villarrica volcano

A beautiful, iconic shape standing proud above the surrounding hills and mountains. We were fortunate enough to watch it erupt at 3am. A stunning spectacle of mother natures beauty.

My wife and I recently climbed Villarrica and it was an absolutely incredible experience, abiet a bit tough. If you're curious to know what its like, I wrote about the adventure and included lots of pics and even video. But most importantly, scroll down to the bottom of where we outlined some tips and advice you'll definitely want to consider before your climb. Whether or not to take the chairlift, what to bring, choosing an outfitter, costs, bathrooms, safety, weather, etc. Its all covered. Hope this may help out anyone thinking about making this awesome climb!http://www.roamingaroundtheworld.com/villarrica-volcan-climb-hike-summit/

and even more fun is sliding down on your bum for more that 1000 meter. It' s not a tech clmbing although you need to be trained a bit, it's some 1500 meters up

We used the agency, Patagonia Experience, for this climb up the Villarica volcano. They provided a high level of technical equipment from the obvious essentials, such as ice axe and crampons, to the not so obvious add ons, including boots, rucksack, sunglasses, and inner and outer gloves. We were fitted for these the previous day so that when we arrived for our climb we were ready to go. Our group of six punters and two mountaineers (Joaquim and Pepo) were aged from twenty to sixty-one. All of the punters claimed to have a certain level of fitness although none had any specific mountaineering experience. All of our group opted to take the chair up to the first level which saved about forty minutes of uphill walking on volcanic scree, and cost 9000 Chilean Peso per person. This took us to the snow level, where the guides fitted the crampons onto everyone's feet. We then walked slowly, step by step, taking regular breaks for refreshment (which we kept in our rucksacks) up the volcano. Toilet stops for men were, as usual, not an issue. Ladies had to squat over a snow hole, beautifully dug to the correct size and shape by the guide, who had presumably sized us up in advance! The steady climb becomes more challenging about forty minutes from the top, when the slopes get steeper and the snow, deeper. At this point one of our party needed to rest more often, so our guide, Pepo, stayed with her while the rest of us carried on. Needless to say, on arriving at the top, the view and the euphoria of achieving your goal contribute to that 'top of the world' feeling. Lack of oxygen and the smell of volcanic fumes may also have been a contributing factor! After thirty minutes of taking the usual photos (ice axes in the air and jumping wearing crampons!) we began our trek down, firstly walking in deep snow. We then stopped to remove our crampons and take a 'nappy' and soft 'plastic tray' from our Mary Poppins style ruck sacks. The rest of our descent used these to slide through the snow and ice until we reached the volcanic scree level. Although this was not as physically tiring, it was hard work and careering down a slope with just an ice axe for a break is not everyone's idea of fun! The day finished back at Patagonia Experience with beer and biscuits. Our guides were superb. Joaquim and Pepo adopted just the right combination of skill, knowledge, tuition and encouragement. We had confidence in them. Joaquim told us afterwards that all he needs to get people to the top is a good level of fitness and determination. I would highly recommend Patagonia Experince and this activity - it was hard but an experience that I will never forget.

We had a great time climbing up. Challenging but worth it for a one day hike. Highly recommended for those in good physical shape that are seeking an adventure.

We did the ascension of the Volcano with this agency (which has a slightly confusing name!!!) and would like to highly recommend them. At the beginning I personnaly was a bit worried about booking with them as they had no reviews but they were great and cheaper than other agencies. We had 3 guides for about 12 people, the equipment was pretty good and were given necessary information. One of the person that manages the agency is one of the mountain guide and has done the ascension over 1000 times.What i particularly liked is that as me and another girl were slower than the rest of the group, so one of the guide, stay with us the whole time, making sure we were walking at a good speed to not exhaust ourselves and we made it to the top. Our guide was also very reassuring as we did the ascension when the volcano was covered with snow. All and on a very good agency.

On one hand, i won't forget this experience for all of my life. Views are beutiful, and when you get to the top you really feel great for the achivment. On the other hand, this climbing is so hard and decending is very hard also (not the sliding parts but the parts you walk downhill).Try it. Why not?

I climbed the Villarrica in May 2014 and it was one of the most challenging experiences in my life, but absolutely worth it! Since it was already fall in Chile, the weather was not the best for climbing the volcano and while driving there we didn't even know whether we could actually climb it. Also, we couldn't go to the very top, since it was too icy and therefore it would have been too dangerous. That was really unfortunate since we were only 400 m away! Still you had an amazing view up there, being higher than the clouds and it was just breathtaking and absolutely stunning! Our guides were also very kind and patient and waited for us if we needed a break. Just amazing and definitely recommendable to everyone who's looking for a challenge!

During the winter there are plenty of places to rent gear for skiing or snowboarding or even just sledding.It snowed during my visit to the Volcano which made it's beauty just increase. I highly recommend checking it out

The Volcano is perfectly formed and it looks beautiful from many angles. It was exciting to view the steam at the top.

Climb up to the crater! It's difficult, but it's worth it!I did it during winter, so it was a 6-hour walk up to the top.Great view! Amazing experience!

We took a tour from Villarrica city to climb the volcano. It's more expensive to start from Villarrica because the agency charges you for the transportation to Pucón. We paid 45000 CLP which is a lot but it's worth it because the excursion is amazing. We booked it through Villarrica Emotion which is a friendly and professional agency. The tour itself was with Pucon Tours.The climbing took us 3.5 hours including breaks. We were expecti'g something more exhausting but it's really doable if you're in good shape, no special requirement.The agency and the mountain guide recommend you taking the lift at the beginning in order to save 1h walk, but it's not necessary because it's actually no more than 45 min and the lift cost you an extra 8000 CLP which is a lot!During the hike you enjoy amazing views of the whole region, lakes, mountains and volcanoes. At the summit you can see the crater and hear the lava boil but can't see the lava.For the way down you slide down the slope on a piece of plastic, it's safe, quick and really fun!!You should know that your clothes are going to be wet and dirty (because of the snow and the path dirt at the end of the hike) despite all the protection.

The hike was approx. 3.5 km to the summit. The trail was challenging but if you're in shape it shouldn't be a problem. The trail head is about about half a km up the road from the ranger station for the Villerica national park.

Es majestuoso, imponente, sublime como expresión de la naturaleza. Absolutely fantastic, so beautiful and inspiring.You can arrive to some part of the top by car, but then you have to walk, it is hard, really hard, your physical condition has to be very good, anyway it worth it.

Climbing Volcan Villarica is a must for people visiting Chile. Although the climb is strenuous at times and not everyone made it to the top, it was extremely rewarding. The view from the top is extraordinary. I would definitely make sure you use a licsenced agency when climbing because there are several agencies without. Man and Nature was great for us and I have also heard great things about Sol and Nieve as well (both have their proper licensure with Chile).