Being parents has changed our lives in so many ways. Before S-boy arrived on the scene, C & I crashed in just about any motel or hostel and couldn’t care less.
Now we prefer to stay in hotels and resorts that offer a minimum level of comfort and love it if we can enjoy an immersive experience in the local culture.
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During our trip to Easter Island, Chile we stayed in two fabulous hotels, Hanga Roa Eco Village & in the main town and Lemu Lodge in the Vaihu sector of the island, both of which enhanced our Easter Island experience.
Full Disclosure: We stayed at the luxury Hanga Roa Eco Village & Spa on Easter Island as guests of the hotel. All opinions are our own.
Hanga Roa Eco Village & Spa is locally known as Hotel Hangaroa and conveniently located in the main town and capital of Easter Island.
It is the only luxury hotel located within the town and is popular amongst couples and families because of its location.
Barbara, our hostess, welcomed us at Mataveri Airport with beautiful fragrant flower leis, and then we drove to the hotel.
The flight from Santiago to Easter Island is 6 hrs long and I really dislike standing at hotel check-in counters after a long-haul flight to get the room keys while keeping an eye on the luggage and an excited toddler.
Hotel Hangaroa has the check-in part of your stay completely sorted. We sat in the beautiful hotel lobby and admired its traditional Rapanui boat house styled architecture while sipping on our welcome drinks as the staff acted efficiently to get us checked-in.
Meanwhile, our luggage was directly taken to our room by the diligent hotel staff. Ah, island life!
Our sea-view room was big and clean, the bed was made with pristine white sheets with a sofa converted into a bed for S-boy and a lovely outdoor patio overlooked the sea.
C & I grabbed a few drinks from the much welcome mini-bar and eagerly went to sit on the patio to catch glimpses of life in Hanga Roa village. And that’s how I saw my first Moai.
I had read a lot about how the Moai are everywhere on the island and that the entire island is an open-air museum but nothing had quite prepared me for just lounging in my hotel room and looking at a majestic Moai.
The whole atmosphere was thrilling and uniquely Easter Island-ish. Hotel Hangaroa also added to the remote and mysterious vibe with its beautiful Orongo ceremonial village inspired low guest rooms that hugged the grounds.
Along with a resort spa, pool and a small gym Hotel Hangaroa also offers many luxurious features in the guest rooms.
C & I fell especially in love with the giant hand-made natural clay tub; it was perfect for relaxing after the tiring hikes to the volcanic crater of Rano Kau and the remote North Coast.
The tub was perfectly wedged in between cypress tree trunks while the separate stone shower was big and luxurious.
The sink was beautifully carved out of volcanic rock and an array of included toiletries made our stay very luxurious.
Our Dream Hangaroa package included daily buffet breakfast at Poerava Restaurant, one of the on-site restaurants on the property.
The restaurant had beautiful ocean views with charming interiors. C & I enjoyed the continental style breakfast with fresh fruit juices.
S-boy loved the fresh queso cheese and the tasty deserts. As we munched on our omelets and sipped the delicious guava juice, the deep blue Pacific Ocean sparkled into the distance.
Our view was obstructed by half a dozen billboards put up by protesting locals in conflict with the Chilean government regarding the land sale and Hotel Hangaroa was caught in the middle.
It was a salient reminder of the many conflicts that have resulted in the toppled Moai, the dangerous cult of Birdman and the more recent struggles with the mainland– this was Easter Island; not just any other island in the Pacific.
Full Disclosure: We stayed at the luxury Hanga Roa Eco Village & Spa on Easter Island as guests of the hotel. All opinions are our own.
Read more about the UNESCO World Heritage site of Easter Island or see the best 10 things to do on Easter Island.
Hangaroa Eco Village & Spa / Website / Address: AV. PONT S/N, ISLA DE PASCUA, CHILE / Phone: +56 (2) 2553 700 or +56 (2) 2957 0141
Most visitors to Easter Island stay for a few days and base themselves out of Hanga Roa, see the main archeological sights on the island including Rano Raraku, Rano Kau, Ahu Tahai, Ahu Tongariki and Anakena Beach, and return to Santiago.
Since C & I were visiting Easter Island for almost a week we decided to stay outside of Hanga Roa for few days to fully experience the Easter Island magic and learn the local customs and traditions.
As I have mentioned before, C & I love staying in unique experiential accommodations and we were super happy to partner with Lemu Lodge on Easter Island.
