snorkeling in Samoa urgently wanted

first of all snorkeling off Lalomanu beach is for me a total disappointment, having tried in a high tide as well (little fish - only small species, monotonous hard coral) so please dont come up with this idea.

second of all Palolo Deep Reserve has beaten all spots so far, having snorkeled also in Matarama beach and around and Uafato area...

so my question is: where in Samoa is really a good snorkeling spot with nice color coral (may be soft) and a lot of fish?

a) off a beach
b) by boat trip

thank you

I think you're in the wrong country, sorry!

I found the Palolo Deep Reserve pathetic, so if that's the best you've seen...
The snorkelling off Manase (Sawaii) was better than that, but still much, much poorer than in northern Vanuatu, the Solomons, PNG or Indonesia.
Statistically, the further you go from the Philippines-Indonesia-PNG "coral triangle" the less diverse the marine life.
And of course in densely populated Samoa fishing must have its impact, too.

I thought Palolo deep was fascinating... I saw a large barracuda, small sea turtles, a small shark, octopi and dozens of species of colourful tropical fish on my several visits there. But then again, I have not been to these other fabulous snorkelling destinations further to the west.

I definately have to say the coral was a hundred times better in Thailand than in Samoa, but the fish life was not as diverse (surprisingly)

Go to Taufua at Lalomanu... There is a dive operation there and they can take you out to excellent locations around Nu'utele and Namu'a islands just off the east coast. Here you will see many different species of corals.

thank you for reactions, palolo deep with respect to a variety of fish still takes the cake, even after visiting and snorkeling off Namua isl. The trick is that you have to get much further right straight off the small bay (in palolo deep)... Some nice drops, corals and a lot of fish.