Easter Island facts and information

Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is a tiny island known for its huge moai statues scattered all over the island.

The world is fascinated by the creation of these statues not only for the impressive size and quantity of them, but also for the circumstances under which they were built. This small island had very limited resources; not much drinking water, no cattle and no metal. The statues were transported to their final location several kilometers across hilly terrain - all of this being accomplished with the highest leader being a tribal chieftain.

Location

Rapa Nui is located in the Pacific Ocean, on latitude -27.15 and longitude -109.4, 3600 km west of Chile in South America (see in Google Maps). Flying from Chile's capital Santiago, which is the closest flight connection, takes around 5 hours.

Culture

The Rapa Nui people are polynesians, such as Hawaiians, Tahitians and the Maori of New Zealand. The native languages of these islands are very similar.

Music, dance and art has always been a central part of Rapa Nui culture. The island is today part of Chile, and strong South American influences threaten the existence of the fragile Rapa Nui culture which a mere 3000 people are part of.

As tourism became a more common part of the Easter Island society since the 1990's and people travel from all over the world to see this unique culture, there has been an increased pride in the cultural Rapa Nui identity. Today, most newborns that are Rapa Nui are given Rapa Nui names, and parents try to speak the native language to their children as much as possible. During the 1980's and before, most babies were given Spanish names, and parents often did an effort to teach their children Spanish, even if this was their weaker language.

Dance on Rapa Nui

Dance here is rarely “just entertainment.” Choreographies carry genealogies, jokes about daily life, and respect for ancestors. Children learn foot patterns beside grandparents long before they ever step on a festival stage; teenagers rehearse late in schoolyards and family yards when Tapati Rapa Nui approaches.

Shoulder and hip isolations, sudden freezes, and collective ripples mirror stories of the sea, birds, and volcanic ridges. Men’s groups often emphasise power and stamping; women’s formations may weave slower, ornamental lines — yet every troupe invents hybrids. Visitors see the polished night shows, but the deeper pulse is the months of repetition that weld cousins, in-laws, and neighbours into one moving line.

If you travel in February, expect drum batteries until midnight and spontaneous practices along Atamu Tekena. Ask before filming close-ups — costumes and songs may belong to specific families. Applaud generously: on this island, dance is both archive and future tense.

A famously artistic island

Walk through Hanga Roa on any weekday and you will see carving dust on porches, oil paintings drying beside kitchen tables, and teenagers sketching moai from memory. Art is not a niche career — it is how many households pay rent, school fees, and festival debts. Wood, bone, volcanic stone, shell, and recycled metal all become inventory; the aesthetic range runs from museum-quality sculpture to ironic T-shirt graphics.

Body painting for Tapati, tattoo studios, mural walls, and school art fairs keep visual literacy high. Critics sometimes argue over “airport art” versus experimental work, yet the argument itself shows how many people care. Buying directly from makers supports lineages of technique; copying sacred motifs without permission remains offensive, so ask when motifs look ceremonial.

The island’s museums and galleries document older carving revivals, while Instagram livestreams broadcast younger painters to the diaspora. Whether you collect a small pendant or simply admire workshop windows, you are watching a community that treats aesthetics as oxygen.

Sport, sea & everyday athletes

Rapa Nui is small, but the appetite for movement is large. Football matches draw half the town; horse races during Tapati shake the dust at Vaihu; schoolkids sprint barefoot after school. The ocean is not a backdrop — it is a training ground. Islanders grow up swimming in rough surf, paddling, and freediving for fish long before tourism marketed those skills as “activities.”

Hoe vaka — paddling an outrigger canoe (va’a in wider Polynesian usage) — reconnects Rapa Nui to the voyaging imagination that first peopled the Pacific. Clubs formed from the late twentieth century onward, often with support from Polynesian-wide networks, train mixed-age crews in sprint and distance races. Regattas appear during festivals and in dedicated championships; technique emphasises blade angle, breath timing, and the collective catch that makes a six-person hull feel like one muscle. If you watch a heat from shore, notice how steerspersons read swell refraction off the basalt coast — local knowledge matters as much as gym strength.

Surfing here is serious play: reef breaks demand respect, and locals often know which swells wrap into hidden corners. Visitors should observe lineup etiquette, avoid dropping in, and hire island instructors when unsure. See our surfing overview for practical tips.

