CHILE, EASTER ISLAND
& THE TAPATI FESTIVAL

Our trip begins in Chile’s capital, Santiago, where we will visit the Natural History Museum and Precolumbian Museum. We will travel to the lovely coastal city of Viña del Mar to enjoy a specially arranged private visit to the Fonck Museum. Along the way, we will stop to enjoy a wine tour of one of Chile’s renowned, award-winning wineries.

At the southeastern tip of the Polynesian triangle lies windswept Easter Island, one of the most remote spots on the planet. Surrounded by an endless ocean as blue as the sky and located 2,300 miles west of Santiago, Chile, this tiny dot of land is sixty square miles of rocky grasslands, extinct volcanic cones, and steep ocean cliffs. Called Rapa Nui by the Polynesian people who live here, this island is a unique open-air archaeological mu-seum. Nearly a thousand immense stone statues, called moai, gaze with brooding eyes over the gently rolling hills, hundreds of perplexing petroglyphs stand out from rock surfaces, and colorful cave paintings depict brightly painted birds in flight.

We have timed this trip to include the wonderful Tapati Festival, a celebration of the Rapa Nui culture. Each day will dawn with new and exciting contests of strength and skill, while evenings will bring the mesmerizing melodies of Polynesian music as grass skirted dancers perform beneath the stars. It is a time of revelry and feasts, and of honoring the past with performances of cat’s cradle, the hypnotic chant used to hand down the island’s history from generation to generation.

ITINERARY: (B) breakfast, (L) lunch, (D) dinner

Day 1: Depart USA.

Day 2: Arrive in Santiago and transfer to the Plaza San Francisco hotel, our home for the next two nights. After check-in and lunch on our own, we will tour the historical city. Then it’s on to The Pre-Columbian Museum, which catalogs 4500 years of South American civilization before the arrival of the Spanish. Gather this evening for a welcome dinner at Camino Real restaurant overlooking the city. (D)

Day 3: Our all day tour takes us south of Santiago through wine country. We will stop at one of Chile’s premier wineries for a tasting and tour before continuing to Viña del Mar, located on the shores of the Pacific Ocean and one of Chile's most fashionable beach resorts. Here, we will visit the Fonck Museum and be given a private tour of its original Rapanui wooden sculpture and artifacts from Easter Island. Lunch will be held in one of Viña del Mar’s delightful seafood restaurants. Dinner will be at the renowned Bristol Restaurant in Santiago. (B/L/D)

Day 4: This morning fly to Easter Island and check into the O’ Tai hotel, our home for the next six nights. Surrounded by lovely, fragrant gardens, this small family-run inn is only a block from the coast in the center of the village of Hanga Roa. (B/L/D)

Day 5: Today’s tour begins in the Sebastian Englert Archaeological Museum, named for a German priest who lived on the island for nearly thirty-five years. The museum contains artifacts from the Rapa Nui culture, including the only coral moai eye that has been found. Within the flanks of the volcanic mountain, Rano Raraku, lies the quarry where the massive moai were carved. Many unfinished giants still lie imprisoned in stone, abandoned when the work suddenly and mysteriously stopped. Others stand buried to their shoulders in quarry debris and eroding soil and rock. Hike to the rim of the volcano's crater for a breathtaking view over the island, and to see the huge, prehistoric engineering works used to slide the statues down the slope. Tongariki was the largest ahu (shrine) built on the island. Destroyed by a tsunami in 1960, the huge moai were recently re-erected. Notable here are the stunning petroglyphs of enormous tuna, turtles, and human and birdman figures. Anakena is the island's largest white sand beach, and the landing place of the legendary Hotu Matua, the founding hero of the island. Fringed by lovely palm trees, this is our luncheon picnic destination. Ahu Nau Nau, with its row of stat-ues with topknots, and Ature Huki stand on the side of the hill overlooking the beach. Watch the sunset at Tahai, where three ceremonial centers are located on the edge of the ocean. On one of them, Ahu Ko Te Riku, a large solitary statue, or moai, supports a massive maroon topknot. (B/L/D)

Day 6: The ancient village of Orongo sits on the seaward edge of the volcano Rano Kao. Until the 1860s, the Festival of the Bird Man was held here each spring. Members of leading tribal groups gathered at the edge of a thousand-foot cliff to watch competitors, or their trusted representatives, swim through turbulent waters to Motu Nui Islet, nearly a mile away. Once there, the competitors hid in caves, sometimes for days, waiting for the return of the migrating Sooty Terns that nestled there. The first person to find an egg, swim back through the shark-infested waters to the mainland, carry it up the precipitous cliff and present it unbroken, won the race. He or the man he represented became Bird Man, an important status position, for the next year. The sacred site is famed for its hundreds of intricate petroglyphs carved on massive boulders perching on the edge of the cliff. Continue to Ana Kai Tangata, the Cave of the Cannibals, with painted portraits of Sooty Terns soaring in stylized flight across the ceiling, and Vinapu, containing the ruins of two famous shrines, one of which has massive stonework reminiscent of the Inca civilization in Peru. (B/L/D)

Day 7: The remote west coast of the island is today’s destination. Begin with a visit to Ahu Huri A Urenga where a solitary statue still stands; it was once a solstice observatory. At Tepeu you will see a massive ahu, and the island's largest hare paenga (stone house built in the shape of a boat). Nearby, we will examine petroglyphs, caves, and two huge manavai (farm fields in collapsed lava tubes). After a barbecue in a shady grove, we move on to Ahu Akivi where seven standing giants are oriented towards the summer solstice. The moai face a plaza fronted with stones, the site of early religious rites and dances. Visit Puna Pau, where the red scoria topknots for the stone figures were quarried. (B/L/D)

