Bicycle Tours in Chile - ​The Lake District
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We are offering 2 different options for bicycling in the
Lake and Volcano District in Chile - 7 or 8 days 
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Bike & Hike - 7 Days |
Road Cycling - 8 Days |
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Before we kick off our bike tour in Chile’s Lake and Volcano District, you should take a day or two to adjust to local time and recover from your travels, and allow for any flight or luggage delays. You should fly into Temuco airport (ZCO).
We recommend staying at Hotel Dreams Araucania in the city, which is well-located with lots of restaurants and other facilities just a short walk away, and where we will meet the next day. Official Airport Transfer The official shuttle company at Temuco’s Airport is called TransAraucania. They are the only authorized shuttle company at the airport, and their staff wears a blue and green uniform. By contract with the airport, they must have available transport based in the domestic flights arriving every day. They have a counter at the airport, right next to the automatic doors (from the baggage carrousel). They offer regular and private shuttles to Temuco at $30.000 pesos (USD $40 per vehicle). You don’t need reservations and you can pay in Credit Card or Cash. The ATM’s is on second floor. All their shuttle services will drop you off at the hotel or address you are staying in Temuco. Driving time is approximately 35 minutes. Day 01, Temuco – Malalcahuello
On the first day of our bike and hike tour, our local team will meet you at Dreams Araucanía Hotel in Temuco at 9am. We’ll drive for approximately 2 hours to Curacautín, a small quaint village. This village is part of the UNESCO Kütralkura Geopark and the Biosphere Reserve “Araucarias”. There, we’ll stop for lunch. Afterwards, your guides will assist you to assemble and fit your bike. Once we are ready, we’ll start our trip with a 26-mile warm-up ride, with the Lonquimay volcano at sight and surrounded by ancient araucaria trees. We’ll arrive at a modern hotel with SPA located in a small ski resort. In the evening, we’ll have an orientation and briefing session before our welcome dinner together. Accommodation: Corralco Hotel & SPA Meals: Lunch and welcome dinner Today’s ride distance: 42 kilometers / 26 miles Day 02, Kutralkura Geopark and The Andes Climb Today we’ll ride towards the Andes mountain range, pedaling alongside the Lonquimay River by an almost flat valley located in Kütralkura, Chile’s first Geopark. The road is quite rolling with several flat sections and a few small climbs. If you want to pedal up some serious grades, it is possible to extend the route on 22 km (13.6 miles) more, until the peak altitude of 1.884 meters (6.181 feet above sea level). Accommodation: Corralco Hotel & SPA Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner Today’s ride distance: 58 kilometers (+ optional 22,5) / 36 miles (+ optional 14) Day 3, Lonquimay Volcano and Coloradito Trail Hike We’ll hike towards Cerro Coloradito, a natural view point of 4 volcanoes: Lonquimay, Llaima, Sierra Nevada and Villarrica. The hike is quite fun, with fantastic views and always surrounded by ancient forests of araucaria trees, some of them dating over 2.000 years old. After the hike, we’ll drive to Pucón, Chile’s capital of adventure tourism. Accommodation: Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast and picnic lunch Time hiking: 3 hours approximately Day 4, Villarrica Volcano Climb
This morning you will have to be ready early and if the weather conditions are favorable, we’ll start driving to the Pucón Ski Resort located at the base of the volcano at 1.400 meters / 4.593 feet. Ascending the active Villarrica Volcano is without a doubt a once in a lifetime experience, the climb is not technical, but you need to be in good shape to reach the summit. Once we arrive at the parking lot we can buy the lift ticket that will take us to the higher part of the ski courses at 1.800 mts / 5.906 feet, saving us almost 2 hours of climbing.. The views from the top are absolutely mind-blowing, overlooking five lakes and several volcanoes in the distance such as Llaima and Lanín. The descent is quite fun, especially when we can slide down the snow on our rear ends. We’ll return to the vehicles around 5 pm and immediately head off to Pucón, where we hand back the gear. Lodging at Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch Day 5, Pucon's Hot Springs Loop Ride We’ll cycle from our hotel to Lake Caburgua and then towards Pucon's famous Hot Springs. The ride today is a combination of rolling hills with several short climbs at the second half of the road. Throughout today’s ride our guide will help us identify several species of birds and trees as we cycle next to beautiful farms and enjoy views of the Villarrica volcano. With a little good luck, we will see smoke coming out of this active volcano. After cycling the rolling and sometimes hilly road to the hot springs, we will enjoy lunch and then a soothing soak in a hot mineral bath. Later we’ll take a short ride in the vans back to our hotel in Pucón, or you can ride in your bike if you want. Evening at leisure, dinner NOT included. Accommodation: Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast and Lunch Bike traveled distance: 52 km / 32 miles (+ 22 miles if you want to ride back to Pucón) Time cycling: 3 hours approx Time driving in the van: 40 min from Hot Springs to hotel in Pucón *Day 6, Chile's 7-Lake Route
