Next month, the sunshine coast in Savaii will be buzzing with excitement and activity when Manase Village play host to the inaugural Vodafone Manase Beach Festival planned for White Sunday weekend.
Coinciding with the annual palolo rise, the one-day event will be held on the malae in the centre of Manase.
From live music, various food stalls, dance performances, beach bar, bouncy castle, activities and games for the kids; the Manase Beach Festival aims to inject some life and positivity into a community hit hard by the sudden downturn in tourism.
Organised by the executive team of Asiata Courtney and Ariane Stevenson along with Ieti and Jade Sanerivi, the Manase beach festival has the full support of the village and have brought together all five beachfront properties to co-ordinate and support the event.
Regina’s Beach Fales, Tanu Beach Fales, Vacations Beach Fales, Tailua Beach Fales, Jane’s Beach Fales and Stevensons at Manase Hotel will all work together to make the inaugural Vodafone Manase Beach festival a success.
Owner of Stevensons at Manase, Asiata Courtney Stevenson says they are definitely looking to make the Manase Beach Festival an annual event and looks forward to bringing the locals together for what promises to be the event of the year, in a location renowned for being the entertainment capital of Savaii.
“We want to bring some positivity and life back into our community with the Manase Beach Festival” said Asiata “the flow-on effect by the sudden downturn in the economy is impacting everyone from our hotel and beach properties to the shops, taxis, fishermen and local families. We want to create some positive energy and bring some revenue back into the village economy.”
“We’ve been wanting to do this festival for quite some time now as part of our efforts to revitalise this part of Savaii, which in the 90s and early 2000s, used to be buzzing with both local and international visitors in the hundreds who came to enjoy Manase’s beach party scene and vibrant entertainment.”
One of the biggest draws of the event will be the all-day live music performances from local band “Poly Flavour” who will be setting the mood with their smooth island music sounds while festival goers enjoy the many food options on offer.
There will be lots of family friendly activities and kids will appreciate the bouncy castles, giveaways, games and activities organised by the festival’s main sponsor, Vodafone.
“We’re very thankful to Vodafone for coming on board as our major sponsor and making this all possible” said Asiata “We wouldn’t be able to pull this off without the additional support from Samoa Tourism Authority (STA), Bank South Pacific (BSP), and the National Bank of Samoa (NBS) – thank you for backing our business and local community in Savaii.”
“Most importantly I want to thank the citizens of Manase and Matais for being so supportive and getting behind this event – their contribution is crucial to making this festival a success. Hopefully we can build on this experience and keep it going for years to come.”
The Vodafone Manase Beach Festival comes at the tail end of many activities planned for palolo rising and White Sunday, which will be happening on Savaii during the same week. Manase’s Beach Festival will kick off at 12pm – 7pm on Saturday 10, October and includes a small cover charge of $5 tala and free for children under 12 years old.
