Hanga Roa · Chile
The island is not the hard part.Planning it is.
Rapa Nui law requires an accredited local guide for every archaeological site, and your park ticket admits you to Rano Raraku and Orongo exactly once. Tavake Rapu guides the island. We make sure you spend those entries well.
Private guiding only · No packages · We reply within 24 hours, Monday to Saturday.
Three things most visitors learn too late
Required
A guide is not optional
National park rules require an accredited Rapa Nui guide to enter any archaeological site. This is the law, not an upsell.
Read the park rulesOne visit
Rano Raraku and Orongo, once each
Your USD 100 ticket lasts 10 days but admits you to the quarry and Orongo a single time. Get the order wrong and you do not get a second chance.
How to sequence your days3 documents
You can be refused boarding
Chile requires the FUI form, a non-transferable return ticket, and a SERNATUR-accredited place to sleep. Miss one and you never reach the island.
Entry requirements explainedWho we work with
Built for people who plan their own trips
We are a two-person operation, which means we are excellent for some travellers and completely wrong for others. Here is the honest split.
This is you if
- You are booking your own flights and accommodation
- You want a private guide, not a twenty-seat bus
- You are travelling from North America or Europe and planning weeks ahead
- You care more about understanding the island than ticking off photo stops
Look elsewhere if
- You are already on the island and want the cheapest tour tomorrow
- You want one company to sell you flights, hotel, and guiding as a package
- You are on a cruise stop with four hours ashore
Your guide
Tavake Rapu
Accredited Rapa Nui guide · 12 years on the island · English, Spanish, Rapa Nui
PLACEHOLDER BIO — I was born and raised in Hanga Roa, and I have been guiding visitors around Rapa Nui for over a decade. My grandmother grew up in the shadow of Rano Raraku, and the stories I tell at the quarry are the ones I grew up hearing at home, not the ones printed on a laminated card.
PLACEHOLDER BIO — I guide in English, Spanish, and Rapa Nui, and I am accredited by both SERNATUR and Ma'u Henua, which is what the national park requires before anyone can take you into the archaeological sites.
How it works
No booking engine, no instant checkout
One guide can only guide one group at a time, so nothing is confirmed until he has checked his own calendar. That takes a day, and it is the reason we never oversell dates.
- 01
Tell us about your trip
Five short questions about your dates, who is travelling, and what you actually want to see. Two minutes, no payment details.
- 02
We plan it together
Raghav replies within 24 hours with a suggested day-by-day plan and a quote. Tavake Rapu confirms his calendar before anything is promised.
- 03
Your guide meets you
Tavake Rapu collects you from your accommodation on the first morning. By then your paperwork and park ticket are already sorted.
The four-day plan
The order of your days is the part you cannot redo
Rano Raraku and Orongo admit you once each. Put them on the wrong days — back to back, or on the one afternoon the weather closes in — and the two best places on the island are simply gone from your trip.
Our four-day sequence exists to prevent exactly that. It builds in a weather buffer before the quarry and puts Orongo on a morning when the crater is usually clear.
Free planning guides
Read these before you book a flight
No email required and nothing gated. These are the four things that most often go wrong, written out properly.
Easter Island Entry Requirements: FUI Form, Return Ticket and Hotel Rules
Chile controls who lands on Rapa Nui. The four things you must have before you fly, what the FUI form actually asks, and when to do each step.
Read the guideHow Many Days Do You Need on Easter Island?
The honest answer: four nights and three full days is the realistic minimum, five is better. Here is the flight arithmetic and what you lose at three.
Read the guideRapa Nui National Park Ticket: Price, the 10-Day Rule and the One-Visit Sites
The park ticket costs around USD 100, lasts 10 days, and admits you to Rano Raraku and Orongo once each. Here is what that actually means for your trip.
Read the guideHow to Sequence Your Easter Island Days (Don't Waste Your One Rano Raraku Visit)
Your park ticket admits you to Rano Raraku and Orongo once each. This is how to order your days so weather, cloud, and flight times cannot cost you either.
Read the guideCommon questions
Straight answers
- Do you need a guide on Easter Island?
- Yes. Rapa Nui National Park rules require every visitor to be accompanied by an accredited guide or a member of the Rapa Nui community to enter any archaeological site. It is a legal requirement, not an optional extra.
- How much is the Easter Island national park ticket?
- The national park ticket costs about USD 100 for an international adult. It is valid for 10 consecutive days from first entry, but admits you to Rano Raraku and Orongo only once each.
- How many days do you need on Easter Island?
- Four nights and three full days is the realistic minimum to see the main sites without rushing. Five days lets you add hikes and quieter sites, and gives you a weather buffer for the one visit you get to Rano Raraku.
- Do you take payment on this website?
- No. You send a planning request, we confirm the guide's availability and reply with a written quote within 24 hours, and payment is arranged directly after that.
Tell us your dates and we will tell you honestly what fits
Five short questions. No payment details, no obligation, and a real reply from a person who has planned this trip many times.
We reply within 24 hours, Monday to Saturday.
Still researching? Start with the planning guides.