Easter Island. Rapa Nui. The very title invitations intrigue and thriller. The island is underneath Chilean sovereignty, the place they name it Isla de Pascua (actually: Place The place Individuals Look For Stone Faces).
Earlier than we get into the main points, let’s cowl some logistics.
The place the heck is Easter Island?
It’s some of the distant inhabited locations on Earth. Fast, consider Santiago, Chile. Okay, now, consider Tahiti. Easter Island is about midway between the 2. Nonetheless confused? Let’s do this.
Easter Island
Not useful? Ugh, wonderful, right here it is a little more zoomed out:
Coach, Coach, Coach, Coach, Coach, Coach, Coach
The Statues, The Moai
Primarily Extra Footage of Easter Island
It’s what Bugs Bunny was speaking about when he mentioned he ought to’ve toined left at Albakoiky
So what makes this island vital?
The individuals are pleasant, the surroundings may be very uncooked and volcanic, however primarily folks come to see these guys.
Not the man within the center, the opposite two
The Moai. A vital a part of the faith of the Rapa Nui folks, they’re discovered nowhere else on the planet, you must meet them right here.
How do you get there?
You fly. So much. On LAN Airways from Santiago de Chile. Surprisingly there’s a nice runway on Easter Island, constructed by none aside from NASA. When NASA was planning on touchdown the Area Shuttle in California, they wanted an alternate/emergency runway lengthy sufficient to deal with the Shuttle. Easter Island was fairly near the optimum flight path, so that they got here in and constructed a large runway in 1971 I imagine. This really works out very well for the trendy traveler, because it enabled LAN to fly widebody jets to the island. Due to this fact, all LAN flights to and from the island are flown by a pleasant LAN Boeing 767 from Santiago. There’s additionally a flight from Tahiti to Easter Island, additionally on LAN.
Most individuals, as a result of expense, received’t make it to Easter Island until they embody it on a round-the-world ticket (it’s an easy cease on the best way to New Zealand). Your devoted writer, nevertheless, discovered a extremely low cost airfare. You all know me, although it was a coach airfare with a ton of stops, I wasn’t going to let it cease me from trying one thing extremely “bold” (learn: most likely dumb)…visiting Easter Island over an extended weekend.
My flight plan
The trick to this airfare that I discovered on Flyertalk originated in Mexico Metropolis on LAN Airways, dwelling of (spoiler alert) probably the most terribly inefficient airport I’ve ever visited. Fortunately I used to be capable of finding a connecting flight from DFW-MEX on American Airways for a comparatively small improve in price. What is often a $1700ish ticket I used to be capable of e-book for underneath $500!
Right here’s my route.
Blech
I do know what a few of you’re considering, “That appears depressing.” It would shock you, however you’re precisely proper. So many flights. Nevertheless, I used to be saved by my Precedence Cross membership that comes with my American Specific Platinum Card. The cardboard has a excessive annual charge, however journeys like this make the advantages value it, since I used to be capable of go to airport lounges at each cease on my method there. Plus they’ve Centurion Golf equipment (open to Amex cardholders) in Mexico Metropolis.
Centurion Membership at MEX
Flight Assessment
Probably not a lot to write down about right here. Each flight, all seven of them, have been in coach. The 2 American flights (to and from MEX) have been on domestically-configured S80s and the remainder of the flights have been on LAN 767s. There was nothing extremely exceptional about any of the flights as soon as I obtained used to LAN’s configuration of the 767.
Loading up in Lima
They don’t have a center partition in coach, so that you get a extremely lengthy look down the airplane, which is completely different from how American configures their 767s. While you’re speaking center partitions as a flight overview, you already know it’s fairly uninteresting.
The partitionless airplane
I let you know what, after a roughly 24 hour journey, being near Easter Island was fairly superior. The joy stage rose within the airplane (it was stuffed 90% with vacationers), and I appeared to my proper jealously as these on the fitting aspect obtained the primary look of Easter Island. So, high tip: sit on the fitting aspect when flying into Easter Island.
ALMOST. THERE.
