Chile Guide
Easter Island and the Juan Fernández Archipelago
Chile is the proud possessor of two remote island territories, mysterious EASTER ISLAND and the virtually unknown JUAN FERNÁNDEZ ARCHIPELAGO, collectively referred to as the Islas Esporádicas (or "Far Flung Isles") as they are so far from the mainland, way, way out in the Pacific Ocean. Both are classified as national parks, and each has been singled out by UNESCO for special protection. Neither is easy to get to and most visitors to Chile never do, but those who make the journey will find their effort and expenditure richly rewarded with a set of tantalizingly enigmatic statues and one of the world's most precarious ecosystems, respectively.
Highlights
1 Tapati If you are here late January– early February, discover the mysterious roots of Easter Island's ancient culture at its carnival, featuring everything from traditional dancing and singing to hurtling down volcanic slopes on banana trunks.
2 Ahu Tongariki Fifteen impeccably restored moai (giant statues) line up to be admired against a backdrop of green cliffs and roaring waves.
3 Rano Raraku This mighty mountain at the heart of Rapa Nui is where the moai were quarried – and some, too big to move, never left the rock where they were hewn.
4 Orongo Imagine the mindboggling rituals of the birdman cult as you gaze out at craggy islets in a sapphire-blue ocean or inwards to a reed-filled crater at one of the island's most breathtaking natural sites.