Alerce Mountain Lodge

Puerto Montt, Lake District, Chile
12 rooms / 4 stars

In 1995, Nelson Garda and the Garda-Vander Stelt family, present owners of the park, bought the property from its previous owner, a timber company that had exploited the land for more than 20 years. This company had worked intensively on the extraction of noble wood, principally the Alerce (Fitzroya Cupressoides). When the Chilean Government declared the Alerce a protected species, imposing an immediate ban on its exploitation, the business ceased to be profitable and the land was put up for sale. Aware of the beauty and the cultural value of the flora that existed in the area, the Garda-Vander Stelt bought the land.

The Alerce Mountain Lodge is the gateway to Chilean Patagonia, set in 5000 acres of dense, evergreen forest, within a deep canyon formed during the Ice Age. The team of this Lodge offers eco-tourism at its best. They combine quality accommodation, fine international and local cuisine, a first-class service, all of this in the most spectacular of locations. They realised that they have found a place to share with others and the idea to build a smalI and exclusive hotel for nature lovers was born. It's a place for those looking to immerse themselves in the natural splendour of the surrounding cold rainforest.

Activities range from: hiking, trekking, horse riding.