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Easter Island (Rapa Nui)

Easter Island: The Majesty and Mystery of Rapa Nui

Program No. 16342RJ
Alongside an archaeologist, dig into one of the world’s most enduring mysteries as you explore Easter Island and its ancient moai. Plus, share a traditional meal with a local family!

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Prefer to enroll or inquire by phone? 800-454-5768
Select your type of room
Price will update based on selection
Prices displayed below are based on per person,doubleoccupancy.
DATES & starting prices
PRICES
Feb 4 - Feb 17, 2024
Starting at
7,999
Itinerary Note

The January 29, 2024 departure is scheduled to be on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) during a portion of the annual Tapati Rapa Nui Festival, a celebration of Rapa Nui culture and arts through music, dance, athletic competitions and visual arts. This program is two days longer to allow more time to enjoy the festival.

Feb 19 - Feb 29, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Mar 4 - Mar 14, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Mar 18 - Mar 28, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Sep 16 - Sep 26, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Oct 7 - Oct 17, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Jan 11 - Jan 21, 2025
Starting at
6,699
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Feb 1 - Feb 13, 2025
Starting at
7,999
Feb 22 - Mar 4, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Mar 8 - Mar 18, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Apr 5 - Apr 15, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Sep 6 - Sep 16, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Sep 27 - Oct 7, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Nov 1 - Nov 11, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

DATES & starting prices
PRICES
Feb 4 - Feb 17, 2024
Starting at
9,099
Itinerary Note

The January 29, 2024 departure is scheduled to be on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) during a portion of the annual Tapati Rapa Nui Festival, a celebration of Rapa Nui culture and arts through music, dance, athletic competitions and visual arts. This program is two days longer to allow more time to enjoy the festival.

Feb 19 - Feb 29, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Mar 4 - Mar 14, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Mar 18 - Mar 28, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Sep 16 - Sep 26, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Oct 7 - Oct 17, 2024
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Jan 11 - Jan 21, 2025
Starting at
6,699
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Filling Fast!
Feb 1 - Feb 13, 2025
Starting at
9,099
Feb 22 - Mar 4, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Mar 8 - Mar 18, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Apr 5 - Apr 15, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Sep 6 - Sep 16, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Sep 27 - Oct 7, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

Nov 1 - Nov 11, 2025
Starting at
6,999
Special Offer

No extra cost for single rooms! Free singles sell out quickly, so be sure to enroll early.

At a Glance

At the turn of the millennium, the island of Rapa Nui — later named Easter Island by a Dutch explorer — flourished with the communities of early Polynesians. Delve into their legacy and history as you explore Easter Island and relish in an opportunity to study the monolithic moai that still exist. Meet archaeologists and historians who study these ancient peoples as well as local residents who continue to call this sub-tropical island their home.
Activity Level
Let's Go!
Physically demanding program with extensive walking over uneven terrain and along hillsides. Some stairs required.
Small Group
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.

Best of all, you’ll…

  • Walk around the quarry from which the massive moai were carved, which includes nearly 400 unfinished giants and spectacular petroglyphs.
  • Connect with local Rapanui people.
  • Explore the island's most important archaeological sites — including Ahu Tongariki, Orongo Ceremonial Village, and Ahu Vinapu — and examine the mystery of why the moai were built, why they were toppled, and why the cult of the birdman arose.

General Notes

Due to the nature of this program, listening devices are not available.
Featured Expert
All Experts
Profile Image
Claudio Le Roy
Claudio Le Roy has been leading Road Scholar adventures in Chile and Peru for more than 20 years. He has also designed and carried out a number of personal volunteer initiatives in these areas with a focus on the most needed, especially children. He holds degrees in second language teaching and a bachelor’s in English language and literature. Besides his career as a language teacher, Mr. Le Roy worked for ten years as a professional dancer for the National Folkloric Ballet of Chile.

