lindseysoliday0502

Greetings!
I (31f) will be visiting Chile for 14-15 days (including international flights from SW USA). My main reason for this trip is to visit Easter Island (I've visited French Polynesia and NZ and fell in love with Polynesian culture!), but I am in debate with myself as to whether it would be best to spend most of my time on Easter Island with a few nights in Santiago before and after, or if it would be too ambitious to spend some time in the Atacama (specifically San Pedro) and have a shorter visit to Easter Island. Currently, I'm debating between two itineraries:

Option 1:
Day 1-2, traveling to Santiago
Days 3-4, Santiago and Valparaiso
Day 5, Santiago to Easter Island
Days 6-11, explore Easter Island
Day 12, Easter Island to Santiago
Days 13-14, returning to USA

Option 2:
Days 1-2, traveling to SPdA via Santiago and Calama
Days 3-5, explore the Atacama
Day 6, Calama to Santiago
Day 7, Santiago to Easter Island
Day 8-11, explore Easter Island
Day 12, Easter Island to Santiago
Days 13-14, returning to USA

In general, I'm interested in history, culture, and nature, so both EI and Atacama seem fascinating, but I also don't want to rush through either location, and Easter Island seems a little more "once-in-a-lifetime-y" so maybe devoting most of this trip there makes sense. I keep going in circles. Constructive recommendations and feedback are welcome and much appreciated 😊

crellston

I haven’t been to Easter Island, but have been to the other places. Frankly, I was underwhelmed by Santiago and would likely skip it. Loved Valparaiso! A blog post of our time there @ https://accidentalnomads.com/2008/10...ls-and-horses/
Fortunately , Valparaiso is easily reached by bus or taxi from the airport in a couple of hours so you could bypass Santiago itself.

San Pedro is nice and the surrounding landscapes are v impressive ( though the landscapes just across the border in Bolivia are even more so.)

if EI is your primary objective then I think I would just combine it with Valparaiso.

Jodah73

Easter Island is indeed a once in a lifetime experience! However, it is difficult to advise how many days to stay on the island. It depends on what you are planning to do. I stayed 4 days (6 nights) and it was enough time for me to see the top sights and walk around in the area of Hanga Roa. I used a local tour agency close to the harbour in Hanga Roa to make day tours around EI.

I also spent 3 days in San Pedro to make day tours in the Atacama. It is a fascinating experience with moon like desert landscape and geysers.

Valparaiso is nice but there is not much to see in Santiago.