Easter Island
[June 2024] We started our southern hemisphere winter break with a 4 day trip to Rapa Nui (Easter Island). We thorougly enjoyed exploring the island! Click on any of the images below to open up a gallery!
- Flight prices vary wildy to Rapa Nui. I checked them periodically over two years on Kayak and jumped on them when I found them for $286RT. They are often $800RT. We went in June, which is low season because the rainy season is May and June, but we got lucky and had great weather. In any case, you always want to be prepared for rain and wind because the weather can change fast, even outside of rainy seaon.
- Park tickets are required, which are good for 10 days. As residents, we were able to buy the same tickets as citizens, which only cost about $25. Otherwise, they cost about $85.
- The documention required can be a bit confusing. You need a reservation on the island (you can show a booking.com reservation or similar), a return flight (soft copy is ok) and you need to complete an entry form before going to the airport (https://ingresorapanui.interior.gob.cl/). When you complete the form, it generates a reply that you need at the airport in Santiago. The reply came for us in less than 10 minutes, but it’s probably a good idea to compelte it a day or even week in advance.
- Guides are obligatory and expensive. About $100 per person per day. You can get that down to $60 or $50, but you will be in a big group. We used Easter Island Travel, which was in a couple. of our guidebooks and worked out well. They only do private tours. Prices are on their website and get much cheaper as your group size grows (to a max of about 10). We did two days of tours, which was about right (1 day of the essential southern coast and 1 day of everything else). You could get by with just one day of the southern coast and then visiting the few sites that you can visit without a guide, such as those close to town.
- There is only one town – Hanga Roa. We stayed at Cabanas Cristophe (https://www.booking.com/hotel/cl/cabanas-christophe.es.html), which were recommended in Lonely Planet and good value at about $120 for a cabin that could sleep up to 6. It’s 2kms from town (about 30 min walk or $5 cab ride). In town is generally double the cost, although you can get cheap airbnbs for less.
- 4 days was good for us. 5 would also be good. More is possible if you are keen to hike, swim, explore caves etc.. In that case, you will likely want to rent a car, which is generally about $50 or $60 a day from your accomodation.
- There are a lot of restaurants in town. Mostly they serve fish/tuna dishes. Burgers and pizza are also common. Prices are always about 50% higher than Santiago. Breakfast is often included at your accomodation. There are shops with the basics. Our cabana had a kitchen. It’s a good idea to bring lunch/snacks with you on an all day tour, as lunch options are slim outside of town.