Each day brings new beauty on this tour, and today is no exception. Today we will ride one of Chile's most scenic roads, The 7-Lake Route. We'll pedal alongside the shores of two beautiful lakes, Calafquén and Panguipulli, and cover three-quarters of the way around Villarrica, a majestic, snow-capped active volcano. This road is smooth and quiet as almost no vehicles drive here. At one point we should be able to see five volcanoes. We'll have a picnic lunch by the beach of Lake Panguipulli - meaning “land of lions” - while enjoying the views of Chile's southern volcanoes. From here we contiue riding alongside Lake Panguipulli until the end of the paved road near Choshuenco village. From this point will drive back to Pucón. Tonight we'll enjoy a farewell BBQ dinner with our friends and local guides. Lodging at Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch and Farewell Dinner.- Bike traveled distance = 94.7 km / 58.8 miles. Time cycling: 6 hours approx. Time driving in the van: before riding, 40min from Pucón / after riding, 2 hours to Pucón Day 7, Pucón - Temuco's Airport (ZCO)
Sadly, it’s time to say good-bye to the beautiful Lake & Volcano District of Chile. After breakfast, we’ll ride in vans to Temuco's Airport to catch your flight back to Santiago. It’s been a trip you will always remember! End of services. Meals: Breakfast Please Book your domestic flights not before 10am Rates per person in US$, valid till end of April 2023:
Planned Group Departure dates: Nov. 6, 2022
- PROGRAM INCLUDES
- NOT INCLUDED
In order to confirm your reservation, we kindly request a 50% deposit. Your first deposit must be paid, within 2 weeks after confirmation.
Your trip must be paid in full with 60 days prior the date of departure. Cancellation Policy If, for any reason, you are forced to cancel your trip, the following penalties will apply:
Insurance Any policy you purchase should, at the very least, cover trip cancellation, loss of baggage, accident/life coverage, travel delays, and non-refundable airline tickets. Carriers for travel insurance include Travel Guard and Travelex. You may also consider insurance that covers emergency medical evacuation. Search the web to find the best deal that suits your needs- read the fine print |
Before we kick off our bike tour in Chile’s Lake and Volcano District, you should take a day or two to adjust to local time and recover from your travels, and allow for any flight or luggage delays. You should fly into Temuco airport (ZCO).
We recommend staying at Hotel Dreams Araucania in the city, which is well-located with lots of restaurants and other facilities just a short walk away, and where we will meet the next day. Official Airport Transfer The official shuttle company at Temuco’s Airport is called TransAraucania. They are the only authorized shuttle company at the airport, and their staff wears a blue and green uniform. By contract with the airport, they must have available transport based in the domestic flights arriving every day. They have a counter at the airport, right next to the automatic doors (from the baggage carrousel). They offer regular and private shuttles to Temuco at $30.000 pesos (USD $40 per vehicle). You don’t need reservations and you can pay in Credit Card or Cash. The ATM’s is on second floor. All their shuttle services will drop you off at the hotel or address you are staying in Temuco. Driving time is approximately 35 minutes. Day 01, Temuco – Malalcahuello On the first day of our road cycling tour, our local team will meet you at Dreams Araucanía Hotel in Temuco at 9am. We’ll drive for approximately 2 hours to Curacautín, a small quaint village. This village is part of the UNESCO Kütralkura Geopark and the Biosphere Reserve “Araucarias”. There, we’ll stop for coffee and snacks. Afterwards, your guides will assist you to assemble and fit your bike. Once we are ready, we’ll start our trip with a 26-mile warm-up ride, with the Lonquimay volcano at sight and surrounded by ancient araucaria trees. We’ll arrive at a modern hotel with SPA located in a small ski resort. In the evening, we’ll have an orientation and briefing session before our welcome dinner together. Accommodation: Corralco Hotel & SPA Meals: Lunch and welcome dinner Today’s ride distance: 42 kilometers / 26 miles Day 02, Kutralkura Geopark