We spent four days on Easter Island to visit the iconic moai statues (plus a fifth day travelling back to Santiago). Easter Island is a very long way from anywhere. It’s remote and expensive and there’s not a huge amount to do here other than the iconic moai. Our accommodation was terrible and as a tourist, I felt like a rather unwelcome but necessary source of much needed income, rather than a welcome guest. However, the island is fascinating and ruggedly beautiful, so I think I would still recommend visiting.

Getting There

There are daily flights between Santiago and Hanga Roa. Departure is a little complicated, as Easter Island is not quite international, not quite domestic, so has its own (not particularly obvious) departure area.

Getting Around

With three full days on the island, we spent the first and third following the two main circuits; North East and South West. Both are around 30 miles in length. There are plenty of tour options, but we opted to rent a car and do our own thing. On the middle day, we went for a hike along the coast which covers the area in between.

Where we Stayed

We stayed at the Hostal Sunset. The accommodation is well located with balconies with great views over the South Pacific. However, I wouldn’t recommend staying here; the rooms are tired, damp and mouldy.

Itinerary

Day 1	Flight to Easter Island Accommodation x 4 Walk round Hanga Roa Tahai Dinner at Donde la Tia Sonia
Day 2	North East Circuit Akahanga Tongariki Rano a Rararaku Te Pito Kura Anakena Dinner at Te Moana
Day 3	Museo Rapanui Ana Kakenga
Day 4	South West Circuit Ana Kai Tanga Rano Kau Orongo Vinapu Puna Pau Ahu Akivi Ana Te Pahu
(Day 5)	Flight to Santiago

Attractions

1	Tahai
2	Akahanga
3	Tongariki
4	Rano a Rararaku
	Te Pito Kura
5	Anakena
6	Museo Rapanui
7	Ana Kakenga
8	Ana Kai Tanga
9	Rano Kau
10	Orongo
11	Vinapu
12	Puna Pau
13	Ahu Akivi
14	Ana Te Pahu

Day 1

Flight to Easter Island

Today, we’re flying 2350 miles west to Easter Island; a tiny dot in the South Pacific. It’s an early start as we head for the airport and attempt to check in for our flight. Easter Island belongs to Chile, so we proceed to the domestic departure gate, but are sent away and told to go to the second floor. The second floor appears to be just airline offices. We think we’ve misunderstood, so try to the international departure gate. Again, we’re sent to the second floor. So, we descend to the second floor, past a range of offices and storerooms and finally find the Easter Island departure area.

We have to complete a detailed Easter Island arrival form and pass through immigration. We produce our Chilean departure cards, but are told to put them away until we leave Chile. We are then issued with identical cards to present for our non-departure from Chile. It’s all very confusing. We board the plane and I spend the five hour flight watching Bohemian Rhapsody and eating the worst cheese sandwich ever.

We arrive at Easter Island – the runway runs almost the entire width of the island and has cows and horses grazing either side. First, before we are even allowed to enter the terminal building, we have to pay our National Park entry fees of $80 each. As I already mentioned, Easter Island is expensive.

Then, the other 298 passengers are picked up, greeted with flower garlands and taken to their hotels. The airport is locked up (there’s only one flight a day), leaving us standing alone in the car park. Our accommodation (also not cheap) included complimentary hotel pick up. We are not happy. We manage to find a taxi to take us to Hostal Sunset.

Hostal Sunset

The landlady apologises for failing to collect us (says her friend told her the flight was delayed) and tries to put flowers round our necks in a typical Polynesian welcome, while the old man continues to rant about being abandoned and having to pay $10 for a taxi. He has a point; you can see/hear the daily plane land and then take off again from virtually anywhere on the island! To make matters worse, the room is damp and smelly and there’s no wifi.

Hanga Roa

Once we’ve checked in, we go for a walk round Hanga Roa; the island’s only town. It’s very busy – tonight is the crowning of the island’s king and queen.

Tahai

We get to see our first moai statues, at Tahai; a group of five plus two individual statues on a cliff nearby.

Dinner at Donde la Tia Sonia

We find a beachside shack for some dinner; Donde la Tia Sonia. I order shrimp and cheese empanadas. I appreciate that these are going to contain shrimp and cheese, but didn’t quite get my head round the fact that these are the only ingredients; an enormous blob of glutinous cheese and a few shrimps; cue chronic indigestion.

We walk along the coast and back through town, stopping at one of the island’s three Wifi hotspots to contact home.

After a brief interlude to watch the firework display, we retire ready for a full-on moai onslaught in the morning. Easter Island is very expensive because almost everything (apart from fish and chicken) is imported from thousands of miles away. But they certainly didn’t skimp on the fireworks.

Day 2 – North East Circuit

We had a good night’s sleep, until 6.45, when the resident cockerels decide it’s dawn. Today, that’s fine because we haven’t adjusted to the time zone. Tomorrow, however I will probably hatch plans to murder cockerels.

We plan to hire the hostel car to follow the ‘North East Circuit’. This takes the island’s only paved road past various archaeological sites, finishing at a beach. The weather forecast for today is hideous, but tomorrow a cruise ship is due at this tiny island with minimal infrastructure, so we are torn between a storm and a massive influx of visitors. We settle for the storm. There are car hire options in Hanga Roa, but Hostal Sunset has a Jeep which residents can rent for $60 a day. So, we sett off in the in the little Jeep, bouncing along the road in search of the island’s main attractions.

