6 Best Sights in Easter Island, Chile

One of the island's most breathtaking sights is Ahu Tongariki, where 15 moai stand side by side on a 200-foot-long ahu, the longest ever built. Tongariki was painstakingly restored after being destroyed for the second time by a massive tidal wave in 1960. These moai, some whitened with a layer of sea salt, have holes in their extended earlobes that might have once been filled with chunks of obsidian. They face an expansive ceremonial area where you can find petroglyphs of turtles and fish, and the entrance is guarded by a single moai, which has traveled to Japan and back for exhibition.  The perfect morning sunrise behind the moai at Tongariki lasts only from December 21 to March 21.

This small museum, Museo Antropológico Padre Sebastián Englert, is named for the German priest who dedicated his life to improving conditions on Rapa Nui and who is buried beside the church. It provides an excellent summary of the history of Easter Island and its way of life, as well as its native flora and fauna. Here, too, is one of the few female moai on the island and the replica of a coral eye found during the reconstruction of an ahu at Playa Anakena (the original is in storage after an attempted robbery). Texts are in Spanish and English. Note that the museum can easily overcrowd given its small size.

A small museum kick-starts the story of the ceremonial village of Orongo, likely constructed in the late 1600s and used by locals until 1866; the 48 oval stone houses here were occupied only during the ceremony honoring the god Make-Make. Many of these abodes have since been reconstructed. The high point of the annual event was a competition in which prominent villagers sent servants to Motu Nui, the largest of three islets just off the coast. The first servant to find an egg of the sooty tern, a bird nesting on the islets, would swim back with the prize tucked in a special headdress. His master would become the tangata manu, or birdman, for the next year. The tangata manu was honored by being confined to a cave until the following year's ceremony. Dozens of petroglyphs depicting birdlike creatures cover nearby boulders along the rim of Rano Kau. CONAF checks but does not sell tickets here. They are sold at the airport or at the CONAF office near the MAPSE Museu Rapa Nui and are good for all archaeological sites on the island.

Easter Island's earliest settlers are believed to have landed on idyllic Playa Anakena. Legend has it that the caves in the cliffs overlooking the beach are where Hotu Matu'a dwelled while constructing his home. It's easy to see why the island's first ruler might have selected this spot: on an island ringed by rough volcanic rock, Playa Anakena is the widest swath of sand. Ignoring the sun-worshipping tourists are five beautifully carved moai standing on nearby Ahu Nau Nau. On the northern coast, Playa Anakena is reachable by a paved road that runs across the island or by the more circuitous coastal road. For 20,000 pesos (or ask your hotel to negotiate a better price), a taxi will take you from Hanga Roa and pick you up at the agreed-upon time later.  Bring snacks and water from Hanga Roa. Amenities: parking; toilets. Best for: snorkeling; swimming.

This huge volcano on the southern tip of the island affords wonderful views of Hanga Roa. The crater, which measures a mile across, holds a lake nearly covered over by reeds. The opposite side of the crater has crumbled a bit, revealing a crescent of the deep blue ocean beyond. Entering the crater is forbidden, except in signposted areas. It is protected, and the ground is unstable.

When it comes to moai, this is the motherlode. Some 400 have been counted at the quarry of this long-extinct volcano, both on the outer rim and clustered inside the crater. More than 150 are unfinished, some little more than faces in the rock. Among these is El Gigante, a monster measuring 22 meters (72 feet). Also here is Moai Tukuturi, the only statue in a kneeling position; it's thought to predate most others. Look out also for the moai with a three-masted boat carved on its belly; the anchor is a turtle. CONAF checks but does not sell tickets here. They are sold at the airport upon arrival or at the CONAF office near the Anthropological Museum, paid in dollars. The same ticket gives access to all archaeological sights on the island.

It's best to buy your national parks ticket upon arrival at the airport.