A day trip to Frutillar
Frutillar can easily be enjoyed on a day trip from Puerto Varas or Puerto Montt.
There are a number of tours that can be taken there (if you like to be herded along like sheep) though it is very easy to get there and back by yourself.
NOTE: Frutillar is divided into two parts, Frutillar Alto (or the high part which is a run of the mill place which won’t interest you) and Frutillar Bajo (the low part on the edge of the lake with all of the things tourists like to see).
We grabbed a bus on San José (a main street) in Puerto Varas which only cost CLP$800 one way per adult. It usually passes through the small town of Llanquihue on the way to Frutillar where you will see the town’s old iconic church on the left as you go done the main street. Don’t blink though or you will miss it!
Once in Frutillar, you will go around some uninteresting streets in the high part of the town. Don’t worry; it gets better once you hit the lake in the lower part.
You eventually start going down the hill from Frutillar Alto to the lower part. Make sure you look ahead through the front windscreen of the bus to get your first glimpse of Volcan Osorno (Volcano) in the distance across the lake.
You are best to get off the bus as soon as it hits the lower part of Frutillar when it turns to the right so that you don’t have to do any backtracking later.
One street in from the beach and taking up a large chunk on the corner you will find the Museo Colonial Alemán (German Colonial Museum). Entrance cost CLP$2000 for adults (Dec 2010). There are free guides (university students doing their work experience) that are a wealth of information to make the museum visit more interesting.
Once you have visited the colonial museum, head back down to the beach and walk along the path all the way to the Teatro del Lago (its that building sitting on the water). There are lots of artistic statues and displays to see on the way such as the beautiful painting roof of a gazebo as appears at the end of the Frutillar video at the top. There is even a fake piano for you to pretend to bang out tunes on by the lake’s edge (get someone to photograph you doing this with the lake and volcano in the background).
There are also plenty of small restaurants and cafes lining the other side of the street where you are recommended to grab a piece of the local Kuchen (German style tart). There is much debate as to which has the best kuchen!
Keep an eye out for the interesting styles of houses that are in the lower part.
One of the best times to visit Frutillar is during the Music Festival at the end of January. However, there will be a lot more people around. See our last post for the 2011 calendar of events in Frutillar.
What else would you recommend to do on a day trip to Frutillar?
