Easter Island beach
The coastline of Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is a conglomeration of unreachable sharp rocks, with some open spots that let you see flat sandy areas. That's how the natural beaches of the legendary island located in the south-eastern part of the Polynesian triangle in the Pacific Ocean look. Right now it's not a very popular place among tourists, but those who did visit it say that Easter Island beaches are as good as the much more well-known Maldives or Hawaii. Anakena, Ovahe and Pea beaches, along with the volcanic pools, are considered to be the best places to visit. The island itself was formed as a result of several powerful volcanic eruptions.
Photos
Beach description
Anakena is the biggest beach on Rapa Nui, located in the bay of the same name in the north-eastern part of the island. The shore, surrounded by a palm grove, is covered in grainy light sand with a pink tint which you can walk on barefoot. The descent is smooth and the bottom is sandy. The water in the bay is warm, clean and quite calm, although sometimes the ocean waves reach the shore. It's very shallow.
Anakena is the most popular beach on the island, with tourists driven here by bus. It's crowded from noon to evening, but not a lot of young tourists can be met as there are no attractions and sports clubs on the beach or its surroundings. You can meet lonely travellers who prefer to come early in the morning, before the first bus with swimming and sunbathing enthusiasts comes. Anakena is a great place for family vacations and picnics, but don't leave your children unsupervised. A dangerous current or a high wave can form in the bay due to the ocean.
Several cafes with quite a poor selection of food and high prices operate here, so it's advised to bring your own. If there's no alternatives, you can order some tuna. The best tuna meals on the island are cooked there.
Anakena doesn't have a well-developed infrastructure, only toilets are set up. You can lay down a towel on the sand. It's recommended to buy an umbrella and bring it with you. No showers are set up here.
Some of the most exciting symbols of the beach are Ahu Nau Nau and Ahu Ature Huki platforms where the famous moai statues are located.
The small narrow beach in the rocky Ovahe bay in the north of the island is considered to be the best place for diving and extreme activities. The shore, surrounded by rocks and giant boulders, is covered in white sand. The descent is smooth and the water is shallow. The sea bottom is rocky. The water is clean and the waves are high. Swimming without special training is dangerous here. There are no umbrellas, sunbeds, showers, toilets, restaurants, cafes, rescue workers or first-aid posts here. It's not recommended to bring your children here - the way to Ovahe is long and tiring. You can get to Ovahe by rented car via the road from Anakena to Tongariki. You need to leave your vehicle at the parking lot with a sign and then take a walk to the small picturesque bay. You can descend to the water after climbing over the large boulders.
Hanga Roa has a small town beach in the bay among rocks where local children usually relax. There are no elements of modern beach infrastructure here. Stone terraces lead to the water. The sea bottom is covered in stones.
When is it better to go
The beach season in Chile begins in October and ends in March. Do not forget that the Peruvian current (Humboldt Current) prevents a full beach holiday, as it carries cold streams from Antarctica along the coastline of South America.
Video: Beach Easter Island
Infrastructure
Where to stop
The Anakena bay is located about 20 km away from the only town on Hanga Roa island where modern apartment blocks, shopping malls and roads are being built. There's a small amount of beach hotels here, but the best ones schedule an everyday transfer to the beaches and back.
The camping site that's located 100 m away from Anakena Beach provides great accomodation conditions.
Where to eat
The tourist infrastructure isn't very well-developed on the island, but Hanga Roa still has restaurants, cafes, bars and shops with local and international meals that are worth visiting. Tourists who live in the apartments and bungalows with kitchen prefer to buy food at the local market and cook it themselves.
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Moai of Easter Island
The 900 stone Moai statues are the main sight of Easter Island that tourists come to look at. The statues are installed on the stone ahu platforms. To this day people argue how exactly these 15 m tall monolithic sculptures came to be.
- The native islanders think that Moai were part of an underground nation that emerged from the Rano Raraku volcano, but then became the stone statues because of the unusual environment.
- There's also a theory that the statues were created in memory of the very first people who lived on the island.
- Another theory tells of the alien origins of Moai. The theory suggests that the statues were created by the aliens during their short stay on Earth. After repairing their transport they went back to space, leaving the sculptures on the island.
The majority of Moai sculptures is located in the National Rapa Nui Park. The rest are scattered throughout the island, mostly on the coast. Some of these statues were damaged or completely destroyed after earthquakes and tsunamis.