Chile’s Lakes & Volcanoes – March 4 – March 15, 2024

Trip Summary

12 Days / 11 Nights
Avg miles per day: 15-70, with the option to shorten
Hill profile: This is a VERY hilly tour! Bring your climbing legs! Also, note that this tour is very early in the cycling season.
Cost: $11,500 per team ($5,750/person)

March 4 – March 15, 2024

The Patagonia area of Chile is beautiful! Join us as we cycle through the lakes region of Chile in March 2024. We begin this 12 day trip in Lago Ranco in Chile. From there we will ride through amazing countryside, with lakes, volcanic mountains and stunning waterfalls. After touring the lakes and volcanoes region, we then visit the remote Chiloé Island. Our tour ends with transport from Chiloé Island to the airport or the town of Puerto Varas where you can continue your adventure.

The tour includes transportation to and from airports, if you are flying in on the recommended flights, routes, all breakfasts and many lunches and dinners. We will have support vehicles and local guides. You will have the ability to shorten rides. The roads are predominantly paved, many with a large shoulder or bike lane. Expect weather with highs in the 70s each day. Be prepared for a wide range of temperatures, though. It will likely be cooler the further south that we go. In addition, be prepared for some rainy days. Ride distances range from 15 to 70 miles with hills. Expect to ride up to 425 miles over 10 days of riding with one rest day mid-tour. This is a strenuous tour. Also note that we will be changing hotels nearly every day.

Points of interest include beautiful scenery, natural hot springs, National parks and incredible waterfalls. Also did we mention penguins?

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 We start the tour at the Futangue Hotel and Spa which is located in a National Park near Lago Ranco, Chile.

We recommend that you fly into the Canal Bajo Carlos Hott Siebert Airport (ZOS) in Osorno. You can get there by flying into Santiago and transferring to a LATAM or Sky flight. The Osorno airport is about 65 miles from the starting hotel. We will arrange transport from the airport to the hotel.

You can arrive a few days early to enjoy the area. The hotel offers many excursions. After assembling your bike, you may want to take a short 18 mile ride to a small gorge, or take a shorter ride (just 3 miles roundtrip) to the Salto de Riñinahue waterfalls.

Dinner is included at the hotel.
Day 2 We have the opportunity to ride around Lago Ranco. It is a 73 mile ride with about 4600 feet of elevation. We will have the opportunity to shorten the ride at the beginning through transport if you want.

You can stop at the lovely town of Futrono around halfway around the lake. The riding around Lago Ranco is spectacular!

We will enjoy a group dinner.
Day 3 We ride around the south end of Lago Ranco to Lago Puyehue. We end the day in Puyehue at a hotel with natural hot springs. The riding is 75 miles with 3000 feet of climbing and options to shorten the riding. We will enjoy a picnic lunch enroute and a group dinner.
Day 4 Well, we think that you will be up for a break today. So no riding!

We will offer a guided hike as well as plenty of time to enjoy the thermal pools.
Day 5 Back on the bike, we will ride to Las Cascadas on the shore of Llanquihue Lake. The riding is 54 miles with 1800 feet of climb. We will have a box lunch along the route and a group dinner at the hotel overlooking the lake.
Day 6 We ride along Lago Llanquihue to the town of Puerto Varas. The ride options today are 34 or 52 miles with a stop at the amazing Saltos de Petrohué. Lonely Planet describes the Saltos de Petrohué best: “Saltos del Petrohué is a rushing, frothing waterfall raging through a narrow volcanic rock canyon carved by lava.” They are truly breathtaking! From the Saltos, we will continue riding along the Lago Llanquihue to the town of Puerto Varas. Puerto Varas is known for its German migration in the late 19th century. We will ride 37 miles with about 2100 feet of climb – almost entirely on a bike path along the road. Lunch is included enroute. Dinner is on your own in one of the many eateries in Puerto Varas.
Day 7 Today is a layover day in Puerto Varas. You will have the opportunity to ride to the German influenced town of Frutillar or take a day off of riding and visit the shops in town. We will also offer a Category 3 white water rafting trip in the afternoon.
Day 8 Today, we load the bikes onto our vans and drive to the ferry to Chiloé Island where our adventure continues. We will have lunch in the town of Ancud and from there pedal 15 miles with 1000 feet of climb  to the Natural Monument and Puñihuil penguin colony. We will take a short boat trip to the islets where we should be able to see Humboldt and Magellan penguins nesting. After this, you will have the choice of riding back or taking the shuttle back to Ancud. We will enjoy a group dinner in Ancud.
Day 9 We will ride 72 miles with 4600 feet of climbing from Ancud to Dalcahue. As with every day, rides can be shortened with our van support. We will have lunch enroute. In Dalcahue, you will have time to visit the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores de Dalcahue, a 19th century Catholic church, that included as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and walk along the local craft market. We will enjoy a group dinner in Dalcahue.
Day 10 We will take a ferry to Quinchao Island and begin our 47 mile ride (4300 feet of climb). Look off to the distance and you may see the Andes MouWe will stop in the town of Achao to visit the oldest church in the archipelago – Iglesia de Santa María de Loreto, built in the early 18th Century and a UNESCO World Heritage site. We end our day in the Castro, the island’s largest town. Lunch will be provided along the route. Dinner is on your own in one of the many restaurants in Castro.
Day 11 Our last day of riding takes us on rolling hills for 34 miles (1900 feet of elevation). After riding along quiet roads and enjoying a group lunch outside of town, we will arrive in the small town of Cucao where we will leave our bikes and take a short hike through the extraordinary forest in Chiloé National Park and learn about the Quilque indigenous community. You will pack up your bikes and we will enjoy a traditional Chilean curanto farewell dinner. together.
Day 12 We will shuttle you to Aeropuerto Mocopulli in Dalcahue. For those who are not flying out, we will take you to the town of Puerto Varas (about 30 minutes from the Puerto Montt airport) where you can continue your adventure.

