Ilha de Páscoa

Ilha de Páscoa is in the South Pacific, more than 3,500 km from the Chilean coast, and belongs to the Valparaíso Region. Locals call it Rapa Nui, the same name as the Polynesian people who live there and the language they speak. The island is triangular, about 164 km², with a volcano at each corner. Almost the entire population lives in Hanga Roa, the village on the west coast where the airport, the port and the lodgings are located.

Much of the island is Parque Nacional Rapa Nui, a UNESCO World Heritage site, managed by the indigenous community Ma'u Henua. The park contains the moai, the stone statues representing ancestors, and the ahu, the ceremonial platforms where they were erected. On the southeast coast, the fifteen moai of Ahu Tongariki stand at the foot of Rano Raraku, the quarry where almost all the statues were carved. In the north, Anakena beach offers light sand, coconut trees and the moai of Ahu Nau Nau; nearby, Te Pito Kura holds the largest moai ever raised on an ahu.

In the southwest, the crater of Rano Kau holds a lagoon, and on its rim is Orongo, the ceremonial village of the bird-man cult. Inland, the seven moai of Ahu Akivi face the sea, and the Puna Pau crater shows the red stone of the pukao, the headdresses of the statues. Closer to the village, Ahu Vinapu has walls of precisely fitted blocks.

In Hanga Roa, the Tahai complex attracts visitors at sunset, the Museo Antropológico Padre Sebastián Englert tells the island’s history, and the Iglesia de la Santa Cruz displays saints carved in the Rapa Nui style. The moai and the ahu are sacred to the Rapa Nui people: they must not be touched or climbed on. To enter the park sites you must buy the ticket in advance and, at most sites, be accompanied by an accredited guide.

This destination brings together 1 city: Hanga Roa.