Day 8: With its many large moai, Vaihu is one of the most impressive sites on the south coast. Toppled in the wars, the statues now lie with their noses buried in the ground surrounded by scattered topknots. At Akahanga are numer-ous large figures and the remains of a village with the foundations of several boat-shaped houses lies on a hillside nearby. After a picnic lunch, continue to the north coast, stopping at the Poike “Ditch" and the Trumpet of Hiro. Visit Ahu Hekii, Ahu Ra’ai and its petroglyphs, and Te Pito Te Kura, the largest statue ever moved. In the center of the island is Ahu Huri A Urenga, where a solitary statue still stands; it was once a solstice observatory. Return to the village via Vaitea, the historical sheep ranch. Tonight's dinner will be at the home of a friend, where a typical umu (earth oven dinner) will be highlighted by dancers in costumes. (B/L/D)

Day 9: Today will be free to explore the island at your own pace - on foot, by horse, or in our van. Accessible only by foot, the northern part of Easter Island is a particularly interesting area. Many of the caves and lava tubes that dot the volcanic hills contain petroglyphs and paintings. Some of these caves were used as refuges in time of war, others as secret storage or burial places. Here also are statue-filled ritual places, one of which is called a "ski jump" or ahu. If the sea is calm, you may motor by fishing boat to see Rapa Nui from the water. (B/L /D)

Day 10: Return to Santiago and transfer to Plaza San Francisco hotel. Dinner is on our own. (B/L)

Day 11: After we check out of our hotel, a drive to the old part of the city will take us the Cousiño Palace, an ancient residence of the richest family of the XIX century, decorated with art pieces brought from Europe. Then it’s on to the Pablo Neruda’s House-Museum. The house, built in 1953, is called “La Chascona” in honor of Neruda’s secret love, Mrs. Matilde Urrutia, who later became his third wife. A drive to the Maipo Valley, the oldest wine country in the central part of Chile, takes us to Santa Rita Winery where we will spend the afternoon for lunch and wine tasting. Our farewell dinner will be at the traditional and picturesque Meson Nerudiano restaurant. After dinner we transfer to the airport for our flight back to the USA. (B/L/D)

Day 12: Arrive USA.

(B) breakfast, (L) lunch, (D) dinner

NOTE ABOUT ITINERARY CHANGES: Changes in our itinerary, accommodations, and transportation schedules may occur. A good book to read as well as a flexible attitude and a sense of humor are essential.

Hotel on Easter Island    return to Day 4

Hotel Pool

Dining Room

STUDY LEADER: Dr. Steven Roger Fischer is the Director of the Institute of Polynesian Languages and Literatures in Auckland, New Zealand, and an internationally recognized linguist and historian. He is an expert in pre-contact Eastern Polynesia, especially Easter Island, and the author of 16 books and over 100 scholarly articles, most dealing with Eastern Polynesia. He is the publisher and editor of Rongorongo Studies: A Forum for Polynesian Philology, and a member of the editorial board of Rapa Nui Journal, the only international quarterly on Easter Island. He is the former regional Vice-President of the international Easter Island Foundation, and is fluent in Spanish and Rapanui (the language of Easter Island). Dr. Fischer’s recent successful decipherment of Easter Island’s rongorongo script has won international acclaim.

Please note that there will not be a scholar with the group while on the Chilean mainland.

TRIP DATES: January 31 – February 11, 2009

LAND COST: $7,995.00
(Per person double occupancy)
Includes round-trip air tickets from Santiago to Easter Island; all hotels; most meals (as noted in itinerary); entry fees; guides; and land transportation.

COST DOES NOT INCLUDE: international airfare; the separate check for $150.00 to go to the Easter Island Foundation; passport or visa fees; airport or departure taxes; beverages or food not included on regular menus; laundry; excess baggage charges; personal tips; gratuities to guides and drivers; alcoholic drinks; telephone and fax charges; or other items of a personal nature. 

SINGLE SUPPLEMENT: $895.00
Should a roommate be requested and one not be available, the single supplement must be charged.

DONATION CHECKS: The cost of the trip does not include the separate donation check for $150.00 (per person) to the Easter Island Foundation. As a tour company that benefits from the historical, cultural and natural riches of our destinations, we have a policy of donating to scholars, archaeological and cultural projects, and museums in each of our destinations. This has created a bond with the academic community that allows you to gain an 'insider's view' of work being done in each country. Your donation check will go directly to the project's budget.

PRIVATE TOURS OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES: The private tours of archaeological sites and talks by specialists are scheduled in advance and include a donation to each. Specialists working at these sites are ex-cited about showing their work to interested enthusiasts. However, please be aware that there may be times when the director or a member of the staff may not be onsite when our groups arrive due to other commitments, or that the date or time of our visit to their project must be changed.

RESERVATION: A deposit of $500.00 along with a separate check made out to the Easter Island Foundation is required along with your registration form. Final payment is due 75 days before departure

Upon receipt of your deposit, the donation check, and completed registration form, you will be sent a reading list and a clothing and equipment list. An information book designed for this trip, including maps of archaeological sites and articles of pertinent interest will be sent upon receipt of final payment.

CANCELLATION AND REFUNDS: Cancellations received in writing at least 75 days before departure will result in an administrative fee of $250.00. Cancellations received less than 75 days before departure will not receive a refund. If for any reason you are unable to complete the trip, Far Horizons will not reimburse any fees. Registrants are strongly advised to buy travel insurance that includes trip cancellation.

LIMITED TO 17 PARTICIPANTS

To register for this trip
Click the button above for a Printable Registration Form. Or click here.