Note that this is a very hilly tour! However, we will provide van support to shorten rides. As with most of our tours, we limit the size of the tour to a maximum of ten couples. Please click below if you are interested in this tour.

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What is included?

  • Guided tour with a driver and a guide
  • Transportation from the Osorno airport to the Futangue Hotel at the start of the tour
  • 11 nights lodging in 3 and 4 star hotels
  • 11 breakfasts, 8 lunches and 8 dinners
  • Transportation to Chiloé Island on Day 8
  • Transportation from Cucao Village to Aeropuerto Mocopulli (or Puerto Varas for those not flying out on March 15)
  • Admission into the Saltos de Petrohue
  • Puñihuil boat trip fee
  • Admission to the Chiloé National Park
  • Donation to the churches on Chiloé Island
  • Luggage transport
  • Support vehicle
  • Tandem bike case storage, and movement of boxes from Futangue Hotel to the end of the tour on Chiloé Island
  • Gratuities to our guides. (You can always give more, but you should not feel obligated.)

Note that we do not provide any bicycles. We expect that you have a tandem that is in good working order and that you are able to assemble your bike. If you do not have your own tandem, you can rent a coupled tandem from Mel at Tandems East. Mel also sells tandems, so if you end up renting from him, you might get a discount if you purchase a bike from them. If you have a tandem that is not coupled, it is possible to bring it, but you should make sure that all of your flights could handle the larger box. 

What is not included?

  • Airfare
  • Meals, other than those mentioned above
  • Beverages
  • Admission to some points of interest that we are not entering as a group

What is the average mileage per day?

Daily mileage can be seen in the chart below. The rides in italics are optional riding. This cycle tour is for intermediate level cyclists. You should be able to ride 50 miles with 5000 feet of climb, although you have all day to do this. Note that on this tour we have the opportunity to shorten the rides with transport. Where possible, we plan to have the transport first thing in the morning so that you can take your time and not feel the pressure of having the catch the transport mid-day.

Day Route Miles Ascent Descent
1 Local ride 3

up to 73

 100

4600

 100

4600
2 Around Lago Ranco

from Futrono

 73

46

 4600

3100

 4600

3100
3 to Puyehue

from Ignao

 78

58

 4600

2900

 3900

2500
4 Puyehue – REST DAY
5 to Las Cascadas 54 1800 2700
6 to Puerto Varas

from the Saltos de Petrohue

 52

34

 2600

1500

 2600

1700
7 Puerto Varas loop 44 2800 2800
8 Ancud to Puñihuil

Ancud to Puñihuil and back

 15

31

 1000

1900

 900

1900
9 to Dalcahue

from Aucar

 65

43

 4600

3000

 4600

3000
10 to Castro

Dalcahue loop with transport after lunch

 47

29

 4300

2700

 4200

2400
11 to Cucao 34 1900 2000

Days 1-7

Day 8 – 12

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where will we be staying?

While this could change, here are some of the hotels that we plan to stay in.