Hostal Sunset — Hotel in Easter Island

Lily was a very good host. The airport pick-up and drop-off was appreciated, in addition to setting up our Poike hike excursion. ||||We really looked forward to our breakfasts each day during this stay. The breakfasts were surprisingly good, and made for a great start to each active day. ||||As with any remote location, you must adjust your expectations on the accommodations and price. For the same price we paid here at Hostal Sunset, we got a luxury boutique hotel stay in Santiago (currently ranked #4 in TripAdvisor). Although I must say, the breakfasts at Hostal Sunset were better than the ones at our Santiago hotel. ||||Also, I did enjoy making use of the patio to enjoy the stars at night, and the tropical setting during the day. ||||Yes, internet connection was an issue as previous reviews indicate. But you just have to ask the host for assistance, and this can be worked out as it did for us. ||||The word "Hostal" is misleading. This is not actually a 'hostel' accommodation. You are not sharing a room when sleeping, nor are you sharing a washroom. So in this regard, this accommodation is better than what the title would lead you to believe. ||||I liked the location, which is kind of on the edge of town. You are next to the cemetery, and within walking distance to the AHU TAHAI moai statues, which is where everyone goes to see the statues against the sunset background. This way, you can check out the sunsets on multiple...

This property has 4 advantages over other lodgings in this price range on Rapa Nui: (1) excellent location (across from cemetery, within walking distance of Tahai for brilliant sunsets); (2) air conditioning (a necessity -- trust me on this); (3) breakfast (most properties do not provide it, or even the facilities to make it yourself); and (4) the owner, who is a native islander, former guide, and current president of the guide association. She speaks excellent English (a rarity on the island), and will take care of any arrangements you need, including guides, car rental, restaurant recommendations, everything. She picked us up at the airport and dropped us off when we left. When we wanted to hike out to Ahu Te Peu (highly recommended, BTW) after returning our rental car, she arranged for transportation up to the trail head and back. Remote vacations are so much easier when you have someone like that to help you. ||||The rooms are ... "rustic" (my wife's description), but perfectly adequate, and exactly what you want in a place like that, IMO. (When I'm traveling I don't want to stay in a little piece of the USA, I want local flavor.) WiFi is intermittent ... but jeez, you're in the middle of the freaking Pacific Ocean! It's a miracle to have it at all. We hit the bullseye on this one; I would absolutely stay there again. Highly...

This place is beautiful but not exceptionally so. ||On a positive side, the breakfast was really nice and abundant, and the other guests at the hostel were really friendly and interesting.||Also, we were picked up at the airport as promised and taken to our room. ||Now, the shortcomings. Considering that the whole Easter Island does not have a very good internet and mobile phone coverage, we were quite disappointed when we discovered there was no Wi Fi, which was advertised and included in price. The owner/manager blamed the recent storm for it, and promised she will look into it. She did not! During our whole stay in the hostel, we had to rely on Wi Fi available at three public squares on the Island. Later, we found out that the reason for the absence of Wi Fi was an unpaid bill.||But maybe the thing that really upset me the most happened at the end of oyr stay. The check out time was 12 am. Our flight was at 15 hrs. We asked if we could do the check out and leave our luggage at the hostel for an hour, before taking it to the airport. We were informed that they will not do that, and that we should take our luggage and leave the premises at noon!! What place does that?!||I do not recommend this place, because the Easter Islad is full of other hostels with similar prices and...