Xetro Tuki

Xetro was amazing! As a local Rapa Nui who grew up on the island, while he took us around he could talk not only about the "textbook history" of the Rapa Nui, but also about the significant changes and experiences of the island over the last 40 years. He spoke about not only his ancestors relationship with nature, but also his own family’s as he grew up. There's something special about walking through a cave and hearing about its significance 1000 years ago,  and then him talking about being in there as a kid with his uncle. Another time he pointed out this water retention well as we walked through the National Park and how it had a sandy cement paste so it clearly wasn't from centuries ago. Instead he told us that was where Grandpa's house had been and he was used the well to retain rain water for their use. 

He let us customize our private experience exactly how we wanted. This was great since we had a 6 & 10 year old so we were not sure exactly how their energy would be. One thing we noticed during pretour planning was that many of our USA idioms do not translate to the second language English spoken on Easter Island. Also, do remember that communication and "island time" is not as clear and scheduled as many tourist destinations. Do not let that frustrate or deter you from booking Xetro. His personal history with the island is unteachable and irreplaceable. While any educated guide can memorize and recite history during a tour, I am not sure if any other island guide can give real generational and cultural context like Xetro. Book him, you will not regret it.