Best Things to Do in Puerto Varas, Chile

Puerto Varas is a beautiful little town in southern Chile, located close to Puerto Montt and part of the drop-dead gorgeous Patagonia region. Whether you're just stopping in to visit the town with its German roots and astounding views of two volcanoes from Lake Llanquihue, or are looking to do some more intense trekking, Puerto Varas has a ton of options for you. Here are my top picks on what to do in Puerto Varas that also conveniently don't break the bank. Public transit is easy and accessible, so unless you lke tours there's no need to book a tour for these options. 

Best Time to Visit Puerto Varas

The summer season is by far the best time to visit anywhere in southern Chile. The Patagonia region is cold, windy and rainy during winter, although you can find cheaper prices (for obvious reasons as it's off-peak). If you're looking for decent weather and to avoid the crowd, the best time to go would be in early Spring, where the weather is a little more bearable but the droves of tourists aren't arriving yet.

As you're probably aware, Chile is south of the Equator, so summer for them is winter in the northern hemisphere. Due to the unpredictability of the weather, bring clothes that can be layered and ideally are waterproof or rain resistant.

Where We Stayed

We stayed at a hostel called Hostel Tronco del Aleman (Trunk of German hostel? German trunk hostel? not sure about the translation here). It was cute, had a few shared rooms and one private room option with a kitchen and living area. The other guests were great, as is normally the case at hostels.

How to Get to Puerto Varas

As we were coming from Santiago, we took an overnight bus to Puerto Varas. When we arrived, we walked to our hostel from the bus station. As we arrived quite early in the morning, we didn't see a ton of taxis around.

The town itself is easily walkable. Two nearby attractions, Frutillar and Petrohue, and accessible through public transit. We didn't spend any money on private transportation (taxi, etc) or on tours.

History

Puerto Varas, also known as "the city of roses," became populated by immigrants after the 1845 Ley de Colonización (link of the law is written in Spanish). The president of Chile at the time, Manuel Bulnes, had decided to open Chile's doors to populate part of southern Chile.

The law essentially allowed for immigrants to settle land in the Valdivia/Llanquihue area; each immigrant family could receive eight blocks of land for each father of a family, and four more for their sons older than 14. The law specified that immigrants should bring some type of useful skill to the colony.

Although I don't see any mention of selective immigration within the wording of the law, Bernardo Philippi was sent specifically to Germany to recruit settlers. With some protests from Catholics, Philippi was able to convince the Chilean government to allow recruitment of German protestants.

In tandem with Philippi's expedition, Vicente Pérez Rosales was named the "colonization agent" of the Llanquihue area and Valdivia (llanquihue means hidden place/hidden lake in mapudungun, the language of the native Mapuche).

In 1853, the first 212 migrants arrived and settled around Lake Llanquihue (link is an article in Spanish). However, it wasn't until 1925 that Puerto Varas was officially named a city.

Hence, Puerto Varas has a decidedly German flair, with German-style houses, an interesting mix of German-Chilean food, and some blonde-haired people strolling around.

Best Things to Do in Puerto Varas

Related Article: How to Travel Chile for 1 Month for Less Than $1,300

There are so many options in Puerto Varas! In Chile, the further south you get, the pricier it is and the more likely you are to have to take a tour. Therefore, while in Puerto Varas take advantage of the fact that there are a few options you can do that are accessible by public transit and are not expensive.

1. Stroll Around Lake Llanquihue

Lake Llanquihue is by far the easiest thing to do in Puerto Varas, and is of course 100% worth it. Take a nice stroll around the lake and pair this with your visit to Parque Philippi for your first relaxing day here.

2. Go to Parque Philippi

I am assuming that Parque Philippi is named for Bernardo Philippi, the man who recruited the first Germans to settle down here.

It's located directly in Puerto Varas, and is a quick, easy hike that we took our first morning in town. There are a lot of bike paths as well, so be careful of mountain bikers zipping through the area. The park is also free, so it doesn't make sense to not take out a brief portion of your day to check it out.

Pro tip: we hiked early in the morning, but with the heavy fog that is usually present in the AM, the views of Puerto Varas are not very good (you can't even see Volcán Osorno or the mountains, although the flora and fauna is beautiful enough as is). So, you may want to consider getting some breakfast and waiting a little bit before you take the hike.

