Visiting Easter Island Travel Documentary (Isla de Pascua - Rapa Nui)

Sometimes a once in a lifetime opportunity presents itself and you take it. Traveling to Easter Island (known locally as Rapa Nui and in Spanish as Isla de Pascua) was something we never thought possible in our lifetimes. However, when a short-time discounted airfare was available, we snapped it up and with an opportunity to explore the island slowly, we spent time hiking, walking and renting a vehicle to cover as much as the island as possible. The following Easter Island travel video is our best attempt to document our day to day adventure in the form of a series of vlogs from Day 1 to Day 7. We feel that if you're going to experience the best Easter Island has to offer you had better give yourself a 4 to 7 days.
Our visit Easter Island travel guide documentary covers some of the top attractions including all of the various moai statues, beaches and best locations for sunset and sunrise photos. We also cover off-the-beaten-path activities you won't find in a typical Easter Island tourism brochure.
Visiting Easter Island Travel Documentary (Isla de Pascua - Rapa Nui) Polynesia Video Transcript:
After close to a month travelling around Chile, Sam and I hopped on a plane to visit Easter Island, known locally as Rapa Nui. This was the closest we were ever going to get to this remote speck in the ocean, which also happens to be the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle. We gave ourselves one full week to explore Isla de Pascua, and what follows is a travel guide of our time there. We hiked ancient volcanoes, stood face to face with the moai, watched spectacular sunrises and sunsets, and road tripped around the island while wild horses ran alongside. It was an incredible week and we hope this video will inspire you to plan your own visit to Easter Island.
Rano Kau is 324 meters tall and it is located on the southwestern tip of Rapa Nui. We hiked all the way from town, and because of it’s gradual incline, we found it to be a relatively easy activity. That being said, we would recommend doing it early in the morning, since there were very few shaded areas along the way.
Orongo is a village and ceremonial site located just past the Rano Kau Crater. Unfortunately, it started pouring rain shortly after we reached the site, so we didn’t get to visit, but we made plans to return later that week.
That evening we made our way into Hanga Roa to watch the sun set from the harbour. There were lots of surfers out on the water, and the waves kept rolling in and crashing against the rocks.
After the market we took a walk to Ahu Tahai, which is a ceremonial complex that holds 3 different ‘ahus’ or platforms with moai. Perhaps the most famed of the three is Ahu Ko Te Riku, which stands out from the rest because it has restored eyes.
Having already visited Ahu Tahai by day, we still made it a point to come in the late afternoon. The complex is just a short walk to the north end of town, and it also happens to be the best place to catch the sunset on the island. From this spot you can watch the sun paint the sky all shades of persimmon, pink and gold, before finally setting behind the moai and then dipping beneath the ocean.
Rano Raraku is yet another volcano crater found on the island, and it is also the site of the quarry that supplied the stone for the hundreds of moai that can be found on the island. The quarry is believed to have been in use for a span of 500 years up until the early 18th century when activity ceased. It would also appear that this site was abandoned in a rush since many of the moai here are unfinished.
After seeing the moai scattered on the slopes of the volcano, we took a little detour and hiked into the crater. We also spotted wild horses and a few moai inside the crater, which was quite unexpected.
From there we continued on to Ahu Tongariki for a quick visit. This site is home to 15 moai, making it the biggest ‘ahu’ on the island.
The best place to catch the sunrise in Rapa Nui is at Ahu Tongariki. We made the drive in the dark and we arrived just as the sky was beginning to show it’s soft morning colours.
One of the best decisions we made on our trip was to rent a car so that we would have the ability to explore all of Easter Island. On one particular afternoon, we hopped in the car and decided to drive the full island loop. We got to enjoy landscapes, the waves crashing along the rocky shores, and we also encountered many wild horses!
And just like that our week on Easter Island was up! Rapa Nui is one of the most fascinating places we have ever visited, and we loved getting to explore every inch of the island.
Now it’s over to you. Have you been to Easter Island? Is it a place you’d like to visit? Let us know in the comments below.
This is part of our Travel in Easter Island Rapa Nui (Isla de Pascua) series.
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Music in this video courtesy of Audio Network