and The Andes Climb Today we’ll ride towards the Andes mountain range, pedaling alongside the Lonquimay River by an almost flat valley located in Kütralkura, Chile’s first Geopark. The road is quite rolling with several flat sections and a few small climbs. If you want to pedal up some serious grades, it is possible to extend the route on 22 km (13.6 miles) more, until the peak altitude of 1.884 meters (6.181 feet above sea level). Accommodation: Corralco Hotel & SPA Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch and dinner Today’s ride distance: 58 kilometers (+ optional 22,5) / 36 miles (+ optional 14) Day 03, Kütralkura Geopark and Coloradito Hill hike – drive to Pucon Today we start hiking from the hotel. We’ll hike towards Cerro Coloradito (redish hill), a natural view point of 4 volcanoes: Lonquimay, Llaima, Sierra Nevada and Villarrica. The hike is quite fun, with fantastic views and almost no other people in the trails. We’ll be surrounded by an ancient forest of araucaria trees, some of them dating over 2.000 years old. After the hike we’ll check out at the hotel, and then we start traveling to Pucón (3 hour drive), the main adventure tourism destination in the Lake & Volcano District. Enjoy the Villarrica Lake views at your hotel. Evening at leisure to explore Pucon. Ask our guides if you need some local knowledge about dining and good shopping. Accommodation: Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast and Lunch Time hiking: 3 hours approximately Time driving in the van: None before hiking / 3 hours to Pucón after hiking Day 04, Pucon's Hot Springs Loop Ride We’ll cycle from our hotel to Lake Caburgua and then towards Pucon's famous Hot Springs. The ride today is a combination of rolling hills with several short climbs at the second half of the road. Throughout today’s ride our guide will help us identify several species of birds and trees as we cycle next to beautiful farms and enjoy views of the Villarrica volcano. With a little good luck, we will see smoke coming out of this active volcano. After cycling the rolling and sometimes hilly road to the hot springs, we will enjoy lunch and then a soothing soak in a hot mineral bath. Later we’ll take a short ride in the vans back to our hotel in Pucón, or you can ride in your bike if you want. Evening at leisure, dinner NOT included. Accommodation: Casa Solaria Hotel Meals: Breakfast and Lunch Bike traveled distance: 52 km / 32 miles (+ 22 miles if you want to ride back to Pucón) Time cycling: 3 hours approx Time driving in the van: 40 min from Hot Springs to hotel in Pucón Day 05, Chile's 7-lake route Each day brings new beauty on this tour, and today is no exception. Today we will ride one of Chile's most scenic roads, The 7-Lake Route. We'll pedal alongside the shores of two beautiful lakes, Calafquén and Panguipulli, and cover three-quarters of the way around Villarrica, a majestic, snow-capped active volcano. This road is smooth and quiet as almost no vehicles drive here. At one point we should be able to see five volcanoes. We'll have a picnic lunch by the beach of Lake Panguipulli - meaning “land of lions” - while enjoying the views of Chile's southern volcanoes. From here we continue riding alongside Lake Panguipulli until the end of the paved road near Choshuenco village. From this point will drive half hour to the Natural Reserve Huilo Huilo, where we’ll eat dinner and stay overnight. Accommodation: Nothofagus Hotel & SPA Meals: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch and Dinner Bike traveled distance: 94.7 km / 58.8 miles Time cycling: 6 hours approx Time driving in the van: Before riding, 40min from Pucón / after riding, 30min to Hotel. Day 6, The German Settlers Route Today we’ll ride in the vans 84 miles until we reach the city of Osorno, where we will begin cycling. From this point we’ll start our ride towards quaint little villages with a strong German heritage. The route consists of rolling hills with flat stretches until we end the ride by the beach of Lake Llanquihue, where a unique landscape is waiting for us, the Osorno Volcano with its perfect cone. We'll enjoy an incredible buffet lunch in a German family-owned restaurant and then drive in the vans 35 minutes to Puerto Varas. Evening at leisure. Accommodation: Cumbres Patagónicas Hotel & SPA Meals: Breakfast and Buffet Lunch Bike traveled distance: 90 km / 56 miles. Time cycling: 5 hours approx Time driving in the van: before riding, 3 hours / after riding, 35min to Puerto Varas Day 07, Vicente Perez Rosales National Park ride This trip of a lifetime is about to end. In the morning, we start riding from the hotel, alongside Lake Llanquihue, where a unique landscape is waiting for us - the Osorno Volcano with its perfect cone. The side of the Volcano reaches the shore of the lake and we’ll pass through the middle of this astounding landscape as we travel to the village of Ensenada. We will start pedaling from