Four nights on Easter island. Not enough!
Be prepared for delayed flights as severe cross winds can delay or cause flights to be cancelled. Give yourself enough time. I was lucky, no delays, no cancellations, just a cross wind catching the plane as we were coming in to land so we had to go around again but then we were there, magical Easter Island.
I stayed at Cabanas Teave, booked through Booking.com. Transport to and from the delightful Polonesian airport was included in the price. My accommodation was a one bedroom cabanas with terrace and set in a lush garden. It was very clean and had everything I needed and only a ten minute walk from the centre of Hanga Roa but in a quiet area.
My hosts were very helpful, lending me waterproofs and arranging a taxi into town that first day. My driver was Patrick, a cousin of my hosts, (everyone seems to be related), and he took great care of me, taking me to the office to buy my national park ticket (needed for all the sites). You can purchase the ticket at the airport but there was a long queue. No queue at the office. Patrick showed me the layout of the town, took me to tourist offices so I could book a tour and showed me a good restaurant for my lunch.
We had arranged for him to take me on an afternoon tour to see the seven Moai that face the sea, the lava caves and tubes, and one of the quarries. A great trip, on our own at each site, as long as I wanted and able to go into the caves and along the tubes. Later I found out the organized trips did not enter the caves.
Over the three days I took two more trips with him, each time joined by another person, the cost being split between us. He went out of us way to show us extras that the shared tours did not include. A bonus.
I saw everything but was cramming it in, sometimes two tours a day. A week would be perfect for Easter Island, giving time to spend on the beach, walk, relax and explore at your own pace. Enjoy.
