as passports in Apia, if there really is no capacity to store valuables in a fale type setting?

Thanks... appreciate your insight.

H

I admit that I could not imagine a place with people having no shower :-) You will not find that in Samoa. Yes, every beach fale place will have facilities. You share with fellow travelers, sometimes with the family, but there always is a shower.

I do not know a place in Samoa where you could safely store baggage and especially valuables. On the other hand - I never heard of passports being stolen. No market here for foreign passports. Or even credit cards. Carry little cash and avoid leaving fancy things easy to grab.

The often overlooked advantage of open fales in regard of theft is that the thief would be in the open too and can be seen by everyone around ... Closed fales only seem to be safer, unless they can be locked (which is not always the case)..

1) Where do people normally keep their backpacks/luggage? Where do people store important belongings like passports?

Usually, you keep bags in your fale. But most places had a safe where you could lock up your money belt. Or you could be extra cautious and always wear your money belt, but this is clearly not an option when swimming. Do research though, there were some reports a few years ago about people having valuables stolen from the fale owners. I am guessing this is rare, but do your due diligence.

2) Do fales typically have shared showers? I realize that showers would almost always be cold, but just wondering if I could expect them in a low-budget fale.

Yes--there will be communal showers. Some fales even have solar heaters that get the temperature up to luke warm. Samoa does have sufficient water, so you won't have to worry about being grungy :).

3) I'm guessing that fales typically don't have electricity or internet connection. Am I right?

I had one fale that had a single 40-watt light bulb and had a door. That was the most high-tech fale I stayed in. I wouldn't be surprised if some common areas offered limited internet access, but it has been too long since I traveled to know.

Hi
I spent 2 months in samoa, mainly at fales in July/Aug, I caught the bus so always had my bag in the fale. My main advice I was told by a fellow traveller many years ago.
Never take something you would cry over if it was lost or stolen
Obviously you need your passport. I take an old phone, and normally no computer or camera. This year I stayed at Lynns getaway in Apia and they held my larger luggage and valuables when I headed to the beach. On Savaii I left luggage at Lusias in Salelologa but i found i could lock the fale at janes ( I carry a small bicycle lock) and Vai moana and lauiula had a safe at the office.
I kept a facebook page called aba samoa while I travelled and posted a lot of info about prices and a lot of photos of the fales while I travelled. You may find it useful.