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Profile Image of Claudio Le Roy
Claudio Le Roy View biography
Claudio Le Roy has been leading Road Scholar adventures in Chile and Peru for more than 20 years. He has also designed and carried out a number of personal volunteer initiatives in these areas with a focus on the most needed, especially children. He holds degrees in second language teaching and a bachelor’s in English language and literature. Besides his career as a language teacher, Mr. Le Roy worked for ten years as a professional dancer for the National Folkloric Ballet of Chile.
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Easter Island's Silent Sentinels, The Sculpture and Architecture of Rapa Nui
by Kenneth Treister
This richly illustrated survey of the history, culture and art of Easter Island includes the island's vernacular architecture.
On the Road of the Winds
by Patrick Vinton Kirch
An excellent scholarly review of the prehistory and archaeology of Pacific civilizations before European contact.
Collapse, How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
by Jared Diamond
Diamond tackles nothing less than the history and fate of civilization in this compelling book in which he offers case studies, present and past, of societies that work and societies that do not, devoting 100 carefully reasoned pages, for example, to the fate of the Norse settlements in Greenland (climatic change, Inuit) and another big section on Easter Island (deforestation, hubris). This revised edition includes a new afterword.
Easter Island, the Essential Guide
by Kay Sanger
An archaeologist who has worked on Rapa Nui since the 1980s and past president of the Easter Island Foundation, Sanger covers the history, archaeology, people and practicalities of Easter Island in this authoritative guide.
Kon-Tiki, Across the Pacific by Raft
by Thor Heyerdahl, F. H. Lyon (Translator)
The hugely popular account of a daring 1947 voyage that sailed along the Humboldt and Equatorial currents from Peru to Tahiti. Apart from the sheer adventure, Heyerdahl wanted to show the world that Polynesians could have settled the region. With photographs.
Rapa Nui, Island of Memory
by Georgia Lee
Full of anecdote and incident, Lee's lively memoir of fieldwork on Rapa Nui celebrates the people and life on the island since the 1980s.
Easter Island Sketchbook
by Susan A. Sternau
This treasure trove of whimsical watercolor and ink paintings brings Easter Island's mysterious relics to life. Sternau is particularly adept at rendering the mystical moai -- the large stone statues of the ancient Rapa Nui civilization, but she also captures the island's landscape: from its idyllic beaches to dramatic cliffs.
Pacific Journeys
by Peter Hendrie
A striking portfolio of 330 color photographs of the people, nature and landscape of the region, Hendrie's gorgeous book includes images from his many journeys to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, to Tahiti and the Marquesas, Tonga, Fiji, Easter Island and Hawaii over the last 20 years.
Easter Island
by Jennifer Vanderbes
In this mesmerizing novel, Vanderbes spins parallel stories of two young women on Easter Island, one an archaeologist with a 1913 expedition and the other an American botanist who visits 60 years later.
Insight Guide Chile
by Insight Guides
This glossy guide provides a full-color introduction by a team of experts to the land, people, history and attractions of Chile. Brief background essays highlight important topics. With many local and regional maps.
We, the Navigators, The Ancient Art of Landfinding in the Pacific
by David Lewis
This engaging classic examines how Stone Age Polynesians may have navigated the Pacific. The scholarly volume will appeal to seafarers and modern Pacific travelers.
Easter Island Map
by ITMB
A colorful topographic map (1:30,000).
Island at the End of the World
by Steven Roger Fischer
Fischer's cultural and political history takes in the full sweep of Easter Island from prehistory through civil rights protests of the 1960s.
Easter Island, Island of Enigmas
by John Dos Passos
An amateur archaeologist, novelist Dos Passos mixes travel and observation with the history of exploration of Rapa Nui in this brief, engaging book.
The Statues That Walked, Unraveling the Mystery of Easter Island
by Carl Lipo, Terry Hunt
Drawing on archaeological evidence and their own work, Hunt and Lip challenge Jared Diamond's view of eco-catastrophe in this convincing new history of Rapa Nui.
The Happy Isles of Oceania
by Paul Theroux
The peripatetic author flies off to Australia and New Zealand with a kayak and ends up exploring much of Melanesia and Polynesia, including Tonga, Fiji and the Marquesas, in this wickedly funny, wide-ranging tale.





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