Spearfishing and pole fishing remain part of household economies and weekend sport. Freedivers train breath-hold in clear pockets along the north coast; regulations and customary rāhui (temporary closures) protect spawning areas, so never assume every cove is open year-round. Visitors interested in underwater time should book credentialed dive centres rather than improvising with rental gear.

Beyond the water you will find hiking, mountain biking, and informal volleyball on the waterfront. Tapati’s land trials — banana-sledding, triathlon segments, horse races — turn the whole island into a stadium for two weeks. Whether you participate or cheer, the default mode here is kinetic: pack shoes that can handle both coral dust and dance floors.

Climate

The Rapa Nui climate is classed as subtropical. It is often windy, especially at volcano summits such as where Orongo is located.

Being located quite a bit below the equator, Rapa Nui isn't as agonizingly hot as Tahiti sometimes can be. Most find the Rapa Nui climate moderate and quite pleasant.

During summer (Dec - Feb), day temperature is around 25°C, and winter (Jun - Aug) around 19°C. At night it gets quite cold, so unless it's summer, you might want to be prepared with a pair of long trousers if you're staying outside.

Table explanation: during February, one could expect day temperatures between 27 and 21°C, and in October between 22 and 17°C.

Rain falls year-round (around 80 mm), though most between April and June (around 110 mm). This means that even though rain is less common during summer (Dec - Feb), it is still a good idea to bring a rain coat - especially if you're staying at Easter Island only for a few days. In case these days would be rainy, you would probably want to be able to be outside and still stay somewhat dry!

Sources: records of Mataveri International Airport weather station from years 2004 to 2012 (day temperature) and Weatherbase (rainfall).

Modern society at Easter Island

Rapa Nui locals today live in houses with windows and doors. The town of Hanga Roa has electricity generated by diesel engines, though it cuts around once a week for a couple of hours because of failure or maintenance. Internet access is limited and slow and is only available in the town center.

Official languages are Spanish and Rapa Nui - the native language of the island, similar to Hawaiian and Tahitian.

Fresh fruit and vegetables are flewn in by airplane. Storable food, construction material etc is shipped in on a ship approximately once a month. Sometimes the ship is delayed, causing the shops to be short on wares.

Tourism

After NASA extended the airport landing strech in 1987 for possible space shuttle emergency landings, tourism has constantly increased, and continues to do so by around 20% per year. Tourism is the main source of income for the islanders. In 2012, Rapa Nui received 70 000 visitors. The tourism services of the island are well prepared to receive and take good care of outside visitors.

Population increase

The biggest problem as well as the biggest discussion is the rapid increase of the population the latest years. The island has gone from having only a few cars in the 70's to light traffic jams by the market in the mornings. This is due to borders being entirely open to the 16 million inhabitants of Chile. Rapa Nui is seen as an exclusive place to live, and the economic situation is considerably better than in Chile, which is why many Chileans choose to move to Rapa Nui. More than half of the inhabitants of Rapa Nui are today Chileans.

The general opinion among the Rapa Nui people is that Chilean immigration should be controlled, in the same way as it is from all other countries of the world. This is a complicated matter since Rapa Nui is part of Chile and it would mean that Chileans would not have free access to a part of their own country. Though, Rapa Nui is a small and fragile environment, and it is probably only a matter of time before special reasons will be required also of Chileans in order to move to Rapa Nui.

Below are census counts in modern times, and not the population estimations of the earlier European and American visitors.

Independence from Chile

A small group called Rapa Nui parlament wish for independence from Chile. Opinions of this group have been heard all around the globe, even though they are only a few people. The rest of the Rapa Nui population doesn't share this opinion. What's more sought for is autonomy, meaning that Rapa Nui would have right to for example create laws of their own.

Rapa Nui is dependent on Chile for telephone communication, internet, maintenance of roads, schools, currencies and everything else that defines a modern life. Without Chile, the people of Rapa Nui would virtually have to go back to living in caves, which is why this island never will be independant from Chile.

Economy

Official currency is Chilean pesos (CLP), though US dollars are also accepted.

