Tahai, Orongo and Rano Kau Half-Day Tour
Hanga Roa, Chile
Rating: 
Trip Type: Half-day Tours
Duration: 3 hours 30 minutes
Discover archaeological wonders on the southwestern coast of Easter Island on this half-day tour, including restored 'moai' statues at the Tahai ceremonial complex, the cave paintings of Ana Kai Tangata and the stone masonry homes of Orongo village. From inside the cave, watch waves crash against cliffs, and admire the crater lake near the inactive Rano Kau volcano. As you explore, learn about Rapa Nui culture and the legends surrounding the mysterious birdmen. Pickup and drop-off from Hanga Roa hotels are included.
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Discover archaeological wonders on the southwestern coast of Easter Island on this half-day tour, including restored 'moai' statues at the Tahai ceremonial complex, the cave paintings of Ana Kai Tangata and the stone masonry homes of Orongo village. From inside the cave, watch waves crash against cliffs, and admire the crater lake near the inactive Rano Kau volcano. As you explore, learn about Rapa Nui culture and the legends surrounding the mysterious birdmen. Pickup and drop-off from Hanga Roa hotels are included.
After hotel pickup in Hanga Roa, you're driven north toward the Tahai ceremonial complex, where you’ll walk a short distance to enter the archaeological site.
Your knowledgeable guide explains the origins of moai, massive stone statues of human figures carved by the indigenous Rapa Nui, which represent the spirits of ancestors and chief members of tribes. At Tahai, they have been restored and placed on top of ahu, or ceremonial platforms.
Meander through the site on your own for a little less than an hour. Situated from north to south, the first ahu to note is Ko Te Riku with its single moai. This moai sports a pukao, or topknot, on its head and has restored eyes, which archaeologists believe were decorated with seashells or obsidian.
Observe another solitary moai at Ahu Tahai (not to be confused with the name of the complex), resting by a canoe ramp made out of beach stones and considered to date back to 690 AD. On the southern edge of the site, five moai of varying shapes and sizes stand upon Ahu Vai Uri.
Then re-board the minivan and travel south to Ana Kai Tangata, a cave along the coast. Inside, your guide points out red and white drawings of birds in flight and notes the petroglyphs of manutaras, or birdmen, around the cave.
The only cave on the island to contain such pictures, many believe this location served as the starting point of the annual Tangata Manu ritual practiced until around 1800. As you listen to the rhythmic crashing of the surf against the cliffs and hear ancient legends, imagine the men selected from each tribe leaping from the cave and swimming toward the islet of Motu Nui to collect the first egg laid by a sooty tern. Many drowned or were killed by sharks. The first man to return with the egg was rewarded with riches for his tribe for the rest of the year.
Leave the cave and set sights on the Rano Kau volcano and its crater lake. Capture this dramatic landscape from three different vantage points before your guide takes you to the village of Orongo at the southern tip of the island.
Orongo contains 54 restored oval-shaped houses constructed out of slabs of shale, each with a small square entryway overlooking the ocean. Note the abundance of birdmen petroglyphs here, and learn about the site's use as a ceremonial center for birdmen rites between 1600 and 1866.
Your knowledgeable guide explains the origins of moai, massive stone statues of human figures carved by the indigenous Rapa Nui, which represent the spirits of ancestors and chief members of tribes. At Tahai, they have been restored and placed on top of ahu, or ceremonial platforms.
Meander through the site on your own for a little less than an hour. Situated from north to south, the first ahu to note is Ko Te Riku with its single moai. This moai sports a pukao, or topknot, on its head and has restored eyes, which archaeologists believe were decorated with seashells or obsidian.
Observe another solitary moai at Ahu Tahai (not to be confused with the name of the complex), resting by a canoe ramp made out of beach stones and considered to date back to 690 AD. On the southern edge of the site, five moai of varying shapes and sizes stand upon Ahu Vai Uri.
Then re-board the minivan and travel south to Ana Kai Tangata, a cave along the coast. Inside, your guide points out red and white drawings of birds in flight and notes the petroglyphs of manutaras, or birdmen, around the cave.
The only cave on the island to contain such pictures, many believe this location served as the starting point of the annual Tangata Manu ritual practiced until around 1800. As you listen to the rhythmic crashing of the surf against the cliffs and hear ancient legends, imagine the men selected from each tribe leaping from the cave and swimming toward the islet of Motu Nui to collect the first egg laid by a sooty tern. Many drowned or were killed by sharks. The first man to return with the egg was rewarded with riches for his tribe for the rest of the year.
Leave the cave and set sights on the Rano Kau volcano and its crater lake. Capture this dramatic landscape from three different vantage points before your guide takes you to the village of Orongo at the southern tip of the island.
Orongo contains 54 restored oval-shaped houses constructed out of slabs of shale, each with a small square entryway overlooking the ocean. Note the abundance of birdmen petroglyphs here, and learn about the site's use as a ceremonial center for birdmen rites between 1600 and 1866.
After your guide's introduction to village lore and legend, spend a little over an hour exploring the site on your own before transport back to your hotel.
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