3. Visit Lago Todos Los Santos and Parque Vicente Pérez Rosales

Lago Todos Los Santos is situated within the Vicente Pérez Rosales Park. The lake and park are free, and the park hosts a variety of trails, ranging from day hikes (which we did) to literally scaling the volcano, Volcán Osorno.

This park hosts some of the best views of the Volcán Osorno, and the lake is incredible. You can also take a boat tour from this area over to Argentina (we did not do this).

How to Get There

You do not have to take a tour to get here! Just take a public bus from Puerto Varas to Petrohué for 2.000 CLP (less than $5) and it will literally drop you off right outside of the park. You can take the same bus to get to the Saltos de Petrohué, which isn't too far from the lake, just a couple miles down the same road. The bus is labeled "Ensenada" or "Petrohué."

I don't remember exactly where the bus picked up in Puerto Varas, but it was on right downtown not too far from the Santa Isabel grocery store. I believe the bus picked up on Calle Estación, but just go to the area and ask around for the bus to Petrohué - the bus loads up in Puerto Varas, so it isn't just going to blast by.

There are lot of options where you can take guided tours and it will save you time, etc -- but this is not one of them.

4. Check out Saltos de Petrohué

Saltos de Petrohuê does charge a slight admission -- 4.000 CLP for foreigners and 2.000 CLP for Chileans/Chilean residents.

The main area is well-maintained with accessible trails (with guardrails, pictured above) and access to beautiful views. There are a few other hiking trails that divulge off of the main trail. They loop around and are great options for families looking to explore the area.

How to Get There

The same way you can get to Lago Todos Los Santos. Petrohué is slightly closer coming from Puerto Varas than the lake; we chose to go to the lake and Parque Vicente Pérez Rosales, then hopped back on the bus and were dropped off at the Saltos de Petrohué. After we finished, we then took the bus back to Puerto Varas -- to get back on the bus, you basically just go outside and stand on the side of the road. Make sure you flag the bus down when you see it; the driver will stop.

5. Take a Bus to Explore Neighboring Frutillar

Ah, Frutillar. Another small little town in close proximity to Puerto Varas, it's the perfect day trip to relax on the beach, snap more awesome pictures of Lago Llanquihue, and try some excellent food.

Frutillar is split into "Frutillar Alto" and "Frutillar Bajo;" the touristy area with the beach is located in Frutillar Bajo. There is a beautiful wooden pier that you can travel out onto the lake to take photos, along with a whole host of touristy restaurants to choose from.

The Teatro del Lago, a beautiful theater situated on the lake, is also a sight to be seen. Check out a show if you have the time, or just take a stroll around the building.

How to Get There

You can take another public bus from Puerto Varas to get to Frutillar -- walk to the same area where you took the bus to Petrohué and look for a bus labeled "Frutillar." Ask around as to where it actually picks up. It cost us 1.000 CLP per person per way.

The bus will take you through the the residential area of Frutillar (Frutillar Alto), and you'll finally arrive again at the beach on the lake.

6. Eat German-Chilean Food

Part of the allure of southern Chile is enjoying the German influences -- German-Chilean food and beer, of course.

While in Frutillar, we tried pachinga, pictured above. I'm honestly not sure if this is actually a German dish or not, but it was quite delicious. It was french fries with a whole ton of random toppings - tomatoes, pickles, sausage, avocado, olives, bread with cheese, boiled eggs, and probably more. It sounds gross, but was incredibly delicious. The Kunstmann beer was a great touch.

Kuchen, or cake in German, is also popular in Puerto Varas. There are crazy varieties of of kitchen, so just go for a couple that sound good and try them all. We went to Café Mawen, right in downtown Puerto Varas, and the kuchen was excellent.

Final Thoughts

Puerto Varas is a must-see when it comes to southern Chile. It's the starting point of the Patagonia region, so it's a perfect way to start off your trip if you plan on venturing even further south.

Although we chose to move on to Valdivia next rather than fully exploring Patagonia, Puerto Varas was an incredible stop for us. And, unlike other more isolated parts of Chile, there are plenty of things to see in the surrounding area that are easily accessible by public transit.