First step: Make your choice from remote idylls to sumptuous new resorts. Then make sure to get an agent who knows the territory

A sign at the tiny airstrip on the island of Ofu, American Samoa, is painted with popular destinations: TOKYO 4,190 MILES, L.A. 4,560 MILES, AUCKLAND 1,625 MILES, HONOLULU 2,330 MILES. It serves as a reminder of the huge distances of the South Pacific, compared with the relatively small puddle-hops of the Atlantic.

Clearly this is not going to be easy territory, especially if you're budget-minded. An assiduous travel agent should know ways of keeping the costs down, but the key to inexpensive flights is the Polypass. Developed more than ten years ago by Polynesian Airlines, it allows multiple stops on the same bargain-price ticket. Copycat passes are sold by other small national airlines and are available for short triangular routings such as Auckland-Tonga-Samoa-Auckland, as well as more lengthy tours such as Auckland-Apia-Pago Pago-Apia- Sydney-Nadi-Apia-Tonga-Auckland. A judicious mix of long-haul flights and one or more air passes is often all you'll need. But do get your travel agent to check the small print, since the terms and conditions of these inexpensive fares vary.

Prices quoted are for the current month, which is in the rainy season; the dry season is from May through October. The nearest U.S. government agencies are on American Samoa, a territory administered by the Department of the Interior, in the Executive Office Building in Utulei, Pago Pago (684-633-4116).

Ofu, American Samoa
With its magnificent beach and congenial owners, Vaoto Lodge makes the best base of activity. It has five wooden huts, each with a fan and a simple shower, and a homely "lounge" with a VCR and a communal dinner table. For $35 per day, you can even rent the owners' truck. Full board is an extra $15 per person (684-655-1120; vaotolodge.com; doubles, $40; v).

Having had their fill of Ofu's beach, most visitors will want to move on to Upolu, the main island of Western Samoa. On the way, it is difficult to avoid making a stopover in Pago Pago (on the neighboring island of Tuituila), a town of incessant drizzle and dreadful hotels—except for one. The Sadie Thompson Inn has been freshly reconstructed on the site of an old bar named for the character in Somerset Maugham's short story "Rain," which was set here. The food is decent (684-633-5981; sadiethompsoninn.com; doubles, $135-$185; entrées, $17-$29).

Upolu, Western Samoa
Vailima was Robert Louis Stevenson's final home and is now a museum (685-20798). His library contains first editions of his pre-Samoan hits (Kidnapped, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Treasure Island) and the ten books he completed during his five years in Samoa. The unexpurgated version of The Beach at Falesá is particularly revealing of the South Pacific in the colonial era. A steep climb up Mount Vaea takes you to his grave.