Puerto Varas to Petrohue, attacking 34 miles in one of the most beautiful routes of the tour. Upon completing the ride we’ll head back with the vans to the charming german-style city of Puerto Varas, our last destination, and let ourselves to relax and enjoy a farewell dinner (seafood restaurant). Option extra 7.3 miles /3750ft: Challenge yourself and climb Volcan Osorno and one of the steepest climbs in South America if not Europe. Accommodation: Cumbres Patagónicas Hotel & SPA Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner Bike traveled distance: 55 km / 34 miles Time cycling: 4 hours approx Time driving in the van: after cycling, 70 minutes from Osorno Volcano to Puerto Varas Day 08, Puerto Varas – Airport in Puerto Montt (PMC) Sadly, it’s time to say good-bye to the beautiful Lake & Volcano District of Chile. After breakfast, we’ll visit Puerto Varas downtown looking for that special souvenirs to bring home. Ask our guides about the local Markets with the best souvenirs, handcrafts and woolen clothing. Later we’ll ride in vans and head to the Puerto Montt Airport to catch your flight home or wherever your travels take you next. It’s been a trip you will always remember! End of services. Meals: Breakfast Please Book your domestic flights not before 10am RATE PER PERSON, BASED ON DOUBLE OCCUPANCY -
US $4,125.00 Single Supplement - USD $475.00 RATE VALID UNTIL END OF April 2023 For private departure dates, please ask for our special rates Planned GROUP DEPARTURE DATES: Oct. 29, 2022, Jan. 14 and Feb. 25, 2023
PROGRAM INCLUDES Professional tour guide (1 guide for every 9 clients) Private transportation with trailer & bicycle rack Accommodation at 4 star Hotels Meals as per itinerary (7 breakfasts, 7 lunches and 4 dinners; on-route snacks include: mineral water, energy drinks, trail-mix, fresh fruit and gourmet sandwiches). Gratuities at restaurants and hotels Basic cycle parts (cable housing, tubes, tires and spokes), All activities according to the itinerary. Entrance fees to hot springs and national parks All routes can be extended up to extra 20 miles.
NOT INCLUDED International and local flights Accidents insurance Other cycle parts and components (derailleur, crankset, fork, etc) Extra beverages & cocktails Laundry Bike rental available upon request - Bike rental: US$250 for the whole tour. – ACTIVITIES INCLUDED Road cycling, hiking and hot springs DIFFICULTY Intermediate: You’re active on your days off, and recreational biking may even be your weekend sport of choice. You love to ride, and it shows in your endurance and strength. Our intermediate bike tours offer a steady but active pace, with opportunities to push yourself. Expect some challenging climbs, with great descents over rolling terrain. Average distance per day: 40-50 miles / 65-80 km. VEHICLES Modern van or Mercedes-Benz Sprinter minibus according to group size, air-conditioned ITINERARY MODIFICATIONS Slight itinerary modifications might occur due to weather and or road conditions, or force majeur. FAQ's Helmets & Pedals Most riders choose to bring their own helmets, but if you prefer, we have a small number of helmets available on a 'first come, first served' basis. Please let us know in advance if you'd like to use one. All our bikes are equipped with Wellgo pedals and toeclips. We will be happy to substitute any pedals you choose to bring. We also have a small number of Shimano SPD and SPD-SL pedals, available on a 'first come, first served' basis. Please let us know in advance if you prefer to use them. Weather notes We suggest visiting the web for current conditions in Chile and doing your own research on this topic. (Maybe www.accuweather.com ) Generally the weather in this area is very similar to Northern California, specially the coast side. Late October and November (spring time in the southern hemisphere) present milder temperatures (50°F / 77°F) with some scattered rain. During December you can start feeling the beginning of the summer with temperatures around 50°F / 81°F. In January and February temperatures range between 60°F / 95°F. Remember that you are visiting the Lake & Volcano district, so always expect some rain! In Chile there are no insects or animals that represent a threat to human beings. Airline Information We highly recommend getting the Chile Airpass ticket with Lan Airlines, which includes the international flight from your country to Santiago (Chile) and the domestic flights Santiago(SCL)- Temuco(ZCO) / Puerto Montt(PMC)-Santiago(SCL). This Airpass is definitely less expensive than buying the flights separately and what's more important it is very flexible if there are some unexpected last minute changes. Lan Airlines Airpass can be purchased at any IATA travel agent. Note: The local flights in Chile have a luggage allowance of 23kg. You will need to pay excess if your baggage exceeds this. There is an allowance for cycling equipment charged at 3kg (approx $5 per kg). |
