Easter Island: The World's Loneliest Airport?

While most places are generally accessible, some are so remote and desolate that they can only be reached by air or sea. This is the case with Easter Island, a Chilean territory in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean.

Known mostly for its miraculous stone heads which protect the island — and have a mysterious origin in their own right — the rocky island has multiple different climates and has steep elevation changes. Easter Island is home to the Mataveri International Airport (IPC), which claims the title of the world’s loneliest airport.

Although Easter Island is remote, it is not the most remote place on earth; this title is reserved for Tristan Da Cunha, a UK-territory in the south Atlantic Ocean. However, Easter Island is big enough for an airport, unlike some of the smaller archipelagoes around.

Easter Island’s closest neighbor is Pitcairn Island, 1,931 km to the West. Although governed by Chile, most Easter Island affairs are handled domestically. IPC represents the furthest distance between one airport and another worldwide, giving it the title of most remote and loneliest airport.

[GMR,IPC]

Built in 1967, the Easter Island airport originally serviced Douglas DC-6B planes from mainland Chile, mostly as a stopping point for flights across the Pacific Ocean. The airport boasts a 3,305-meter runway, much larger and higher in elevation than other island nations across the Pacific.

Today, regular flights can still be seen coming into and leaving Easter Island, exclusively serviced between LATAM Chile flights to Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport (SCL) in Santiago, Chile. Although the remoteness of the airport may present some logistical changes in a flight to the island, prices for a roundtrip to the Island from New York through Chile are around USD 1500, less than most Oceania-based airports. Regular flights between IPC and SCL operate almost daily.

The island calls itself home to over 7,000 people. Made of volcanic rock, the nearly 1,000 stone heads circle the island. Known as one of the mysterious wonders of the world, visiting these heads is on many travelers' bucket lists.

Although flights into IPC are the fastest way to the island, many cruise ships and boats can reach the island by sea. The largest city on the island is Hanga Roa, housing over ninety percent of the island's inhabitants. Being located in the middle of the ocean may be hard for many commercial items to be available on the island, however rich volcanic soil has created great biodiversity, specifically in terms of fruits and vegetable harvest.