The Fiesta de La Tirana is Chile’s largest religious festival, annually drawing hundreds of thousands of pilgrims to honor the Virgen del Carmen in the tiny desert town. The festival’s unique blend of Andean and Catholic traditions is rooted in the legend of Incan princess Ñusta Huillac, “La Tirana.” Its main attraction is the sight of massive, colorful dance groups (bailes) performing energetic masked dances like the iconic Diablada, all culminating in a grand procession on July 16th.

The Tapati Rapa Nui is the main cultural festival on Easter Island (Rapa Nui), celebrated for two weeks each year to honor the island’s ancestral traditions. Its most famous attractions are intense ancestral competitions like the daring Haka Pei (sliding down a steep hill on banana trunks) and the Tau’a Rapa Nui triathlon, all highlighted by traditional Ori Rapa Nui dancing and body painting ceremonies.