Easter Island Things to Do

 
by pure1942
 
  •   Things to Do
    by pure1942
  •   Things to Do
    by pure1942
  •   Things to Do
    by pure1942
  •   Things to Do
    by pure1942
  •   Things to Do
    by pure1942
 
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Explore the Ana Kakenga cave

by sswagner

This cave has a fantastic setting. It begins with a very narrow entrance that will horrify some claustrophobic people. Yet, it does open up into a a lava tube. Once inside, two lights become visible. These are the two windows of the cave. They have views straight to the ocean. Below the windows are dropoffs to the rocky coast. This is a very photogenic area. The only drawback is that the cave is not necessarily easy to find. On the winding dirt road from Tahai, it can be found in the vicinity of a small islet off of the shore. The road curves at a point where this rock is directly ahead of you. At the curve is the unassuming cave entrance. It is small and will leave some wondering if this is actually it. I guess this is one advantage of mountain biking. By going slower, the entrance was easier to see. Some tours also stop here, although I had the place to myself at the time.

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Explore Ana Kai Tangata cave

by sswagner

This is sometimes referred to the "cannibal's cave", because some believe that the name of the cave suggests cannibalism occurred here. I do not find this possibility to be the most interesting feature of the cave. It is set against the spectacular coast in this area. There is a sign indicating the cave is nearby. A ramp leads down to the cave itself. Besides a great place to watch the sea, there are also some cave paintings visible. They include birds, which could possibly be associated with the "Birdman" cult that occured here. As one approaches the cave, they are visible straight ahead on the north wall of the cave. A flashlight always helps, but there was ample lighting when I visited. The back of the cave is not too deep.

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Explore the Ana Te Pahu cave

by sswagner

This is also referred to as the "Banana Cave" because of the vegetation at the cave entrance. There is a sign and parking area for this site. The ground drops into a depression before entering the cave. In this depression are various types of tropical vegetation. Natives would use caves like these because of the protection that it offered as well as the ability to grow crops at the cave entrance. Dripping water can be heard in the cave. Be sure to bring a flashlight.

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Anakena

by sswagner

Most of the island's coast is rocky with jagged lava formations, however there are two sandy beaches to be found on the north coast. Anakena is by far the most visited one. It has a large grove of Tahitian palm trees with coconuts to provide some shade. There are picnic facilities as well as restrooms at this beach. Sometimes, there are people selling crafts, food, and drinks. The beach itself is in a sheltered cove which is roped off after a point. There are some rocks towards one end of the beach, but most of it is sandy. The water was cool, but very swimmable in December. There are two platforms with moai at the site. The larger one is Ahu Nau Nau. There are a few petroglyphs at the base of the ahu (platform). The presence of the moai reminds the visitor that they are indeed on Easter Island. Needless to say, this is a great place to relax on the island.

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Ahu Akahanga

by sswagner

This is the site of an ahu (platform) with toppled moai and topknots to be found. At some point in time, the islanders began to pull down the moai of rival villages until no moai was left standing on the island. Akahanga is also rumored to be in the vicinity where the first king of the island, Hotu Matua is buried. Besides the platform, moai, and topknots scattered about, the ocean itself is quite a spectacle here. Tidepools are worth exploring at low tide, and the waves can be interesting to watch as they crash into the rocky coast. I found this area to be very scenic and worthy of a stop. Many people pass it by in favor of Rano Raraku or Tongariki. I can understand the need to get to the quarry (Rano Raraku) early, however it is always possible to stop here on the way back.

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Ahu Akivi

by sswagner

This area has seven moai which face the sea. That makes it unique since the others face inland. However, of the standing moai actually were facing their villages. The village for Akivi just happens to be between the moai and the sea. This is an easy drive or bike ride from Hanga Roa. It is to the north by a few miles. I liked to follow the unpaved road north from Tahai to get to it. There is a sign marking the site, and the trail to Maunga Terevaka also begins here. Each time I visited the area, it was not crowded.

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Watch a Sunset

by RawdgerDodger

One of the coolest things to do on Easter Island is to watch a sunset. There are many Moai's on the island and watching the sunset on the west side of the island is an incredible experience. First of all, the island is pretty small and you can drive to the other side of it within 30 minutes. Second, there are only around 3000 people on the island and most of them live in the one main town next to the airport. Most of the tourists visiting the island are couples and if you don't have a significant other, no worries, odds are you will find one here.

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Car Rental

by Slightly1

Rent a 4x4 Jeep it is the best way to see this small Island, if the dirt roads get a little scary just keep going they get better from time to time. Take a good map, although it's hard to get lost just keep on going and you will arrive back where you started. Watch out for pot holes on the paved roads, also be aware that there are wild horses all over the Island. and on the roads. I would not recommend driving anywhere at night.

Ahu Akahanga

by krissyM

As in most of the Ahu around the island the statues at Ahu Akahanga are toppled. At one point of time, every single Moai on the island had fallen on the ground. European accounts from 1722 and 1770 still saw none but standing statues, but by Cook's visit in 1774 many were reported toppled. The huri mo'ai - the "statue-toppling" - continued until late 1830s as a part of the fierce tribal wars. Before modern reconstructions, no records of standing statues exist after 1838. Scattered around the Ahu are fallen statues that never made it to the Ahu. It is as if the islanders just dropped what they were doing and left the statues on the ground

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Church of Santa Cruz

by krissyM

The Catholic church of Santa Cruz parish, at the top of the main street in Hanga Roa, is a splendid mesh of catholicism and traditional polynesian beliefs. Built between 1954 and 1964, it's a pretty little white-walled church whose graveyard contains the coffins of some of the first missionaries who came to the island, including Sebastian Englert whom the archealogical museum is named after. Try to get into the church for a Sunday 9am service to enjoy the blend at its best, including the sound of familiar Catholic hymns sung with an unmistakable Polynesian rhythm.

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