{"id":637,"date":"2026-07-14T20:45:23","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T20:45:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.easterisland.travel\/blog\/?p=637"},"modified":"2026-07-14T21:00:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T21:00:18","slug":"tapati-rapa-nui-2027-easter-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.easterisland.travel\/blog\/tapati-rapa-nui-2027-easter-island\/","title":{"rendered":"Tapati Rapa Nui 2027: Official Dates, Queen Candidates and How to Experience Easter Island’s Biggest Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The official dates for Tapati Rapa Nui 2027<\/a><\/strong> have now been confirmed: January 30 to February 12, 2027<\/strong>. This will be the 59th edition<\/strong> of the most important cultural festival on Rapa Nui (Easter Island)<\/a><\/strong>. For those of us who live on the island, the excitement has already begun. Families are preparing for the competition, the official queen candidates have been announced, and the search for this year’s official festival poster is already underway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If you’re planning to visit Easter Island<\/strong> during the Tapati Festival 2027<\/strong>, now is the time to start organizing your trip. February is the busiest travel season of the year, with thousands of visitors arriving to experience the island’s living culture. Flights and accommodations often sell out months in advance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In this guide, you’ll discover what Tapati Rapa Nui<\/strong> is, everything confirmed so far about the 2027 edition<\/strong>, and how to prepare for one of the most authentic cultural celebrations in the Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is Tapati Rapa Nui?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The word Tapati<\/strong> means “week”<\/strong> in the Rapanui language, although today the celebration lasts nearly two weeks. Created in the late 1960s as a community festival, it has grown into the island’s most important annual cultural event, bringing together families from across Rapa Nui<\/strong> to celebrate and preserve their ancestral traditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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During Tapati Rapa Nui<\/strong>, local families form alliances around the official queen candidates and compete in dozens of traditional sporting, artistic, and cultural events. It is not a performance created for tourists. It is a community-driven celebration where months of preparation culminate in nearly two weeks of competitions, music, dance, craftsmanship, and cultural pride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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During Tapati, the entire community comes together to preserve Rapanui traditions.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Visitors are warmly welcomed to experience the festival. You can attend rehearsals, watch the competitions, support one of the competing family alliances, and take part in many community events that are open to the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Today, Tapati Rapa Nui<\/strong> is one of the cultural highlights of Easter Island<\/strong>, complementing the island’s extraordinary archaeological heritage, which is protected within Rapa Nui National Park<\/strong>, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tapati Rapa Nui 2027 Dates<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The 59th edition of Tapati Rapa Nui<\/strong> will take place from Saturday, January 30, to Friday, February 12, 2027<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For fourteen days, Easter Island<\/strong> comes alive with traditional competitions during the day and cultural performances each evening, most of them held at the main stage in Hanga Vare Vare<\/strong>, located in Hanga Roa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Main stage at Hanga Vare Vare during Tapati 2027<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The festival concludes with its most anticipated moment: the coronation of the ‘Ariki Vahine<\/strong>, the Tapati Queen, who will represent Rapa Nui<\/strong> throughout the following year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Meet the 2027 Queen Candidates<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Unlike previous editions of Tapati Rapa Nui<\/strong>, this year’s festival required a preliminary selection process to determine the two official queen candidates who will compete throughout Tapati Rapa Nui 2027<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Initially, three young women entered the selection process: Haukena Mella Tuki<\/strong>, Mihi\ua78cua Pakomio Rapu<\/strong>, and Kuhane Pate Tuki<\/strong>. However, because each competing family must dedicate significant financial, logistical, and human resources throughout the festival, the organizing committee decided to carry out a pre-selection to ensure that only two official candidates would continue in the competition, making the event more sustainable for everyone involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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