Accommodations

Only 200 meters north of the central Plaza Prat, Camping El Bosque (tel. 063/311489, US$4 pp or US$13 per family) has 15 tent sites (no drive-ins), hot showers, and lighting. Otherwise, there are several simple lodgings with shared bath and breakfast, including Hostal Eva Ray (Los Ulmos 62, tel. 063/311483, eva_ray50 [at] hotmail [dot] com, US$11 pp) and Hospedaje Monserrat (O’Higgins 1112, tel. 063/310508, US$9–13 pp). Also notable for its dinners, La Casita del Centro (Portales 72, tel. 063/311812, casitacentro [at] ze [dot] cl, US$13–22 pp) has rooms with either shared or private bath.

Hotel Central (Pedro de Valdivia 115, tel. 099/3195640, US$13 pp) has rooms with shared bath only, but they are larger and enjoy better natural light than the others. The new Hotel Le Français (Martínez de Rosas 880, tel. 063/312496, www.hotelelfrances.cl, US$46 s or d) has midsize rooms in excellent condition, but for both comfort and service, Hostal España (O’Higgins 790, tel. 063/311166, jhrios [at] telsur [dot] cl, US$37/50 s/d) has been the best in town.

Food

Panguipulli has good dining, even if the variety is limited to standard Chilean specialties, beef, and seafood. Girasol (Martínez de Rozas 664, tel. 099/5682927) is best for sandwiches, snacks, onces, and desserts.

For full meals, try El Chapulín (Martínez de Rozas 639, tel. 063/312925), Rincón Criollo (Matta 131, tel. 063/311603), or especially the highly regarded Gardylafquen (Martínez de Rozas 722, tel. 099/4587612). There are also excellent lunchtime specials at the Hotel Le Français (Martínez de Rosas 880, tel. 063/312496).

Open in summer only, La Escuela (Freire 394, tel. 063/312040) is where Chilean culinary students come to practice what they’ve learned in front of a paying public; by most accounts, they’ve learned well. The dishes are creative, prices are reasonable, and the attention to detail admirable.

Getting There

Most carriers use Panguipulli’s Terminal de Buses (Gabriela Mistral 100, tel. 063/311055), but Tur-Bus (Carrera 784, tel. 063/311377) has its own terminal. North–south services along the Panamericana are frequent.

Regionally, Buses Pirehueico (tel. 063/ 311497) goes several times daily to Valdivia (2.5 hours) and Puerto Montt, and once to Liquiñe.

Expreso Villarrica circles Lago Calafquén to Coñaripe, with connections to Lican Ray and Villarrica. Buses Carrasco goes to Coñaripe and Liquiñe, while Buses Lafit (tel. 063/311647) goes to Choshuenco, Neltume, and Puerto Fuy, the staging point for the bus/ferry crossing to Puerto Pirehueico and San Martín de los Andes, Argentina.

© Wayne Bernhardson from Moon Chile, 2nd edition