Something you can do when it's cold and miserable outside

There was a power cut yesterday. Right when the wind was howling and blowing stone-sized lumps of hail at the windows. The temperature outside dropped four degrees in two minutes(from 6 degrees Celcius to 2 degrees), the inside temperature took a little longer, but had a greater drop in the next four hours. I put on seven layers of clothes and shawls. I texted “he who would like to be obeyed” and told him about the power cut. He suggested I get in bed with a hottie. Unfortunately, due to the storm, no suitable young men were available.  I hankered after one of the chaps on the 2014 Firemen’s Calendar but they were all out on duty rosters. So sad.

I filled a hot water bottle instead, got myself a good book to read then got sidetracked. What else could I spend my time on? Practice armchair travel and take myself somewhere I haven’t been before.

I thought about a late holiday in a warm spot. I’ve been to Australia and the Pacific Islands, the far east isn’t so safe right now, the US is a disaster zone …actually LA airport is SO awful that the thought of actually having to arrive there puts me in a cold sweat. I’ve spent three hours in a holding pen in the transit zone in a corridor at 2am with no water or food and I don’t intend to do that again.

And from New Zealand it’s such a long haul, planes have to stop in LA or San Francisco or Vancouver – they’d run out of fuel if they tried to keep going. So where to go? A relaxing restful break, not my usual charge around trying to fit everything in and write and photograph it all at the same time.

I opened an actual Atlas at the whole world page, not a virtual online job, closed my eyes, and poked my finger at a spot.

Easter Island.

I began to investigate. For just under $NZ2,400 ( approx. $US2,000) round trip I can jump on an 11 and a half hour flight to Santiago, Chile out of Auckland NZ. There’s a flight each day.  And then I can catch another flight from Santiago to Mataveri Airport, Easter Island. Going back home to NZ, I do it in reverse order. Or, I could return home via Tahiti…Now, there’s a thought.

Facts about Easter Island:

“The daily and annual thermal oscillation is scarce, and precipitations are distributed homogenously during the whole year.” In English – it rains pretty much evenly all year, so no rainy season followed by a dry one. The climate is temperate, and the annual average temperature is 26.8 °C. It reaches a maximum of 29.6 °C in January, and a minimum of 19.6 °C in August.

LAN Chile airlines is the only airline that offers flights to Rapa Nui. Depending on the season, there are between four and seven flights a week from/to Santiago, and two flights a week from/to Papete (Tahiti). There are also two weekly flights available from/to Lima (Peru). Roundtrip tickets in standard economy class have prices that go from USD$500 to USD$900. 

Chilean Pesos are the local currency.

Three inactive volcanoes, stone statues (900 of them, some nearly 10metres tall) called Moais, beaches, caves and archaeology as well as churches and markets provide heaps of places to visit. I’m a keen walker, and there are several treks to choose from, for three to six days – but I think I only want short day treks on this trip. Scuba Diving, surfing, cycling, and horseback riding are all available.

Hanga Roa is where most of the hotels are (there are 35 to choose from). Prices vary between hotels - from US$95 per night to US$2,385 (yes, you read right) per night. To take advantage of the Explora Rapa Nui total luxury 5 star hotel you have to travel a bit, as it’s 8km out of town. You can pick up a rental car. Tripadvisor ranks  Hotel Hare Noi number one in Easter Island but it’s not available in September/October for the nights I selected, so I’ll choose another. The second ranked hotel is Taura’a’s, and the reviews are very good. It appears to be more of a B&B though, and I’m after a little more luxury this trip, so I’ll keep looking.  Hotel Hangaroa Eco Village and Spa  looks more my style. It’s  about US$1000  per night, and ranked 4^th by Tripadvisor. I’ve decided for this trip I will stay 7 nights. Well, Hangaroa Eco Village and Spa was available for some of the nights I selected in September, but I tried to see if  a seven night booking was available in November, December 2014 or January or February next year – and I was totally out of luck. Seems like luxury accommodation as well as B&B style in Easter Island is highly sought after.

This virtual trip filled in four hours till the power came back on. Thank to my smart phone that still works when the power doesn’t,  I was able to consult with Dr Goggle and completely plan my escape.  I think I’ll definitely put this on my places I’d like to visit list. Maybe next April I could get a booking!