Which island?

Hi,

Somewhere around April/May I will visit Fiji. After that I would like to visit a more "off the beaten track" Pacific island which is not too expensive to get to and get around. Any recommendations? Is Samoa a good choice?
Thanks.

I don't think of Samoa as being 'off the beaten track' but I'm sure there are interesting things to see and do there.

American Samoa is definitely off the beaten track and well worth the effort to get there, especially if you can visit Ofu Island. Photos of American Samoa: http://www.michaelandersongallery.com/gallery/samoan-islands/

Lodging on Ofu: http://www.vaotolodge.com/

Samoa is fully on the tourism radar...

Want to get off the track? Think Niue, Tokelau or the Fijian outer islands... Yes, and American Samoa, too... Almost no tourists there, shamefully.

islandboi - agreed. Palau and Yap are two I've always wanted to see. As well as Bikini Atoll :)

I think you could actually find some of the least touristed islands in the region right in Fiji. In all my life I have only ever met one westerner who has been to anywhere in the Lau Islands, for example... they are less touristed than Niue, American Samoa, and probably even Tokelau.

Samoa is popular, and and with only 2 sizeable islands, there is not much scope for getting really far from other tourists.

Or how about Rotuma - 36 hour boat ride that happens once a month! That oughta limit the tourists!

Im not sure if it qualifies for "off the beaten track" (for me it does) but consider the Isle of Of Pines in New Caledonia.

ASFAIK, Rotuma is also accessible by much more frequent flights from Suva.
Still hardly a touristy place, of course.

To me, mandja, the Isle of Pines certainly would not qualify as off the beaten track - but definitely as one of the most gorgeous isands anywhere!

Isle of Pines gets visited by just about every Australian cruise ship.
I would recommend Solomon Islands. There is a weekly flight from Nadi, as well as daily flights from Brisbane, Australia, and there is a huge variety of cultural experiences. A number of islands are now easily accessible by boat from the capital Honiara. Much of the country is not touched by commercial tourism.

Got pipped at the post by Ozziegiraffe, I also recommend Solomon Islands.

"Isle of Pines gets visited by just about every Australian cruise ship." - yes, that is true but we are talking a few hours maybe 1 per week and invariably the passengers stay on Kuto beach, so Ive been told by friends who have been on those cruises.

I don't recommend Samoa. American Samoa is awesome though.

Oh, and anywhere that is going to be "Off the beaten track" in the South Pacific will be REALLY expensive to get to and leave from...

Except for the bits that are in Indonesia.

#13 if the OP is already going to Fiji, there are numerous places in the Pacific that can be reached easily, and not too expensively. Also, since the advent of Pacific Blue, fares are much cheaper from Australia (I am now paying about half of what I used to pay for return flights Brisbane to Honiara.)
travel to the remote parts of Solomon Islands can be very cheap if you travel like the locals within the country.

Besides my earlier recommendation of Ofu Island in American Samoa, I can second OzzieGiraffe's recommendation of the Solomon Islands. It is last frontier for paradise in the South Pacific, it has just enough tourism infrastructure to be comfortable but still feel WAY off the tourist track, and there are endless opportunities to explore even more remote areas. The Solomon's are just plain amazing.

One more area that looks incredible is the New Ireland Province of Papua New Guinea. I'm off to explore that area later this month and will report back here when I return. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jxrCaJnJWY

New Ireland is one of my favourite corners in the Pacific so far, and I actually liked it much more than any place in the Solomons!

Thanks for all the comments. It's gonna be difficult to choose just one place to go to :)