Because of the remoteness (everything has to be flied or shipped in) and tourism, prices are quite high. A meal and a beverage at a restaurant may cost around 10 000 CLP - 30 000 CLP and a night at a hotel may cost 80 000 CLP - 200 000 CLP.

Opening hours at offices etc

Airport	Opens: 2 hours before an airplane arrives Closes: When the airplane leaves
Ma'u Henua — park tickets / visitor desk	Typically daily with a midday break; hours and desk locations change — confirm on the official Rapa Nui National Park site or at the airport on arrival. Tickets are also sold online.
Correo de Chile (post office)	Monday - Friday 09:00 - 13:00, 15:00 - 18:00	Saturday 10:00 - 13:00
Gasoline station	All week 07:30 - 22:00
Museum	Tuesday - Friday 09:30 - 17:30	Saturday - Sunday 09:30 - 12:30
Omotohi (internet café)	Monday - Friday 08:30 - 22:00	Saturday - Sunday 09:30 - 22:00
Rano Raraku & Orongo	All week 09:00 - 18:00

Music

¿I he a Hotu Matu'a e hura nei?

Music traditions

Music has always been a big part of Rapa Nui culture. In all rituals and ceremonies they would sing. Just like in choirs of today in many countries they had four voices; re'o a ruŋa (upper voice), re'o vaeŋa (middle voice), re'o vaeŋa o raro (middle bottom voice), re'o a raro (bottom voice).

The only instruments invented by this culture are basic percussion instruments. The most common one was the mā'ea poro - two basalt rocks that were pounded together to keep the rythm. Rocks that have been polished and rounded by rolling around in the ocean are selected for this, and when they are pounded together they cause a short, sharp sound.

After horses had been introduced to the island, the instrument kaua'e (jaw) became a popular instrument, which is the bones and teeth of a horse jaw. Grabbing one cheek of the jaw and hitting the other would cause the teeth to rattle, which was also used to keep rythm.

Each fiest and celebration would have a group of people in charge of the music. They would start practicing long before the fiest, and for the purpose of practicing, big houses would be built called hare koro (reunion house).

For the celebration, a simple percussion instrument would be prepared by a man called va'e (foot). A big hole is dug in the ground. In the bottom of this hole, a small, circular hole is dug and a human skull is placed in this smaller hole. On top of the small hole with the skull, a keho (basalt slab - a large, flat stone) is placed. The va'e will kick the keho with one of his feet to produce a sound similar to that of a bass drum.

Rapa Nui music today

Most Rapa Nui people are artists in some way. It may be in carving, handicrafts, drawing or - as often is the case - in music. For a small group of around only 3000 people, surprisingly many have recorded CDs and perform on a regular basis. One of them is Alicia Makohe Ika of Easter Island Travel.

Rapa Nui National Park

Visitors often imagine a single fenced “park gate”; in reality the protected footprint (~44% of the island) wraps around coasts, quarries, and ceremonial centres where moai stand. Boundaries are not always obvious on the ground. Ma'u Henua collects the park ticket, trains and deploys rangers, maintains signage, and invests revenue in conservation and community priorities. Always check the latest rules before travel—entry prices, guided-sector requirements, and ticket validity evolve.

National park ticket

You need a Rapa Nui National Park ticket for the main archaeological circuits. Rano Raraku and Orongo are the headline sites that typically allow one entry per ticket each. Buy online or in person through Ma'u Henua (airport desk, town service points — see official park site). Fares are set in CLP, differ for residents/Chileans vs other visitors, and are adjusted from time to time; a multi-day validity window applies from first use. Always verify current price and rules before budgeting.

Filming movies, documentaries and shows at Easter Island

Many documentaries and series shoot on Rapa Nui. Filming inside the national park (most moai settings) requires a permit from the Ma'u Henua administration. Fees depend on duration, crew size, and number of locations; a park representative or ranger typically accompanies authorised shoots. Start the request through the official park / Ma'u Henua channels linked at rapanuinationalpark.com.

No permission is needed for filming in private properties, in town and anywhere that's not national park.

Expect to submit a detailed schedule: each archaeological location, date and time windows, crew list, equipment, and a short description of scenes. Ma'u Henua evaluates carrying capacity and heritage protection, so lead times can be several weeks.