Akahanga

First, the ancient settlement of Akahanga, where we get caught in a torrential downpour.

Tongariki

Next, Tongariki; a spectacular row of 15 moai on a clifftop. This is the Easter Island of my imagination; this row of implausible statues, staring at you as you try and fathom out how and why…

An added bonus; the combination of the island’s remoteness and the terrible weather means we have this amazing sight to ourselves.

Rano a Raraku

Then, on to the quarry at Raraku where the stone for the moai was carved. The site is littered with hundreds of rejected, half carved Moai – it’s quite a sight!

Te Pito Kura

Next on the circuit is Te Pito Kura, where a 10 metre long moai lies face down in the earth.

Anakena

The road ends at the beach of Anakena. Here, a group of 7 moai sit on a rock above the beach. It’s not exactly beach weather – the wind is fierce and it has rained intermittently all day. But I am determined to swim in the South Pacific. So, we decide to go for a swim (separately as we needed to bring our passports to access the Park and we don’t want to leave them unattended on the beach).

After our swim, we head for the changing rooms, but they cost $1. I’m not prepared to pay $1 to put on my pants, so we drive back to town still in our swimwear. We return to town, stopping en route (the old man is finding it difficult to drive as he’s accidentally put both legs through one leg hole of his pants).

Once showered and dressed, we set off in search of food. This is not as simple as it seems. Most restaurants are closed and we enter several restaurants which appear to be open, only to be told they’re closed. Next we try some supermarkets; one is closed, the other is open but doesn’t have much food – the shelves are fairly empty unless you include the cats.

Dinner at Te Moana

In the evening we try again. We find a restaurant at the third attempt – Te Moana. It’s rather expensive; a fish and chip platter costs £30, but it’s very good.

Day 3

We wake up to to find out that the old man’s father has died. It’s not unexpected, but still sad news. Outside it’s still raining. It’s as if the heavens have decided to join the old man in his tears. A brief amusing interlude; the butter at breakfast has been modelled into a moai.

Museo Rapanui

We opt for a quiet day with a walk along the coast. We walk 8 miles in total, stopping first at the museum; Museo Rapanui to learn about the history of the island and its moais.

The museum is open from 9.30 am daily, except Mondays. It closes at 5.30 pm during the week and 12.30 pm at weekends. Entry is free.

Ana Kakenga

From the museum, we carry on to Ana Kakenga; a cave in a lava tube with two ‘windows’ overlooking the ocean. The entrance is tiny. I may be descended from a long line of miners, but I don’t do enclosed spaces, so the old man goes in while I stay on the surface.

On the way back, it finally stops raining and we catch our first glimpse of the sun in days. We head into town to see what impact a ship with a capacity of 3800 people has on an island with a population of 6700. The answer is none at all; the shops and restaurants are mostly closed and the cruisers have returned to their ship. The ship doesn’t fit in the tiny harbour; it has moored off the coast and passengers had to be ferried to the island. Apparently, the water was so rough, most passengers opted not to come ashore. We find a shop which makes and sells wonderful oven- fresh tuna empanadas and head home, followed by a very hopeful dog, to try and dry some of our ever increasing pile of wet clothes.

Day 4 – South West Circuit

It’s our final day on Easter Island and our first nice day. Until now, our time here had combined the worst weather of our trip with the worst accommodation; outside has been wet and windy and miserable while inside has been damp and mouldy and miserable. But today the sun is shining and we ‘borrow’ ($60) the landlady’s jeep for another outing.

We’re doing the South West Circuit (basically, the runway runs almost the width of the island and the road forms a figure 8 around the runway).

Ana Kai Tanga

Our first stop is Ana Kai Tanga – a cave with petroglyphs.

Rano Kau

Next, we stop to take a walk along the rim of Rano Kau. This is a rather spectacular walk round a crater containing a reed covered lake overlooking the ocean.

Orongo

Onwards to the ancient ceremonial village of Orongo.

Vinapu

Then, Vinapu which has a collection of fallen moai, with stone body parts lying scattered across the cliff top.

Puna Pau

We continue to take a walk around Puna Pau – a quarry where moai topknots were carved.

Ahu Akivi

Next stop, Ahu Akivi. Here, seven moai standing facing the sea. These are the only statues facing the sea, the others all face inland.

Ana Te Pahu

And finally, Ana Te Pahu. Here, you can climb down into a lava tube cave.

That completes our tour of Easter Island. We drive back into Hanga Roa through the rush hour…

On our fourth evening, we finally find the proper supermarket and buy some dinner. After we’ve eaten, we return to the shore to watch the sunset. It doesn’t happen; the sun disappears behind a huge bank of clouds instead. And that pretty much sums up our time in Easter Island, back to the forlorn Hostal Sunset to pack for our return to the mainland.

(Day 5)

Flight to Santiago

We awake to the inevitable sounds of rain and cockerels. It’s been an uneventful night, apart from the old man waking to find a cat on his chest. Today, we are returning to civilisation. Although I have developed a cough and chest infection and am worried someone will notice and deny me boarding. After breakfast, we check out of our hostel. The bill is quoted in dollars then converted to pesos at a very creative exchange rate. The old man stands his ground and eventually she backs down and agrees to use the official exchange rate.

It’s a long day of travelling; a five hour flight backwards through time zones, shuttle bus into Santiago, then the metro and a short walk, finally reaching our apartment at 8 pm.

• Trip taken: February 2019
• Updated: April 2023