The mystery of Easter Island's first settlers remains just that – a mystery. Today, most anthropologists believe the island was settled as part of the great wave of Polynesian emigration. (The oldest of the Moai, as the great monoliths are called, date to 700 A.D.) The society that produced the Moai flourished during the 16th and 17th centuries, but population growth, deforestation and food shortages led to its collapse. Today some 3,400 souls inhabit for beginners this 64-square-mile island, which lies some 2,200 miles equidistant from Tahiti and South America. Easter Island’s chiefs and priests had previously justified their elite status by claiming relationship to the gods, and by promising to deliver prosperity and bountiful harvests. They buttressed that ideology by monumental architecture and ceremonies designed to impress the masses, and made possible by food surpluses extracted from the masses.
There are so sights and most tour companies only visit the most famous or picturesque. Getting around Hanga Roa – the only town on the island – is straightforward and you rarely need to get a taxi as it’s so compact. Before visiting Easter Island, I’d been recommended to buy food on the mainland in Santiago to take with me. I’ll start with a basic overview and then go into detail about the exact prices you can expect to pay for food, transportation, and accommodation on Easter Island.
t century
With a guide, you’re able to understand what you’re looking at instead of walking around in wonder but not really understanding its significance and “Easter eggs” . They don’t have traditional meters so you’ll have to negotiate a rate beforehand. Payment is by cash (ideally CLP but I’m sure they’d be willing to take USD if you ask) and a round-up or 10% tip is expected. In the past, you used to be able to explore Rapa Nui National Park on your own but with the new changes where you can only visit with a guide, it changes the calculus of whether having a car is even worth it. This is why we’re in favour of seeing the island with a guide such as Green Island Tours, because there are so many hidden stories that you won’t get from exploring on your own.
The researchers tracked farming patterns first by dating 286 obsidian artifacts — mostly tools for farming and other daily activities — from the three sites, using a technique based on the rate at which obsidian absorbs water. Stevenson and colleagues then examined whether numbers of artifacts increased or decreased over time and how those changes corresponded to historical rainfall and temperature shifts. After plentiful rain enabled farming to expand at an inland site starting around 1200, poor-quality soil triggered cultivation cutbacks starting around 1705 or 1710, they say. ROCK ON Easter Islanders cultivated fields such as this with volcanic rocks that leached nutrients into the soil. New evidence indicates that this practice continued after Europeans reached the island in 1722. In August 2018, a law took effect prohibiting non-residents from staying on the island for more than 30 days.
This is important because they understand the importance of light, the extra time and care that’s required for good photos, and is someone that can handle the camera. Photography and timelapse set up in TahaiThe opportunities for incredible photography are through the roof on Easter Island. The raw landscape, rugged coastline, and of course, the moai are endlessly photogenic from all angles.
Despite taking some hits, Polynesian farmers outlasted European contact
One of the advantages of staying here is the inclusion of breakfast. Each evening, you can either let them or write on the whiteboard, what time you’d like to have breakfast. Breakfast is delivered straight to the room and comes with a healthy mix of fruit, bread, yogurt/cereal, a rotating dish (i.e omelette, Chilean deli/cheese), cake, juice, coffee, and tea. Takarua Lodge only has 7 units and it’s a simple construction that’s simple, elegant, and modern that’s fitting with the island’s vibe. Each is designed like the wooden bungalows of Tahiti especially with its pointed high ceiling and open square space divided between the bedroom and bathroom. While it should be easy to trust that Easter Island properties on Booking.com, Expedia, or Hotels.com are on the official list of approved hotels, it’s still worth checking the second step of the Single Entry Form .
1000, and developed advanced social, political, and religious systems that produced the noble moai. Much knowledge about the history and traditions of the Rapa Nui people have been lost to time. But there is much we do know about the statues and the rich culture that built them—and how they can be protected for ages to come.
These are the three areas with the least low-lying coastal land and, apart from Poike, the furthest areas from Rano Raraku. One ahu with several moai was recorded on the cliffs at Rano Kau in the 1880s but had fallen to the beach before the Routledge expedition. The statues found along the transport roads have wider bases than statues installed on ahu; this would facilitate more stable transport. Studies have shown fractures along the bases of the statues in transport; these could have arisen from rocking the statue back and forth and placing great pressures on the edges. The statues found mounted on ahu do not have wide bases, and stone chips found at the sites suggest they were further modified on placement.
Read This Next
While the moais are obviously the star attraction on Easter Island, make sure you at spend a bit of time admiring just how beautiful this coastline is. Definitely visit the Orongo Village when you’re checking out all the things to do on Easter Island. While Rano Kau in itself is breathtaking, and worth a visit at any time of day , Orongo offers the most fascinating insight into the history of the Rapa Nui people. There’s a lot of stories and history to be learned from this archaelogical site, but we will leave the details and stories to discover on your own adventure.
Only LAN Airlines flies one flight daily to Easter Island from Santiago, Chile. You need to add a 6 hour flight to whatever time it takes you to reach the Chilean capital, Santiago. Most people need to set aside an entire day to reach Santiago and then another to reach Easter Island. Easter Island belongs to Chile and is one of the most remote inhabited islands in the world. It is 1289 miles away from Pitcairn Island and 2182 miles away from the coast of Chile. Easter Island’s utter remoteness was one of the major factors that led to the development of a unique civilization on the island.