Lemu Lodge Rapa Nui is located in the Vaihu sector of Easter Island and the property has a group of 6 bungalows near the sea. I had fallen in love with the gorgeous photos of their accommodations on the website and was eager to experience the eco-friendly bungalow myself.
Full Disclosure: We stayed at the uber romantic and eco-friendly place Lemu Lodge on Easter Island as guests of the hotel. All opinions are our own.
Like most accommodations on Easter Island, Lemu Lodge also provides guest pickup complete with flower leis from Mataveri Airport but since we were already on the island and renting a car we simply drove to Vaihu.
Lemo Lodge is roughly located opposite the Vaihu Moai and the white roof of the bungalows can be seen from the main road.
Finding the access road to Lemu Lodge is a little tricky since they don’t have a sign promoting the entrance; we were able to ask a couple of Rapanui men on horseback for directions to the lodge.
On arrival, we were warmly welcomed by Claudia, Andre, and other Lodge staff. The reception is located in the Club House which also doubles up as a restaurant for breakfast and dinner.
We were asked to remove shoes before we stepped in to respect the local custom. We were pleasantly surprised by this tradition; being Indian we follow the same custom in our home.
After checking-in, we were shown to our bungalow and we immediately fell in love with our accommodations.
Our bungalow was a big, airy, open suite with a large sitting area and a king-sized bedroom. A unique rustic sink adorned the bathroom and an outdoor shower completed the relaxing experience.
Our bungalow also had a very pretty terraced patio; we enjoyed sitting outside and experiencing a beautiful sunrise over the sea.
We were served welcome snacks and fresh fruit juices on arrival; the meal was a perfect mid-day snack to sustain us while we visited Ahu Tongariki in the afternoon and then went to Anakena beach for dinner.
Lemu Lodge advertises itself as eco-friendly bungalows where one can commune with nature so C & I went to find out exactly how green are they. Turns out, a lot!
The cabins don’t have a heating/cooling system so that reduces the carbon footprint a lot. Even without the system, the bungalow is cozy and we were uber comfortable under the thick comforter though we visited in winter.
The commune with nature part is also true. From the lodge, guests can view the sea and horses roam around the property. There are few other properties nearby and except for the staff and other guests; one can have the area to themselves.
We were there on a full moon night and the moonlit sea sparkled in the distance as silhouetted horses danced on the pastures. It was surreal and beautiful. We had planned to photograph the Milky Way but the moon spoiled our chances.
The staff at Lemu Lodge was very friendly and served delicious daily breakfast spread during our stay.
They were very accommodating of special requests and arranged boxed breakfast sandwiches for us when we went to see the sunrise at Ahu Tongariki.
On more than one occasion, I had to request a small sandwich for S-boy since there weren’t many restaurants nearby and always received a filling meal including fresh fruit juices which is a lot more than what some hotels provide.
Once we also requested dinner in the restaurant. The dinner request was a very informal affair, there was no menu and the staff verbally confirmed with us whether chicken would be fine.
On the other hand, the dinner itself, cooked by Chef Marcos, was a very elaborate and traditional Chilean three-course meal with vegetable soup, chicken with peas and potatoes, and a banana-caramel-cream desert.
It was delicious and just the thing we needed after hiking for miles in Rano Raruku.
Lemu Lodge also has different spa programs for its guests; visitors can enjoy a relaxing massage by the rocky coast. The management can also arrange for guided tours to various archaeological sites on the island on request.
One of our fellow guests was going on a traditional fishing experience with one of the staff; we also had an option of a horseback excursion on the many horses that roamed outside the property.
However, the best feature of the property apart from the friendly staff and unique cabin is its unique location. It was incredible to experience the remote side of Easter Island where fallen Moai and crumbled ahus were too common, wild horses frequented the roads and wildfires shone brilliantly in the night after living in the town of Hanga Roa with its cafes, shops, tourists, and WiFi zones.
Also, the popular archaeological sites of Rano Raraku and Ahu Tongariki are just 10-15 minutes drive away from Vaihu making Lemu Lodge a perfect base for exploring the eastern and northeastern side of the island.
Full Disclosure: We stayed at the uber romantic and eco-friendly place Lemu Lodge on Easter Island as guests of the hotel. All opinions are our own.
Lemu Lodge Rapa Nui / Website / Address: Caleta Vaihu s/n, 2770000 Hanga Roa, Chile