Private jet to Samoa

Samoa consists of two large volcanic islands, Upolu and Savai'i, and a few small ones in the South Pacific, with a little over 205,000 people. Samoan and English are spoken, the currency is the tala, and village life and the church still set the rhythm of the week. Tourism is one of the main sources of income, with most visitors from New Zealand, Australia and the United States. Private clients come for the To Sua Ocean Trench, the beaches at Lalomanu, the lava fields and blowholes of Savai'i, Robert Louis Stevenson's house above Apia, and for meetings in the capital.

Faleolo International, on the north-west tip of Upolu about 45 minutes by road from Apia, is the airport for every long-range jet: 3,000 m of runway with an ILS. The two other airfields are short strips for turboprops. From Europe one fuel stop is enough in a Gulfstream G650 or a Global 7500, usually in North America or Hawaii; from Nadi in Fiji the flight is 2:11 h in a light jet.

Tell us the dates, the passengers and whether Savai'i or a neighbouring country is part of the trip; a consultant replies with options and prices.

Price tables

Prices are for the whole aircraft one way and do not include the permit, handling, stopover charges or passenger taxes. The tables use the straight line plus 10 % for the detour around closed and restricted airspace; from western Europe the track usually crosses North America with a stop on the US west coast or in Hawaii. A US stop means a US border check for everyone on board: an ESTA is valid on a private flight only if the operator has signed the Visa Waiver Program agreement, otherwise a US visa is needed. The Gulfstream G650 and the Global 7500 stop once, the Challenger 650 twice.

From European airports

Amsterdam - Apia is the cheapest one-stop option at EUR 280,000 in a G650, while the Challenger 650 costs EUR 215,000 from London and Amsterdam with two stops and about two and a half hours more on the way. On a trip of more than 21 hours the crew is augmented or changed, which the quote lists. Samoa lies just west of the date line, so a jet that leaves Europe in the evening lands two calendar days later by the local clock.

From Hawaii and California

From neighbouring islands, New Zealand and Australia

Pago Pago in American Samoa is 151 km away and costs EUR 7,500 in a Citation CJ3; it keeps the same clock time but is a calendar day behind. Nadi in Fiji - Apia costs EUR 12,500, Auckland in New Zealand - Apia EUR 20,000. From Hawaii a Praetor 600 takes 5:45 h for EUR 40,000. Taxes on the European start: from Paris or Nice the French solidarity tax per passenger rises with distance, reaching about EUR 2,100 on a flight to Samoa against about EUR 420 on a European hop; Vienna charges EUR 12 per passenger; German and Dutch departures (Dutch tax from 5.7 t) carry national taxes; British Air Passenger Duty spares aircraft under 5.7 t and applies its higher private-jet rate from 20 t with fewer than 19 seats. Samoan charges are shown in the quote.

Business jet price per flight hour

Heavy Jets from EUR 8,300 / hour

Light Jets from EUR 3,200 / hour

Ultra Long Range Jets from EUR 12,000 / hour

Super Midsize Jets from EUR 6,300 / hour

Very Light Jets from EUR 2,500 / hour

Long Range Jets from EUR 9,800 / hour

Midsize Jets from EUR 4,500 / hour

Turboprops from EUR 2,000 / hour

Price per seat

For any other route the calculator gives a first estimate.

Faleolo and the small airfields

• The permit for a non-scheduled flight comes from the Ministry of Works, Transport and Infrastructure: the request goes in at least seven days before departure, and approval must be held before the aircraft leaves its last airport before Samoa.
• The request includes the air operator certificate, registration and radio licence, crew documents and the charter contract; originals can be inspected.
• Pago Pago, with a 3,048 m runway, is the nearest diversion airport; the crew may also plan Nadi.
• We plan two weeks for permit, handler, parking and fuel.

To check which arrival time works, leave your number and a consultant will call.

The Samoan year

The temperature stays around 26 °C all year; the seasons differ in rain. June to September is the drier period, August usually the driest month and the busiest for visitors. November to April is the wet season, with January the wettest month and a risk of cyclones; Apia receives close to 3,000 mm of rain a year. December and January are also a peak, when families come home and New Zealanders and Australians are on holiday. Empty Legs are rare; the best chances are regional jets around Christmas and in the dry season.

Empty Legs

Empty Legs to Samoa happen when a jet that delivered a group flies home empty or an aircraft goes out to collect passengers. That is rare on a route this long, and we do not promise one. Regional jets from New Zealand, Australia and Fiji give better odds, and a scheduled flight to Auckland or Nadi plus an Empty Leg for the last sector can save a lot. Write to empty-legs@jets.flights with the direction and your flexible dates.

Dogs and cats

Samoa admits pets only with an import permit, and the conditions are written for a short list of origins, so a pet from Europe needs long preparation.

• Departure from the EU needs the standard set: microchip, EU pet passport, rabies vaccination given 21 days or more before travel, up to five animals.
• The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries issues the import permit before travel. Approved origins are American Samoa, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and the United States; animals from other countries are considered case by case, and a rabies antibody test can be required.
• Parasite treatments, vaccinations and a certificate from a government vet in the days before departure are set in the permit.
• The animal enters at Faleolo and is inspected on arrival; without the right papers it can be seized, sent back or destroyed at the owner's cost. Whether it may stay in the cabin of a private jet is confirmed in writing.
• Samoa is absent from the EU list of countries with simpler rules, so re-entry into the EU requires a rabies antibody result; with the blood sample taken at home before the trip there is no three-month wait. Dogs travelling on to Great Britain, Ireland, Malta, Finland or Norway are treated for tapeworm 1-5 days before arrival there.

Entry rules

Holders of EU passports going on to the UK need an electronic travel authorisation before that flight.

Booking steps

1. Send the route, the dates, the passengers with their nationalities and any onward plans to Fiji, Tonga or New Zealand.
2. We propose aircraft and stop and check the US entry rules if the stop is in Honolulu or on the mainland.
3. Offers come with operator, aircraft, stop and flight time, priced for the whole aircraft.
4. The signed contract is with the operator; payment is by bank transfer or card, and cancellation fees follow the operator's scale, which tightens as departure approaches.
5. We file the permit at least seven days ahead, book the handler, the parking or a repositioning to Nadi, and the car to Apia.

Questions about private flights to Samoa

• • How much does a private jet to Samoa cost?

  • London or Amsterdam - Apia in a Challenger 650 with two stops costs EUR 215,000 one way for the whole aircraft. A G650 from Amsterdam with one stop costs EUR 280,000.

• • How long is the flight from Europe?

  • About 21:17 h from London in a G650 or Global 7500 with one stop, and 23:55 h in a Challenger 650 with two.

• • Which airport do we use?

  • Faleolo International, about 45 minutes from Apia. Fagali'i and the Savai'i strips are too short for business jets.

• • How far ahead must the flight be requested?

  • The permit request must be filed at least seven days before departure; we recommend two weeks.

• • Do we need a visa?

  • No visa is needed for a visit of up to 60 days; the passport must be valid for six months after arrival.

• • Can the jet wait in Samoa?

  • The apron at Faleolo is small, so a long stay is agreed in advance; otherwise the aircraft repositions to Nadi or Auckland and returns for the flight home.

• • Why is Pago Pago a day behind?

  • American Samoa lies east of the date line, so the clock shows the same time as Apia but the calendar is one day earlier.

• • Can we take our dog?

  • Only with an import permit; Europe is not on the list of approved origins, so the case is examined individually and an antibody test can be required.

• • What is the time difference?

  • In the British winter Apia is 13 hours ahead of London; from late March to late October the gap is 12 hours.