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To be honest, the local people are as much a tourist
attraction
as the natural wonders of southern Chile.
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Chile obviously has some great hidden treasures; however, what is also
hidden is the way to get to those destinations. Riding rural buses is
fine for backpackers, but for everyone else looking to travel in a bit
more comfort and make the most of their time in Southern Chile they
will need to hire a tour guide. We want to take a look at one southern Chilean tour agency Multi Tour, and what they have to offer. |
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Multi Tour is a regional guide
agency operating in Southern Chile's Araucania region (Chile's IX
region). Local tour guides have some very important advantages over the
big international tour operators. Most important of which is they know
the area, the history, and the people. Multi Tour can get you to those
off the map locations that allsouthernchile.com has been working so
hard to find.
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The Places of Araucania Chile
Rural bus schedules seem at times to be
closely guarded local secrets; that is, if there are buses at all to
some of the more remote locations. Riding a rural bus can also turn
that 15 kilometer trip into an hour long game of stop and go pickup.
This is all assuming you are lover of buses in the first place.
Getting in to the nooks and crannies of Southern Chile is best done
with a guide like Multi Tour that knows their way around.
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One such place with little to no public
transportation is Chile's Conguillio National Park. Conguillio national park
with its thousand year old Araucarias trees and the Llaima volcano at
the heart is simply a must do when traveling to southern Chile
(please see our photo essay). However, there are no buses to the park
itself. Short of hitch hiking or renting a car, there really is no
other way to get there.
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The Conguillio National Park is also a
big place, and it takes time to get orientated. For example, there
are numerous emerald blue and green lagoons that are deep inside the
park. Reaching the park, finding all the sites, and then getting
back to a hotel in a major tourist destination like Pucon or Temuco
in one day on your own can be difficult to say the least.
One of the greatest attractions in
southern Chile are the Termas. Termas or hot springs that dot the
Araucania region around the volcanoes near Pucon and Conguillio
National Park. There are numerous hot springs, and you could easily
spend a month trying them all. They range from being little more than
swimming pools with hot water, to spectacular settings that remind
you of Japanese gardens. The hot springs are a prime example of
things you would either altogether miss, or devote much of your day
to trying to organize transportation to reach.
The People of Araucania Chile
The most important thing that Multi
Tour offers is the ability to put you in touch with the culture of
southern Chile. To be honest, the local people are as much a tourist
attraction as the natural wonders of southern Chile. Southern Chile
is still one of those places where people say hello to you on the
street, especially if you are a stranger. It is not uncommon to
strike up a conversation with someone and have them invite you for
dinner.
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Among the people of southern Chile you
will want to meet are the Mapuche. Getting to these villages
can be a real challenge at time, and knowing where to start and who
to talk to could easily take years. Multi Tour has built a
relationship with the local Mapuche communities for you.
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Mapuche
Communities across southern Chile are working hard to build a tourism
industry based on presenting their culture as an attraction. The
cultural tourism industry however is almost exclusively dependent on
foreign tourist. It is partnerships with tour operators like Multi
Tour that makes their projects sustainable by helping to introduce foreigners
to the Mapuche Culture.
The History of Araucania Chile
Southern Chile is really just another
beautiful place with friendly people, if you leave out its history.
Multi Tour can put people and the place in a historical context as
you go. There is only so much you can learn about the history of
southern Chile on the Internet, and much of that is in Spanish. You
really need to be here to understand it.
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About Multi Tour of Chile
Multi Tour covers the Araucania region,
including Pucon and Temuco, the Seven Lakes region, the Araucania
Andina, and Araucania Coast of Chile's IX region. They are open to
help with any need you might have as you visit the region. Through a
network of similar tour operators in Chile, Multi Tour is also able
to help you plan your trip across the rest of Chile.
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Tour Packages by Multi Tour
A typical tour package for the
Araucania region normally runs four days and three nights. A guide
from Multi Tour would start by picking you up from the airport or
train station in Temuco. Your first stop would be in the town of
Villarrica on your way to the town of Pucon about an hour and half
from Temuco at the base of the Villarrica Volcano for Three day stay.
In Pucon you have your choice between
staying at the Hotel & Spa Araucarias or cabins. The first day
you would visit the "Ojos del Caburgua" water falls and Lake
Caburgua a short drive from central Pucon. The next day you would get
an early start to tour the Huerquehue National park and the Huife hot
springs. Huife hot springs are considered to be some of the best in
the Araucania region. The third day will include exploring the
Villarrica volcano and the volcanic cave system that runs under it.
That afternoon you would return to Temuco.
The final day would be a tour of the
Conguillio National Park, the Llaima volcano, and exploring the last
natural refuge of the Araucaria trees. One thing that will be hard to
miss when visiting the park is the blast field from the most recent
eruption of the Llaima volcanoe. The area was decimated, and ten
years later is starting to finally show life as the forest retakes
the ground. Please stay on the marked trails. Each small plant counts
at this fragile stage of development.
A package like this one typically
includes three nights hotel, bilingual guide, select meals, and
transportation. Prices would start at $890 US per person for two
people, $670 US per person for group of four people, and $560 US
for groups of six or more people.
This is of course just a sample of what
Multi Tour can offer for travel in Araucania region. They would be
happy to help you plan your own itinerary for the Araucania,
including any of the destinations or sites covered by All Southern
Chile.
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MULTI TOURISM AGENCY
More
than 13 years of experience for the best tourism packages on the
VIII, IX y X region.
English
Spoken, Etnic Tourism, Mapuche Communities, Southern Chile National
Parks, Lakes and Andean Region, Hotspring, lakes, volacanoes, car
rentals, Hotel and airline ticket reservations.
Customized packages for every need.
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Contact: Ma. Cristina Inostroza P
Phone:
56 9 8181358
Website:
www.araucaniaandina.cl
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