Volcan Lanin: Défi Époustouflant 2 Jours depuis Pucón

My wife and I joined the Lanin Volcano expedition on March 18-19th. The experience was so bad that I let myself reflect and calm down to give as unbiased of a review as possible. TLDR - While this tour company is highly responsive and well organized, their overselling and bad guiding led to the worst guided experience we’ve ever had. I’ve never been in a situation where the guide leaves you behind, especially when you specifically request their help. My wife and I are avid hikers, with no mountaineering experience. Prior to this hike, we had been hiking in Patagonia for 4 weeks, but had never climbed a volcano specifically. Being adventurous, we signed up for the two day Lanin hike. At first, it was a great experience. Quick responses, seamless online payment, and convenient location. When we arrived for our pre hike check in the night before, we were taken through a fairly lengthy questionnaire that included questions about using our own equipment, prior experience of hiking and volcanoes specifically, and a rundown of timelines for the next two days. At this point, the lady checking us in 1) waved away any concerns about technical abilities regarding the hike and 2) told us that instead of renting shoes (included in the cost) it would be better, and smarter, to use our own boots. That logic sounded reasonable- our shoes fit well, are broken in and comfortable. HOWEVER, there was no check to see if our boots were sufficient, as we were wearing standard hiking boots vs stiff mountaineering boots- which turned out to be a huge issue, as the stiff boots were a requirement for the type of hiking we would be doing - essentially kicking your toes into the sand/gravel, similar to snow, and climbing up - impossible with soft soled shoes. The next morning, when we arrived for gear check + packing, we immediately ran into issues. The provided bag was obviously too small- in fact, our guide agreed with us, but merely shrugged and said “I try to tell them!” Since we had our own bags stashed in our rental car, we suggested this as a solution to our guide- who, visibly relieved, immediately agreed. Importantly, our guide- who I hold ultimately responsible for the safety of his group- did not check our gear (some of which was faulty) nor did he comment on our footwear. At this point, we hopped into our guide’s friend’s car, who he casually informed us would be joining. Once we got to the trailhead and started hiking, everything was great- for the first 40 minutes, but as soon as we started climbing the actual volcano, it became immediately apparent that this was not the type of hike where pure fitness and willpower would be sufficient to carry us to the top. We were hiking up former landslides- essentially 45 degree slopes of volcanic sand, rocks, and gravel, and for every two steps we took forward, we were sliding back at least one. As our pace slowed down, the guide didn’t seem to notice or care - he simply continued chatting with his friend and forged ahead, often getting far enough ahead of us that we could no longer see or hear him. The only saving grace was that the third paying member of the expedition (Vincent) was very experienced, and basically took over guiding duties by pointing out the paths to take up the mountain, since there were no marked trails. When we stopped for our first break, I asked the guide (in Spanish and English) if he could slow down the pace, and specifically help my wife navigate up the mountain, as she was struggling to identify safe routes to climb. He agreed to slow down and help, and for the next 15-20 minutes, did a great job. Unfortunately, his friend decided that our pace was too slow, overtook us and started chatting up the guide again, who got distracted, stopped doing his job, and again left all three of the paying guests behind. This story continued for the rest of the day, as he basically neglected to guide us for the remainder of the hike. At this point my wife decided to sit out next day’s climb to the summit, as she did not have any confidence that our guide could get her up and down the peak safely. The next morning, I put on the rented mountaineering clothing and began the hike - immediately noticing that the rental pants have a Velcro waist closure that was completely broken, something that I did not enjoy discovering halfway up the volcano. After switching into my original hiking pants, we restarted the hike, and it was basically the same story as day one. To give credit where it’s due, our guide did a good job for the first hour when we were hiking in the pre-dawn darkness, and stayed close ahead of me to help identify the trail. However, as soon as the sun rose, he and his friend were back to the front leaving me behind. After finally completing the summit, we returned to camp to pack up and pick up my wife for the remainder of the descent. I had made sure to tell the guide several times that my wife would need his help on the descent, as she had zero experience with volcanoes and the type of hiking we were doing. After agreeing several times, he continued the established pattern, doing his job for ~20 min, getting distracted by his friend, and then neglecting to guide anymore. Luckily with the help of Vincent, I was able to get my wife and I safely down the mountain, which unfortunately was not the end of our terrible day. After we finished the hike and loaded back into the guide’s friend’s car, he proceeded to drive like an absolute maniac back to town. We were on two lane mountain roads, and he casually would veer from lane to lane during blind corners, or overtake cars way too aggressively. To make matters worse, there weren’t even enough seatbelts for all of us, so I was worried that one bad turn would kill us. Thankfully, we returned to Pucon safely, and were able to limp back to our hostel.

Beautiful 2 days hike with Christian.The view was amazing at the top but you definitly need experience as the hike is very steep and inclined. We had perfect weather and Christian was great leading the way !

I really liked the expedition! We had good gear and the experience of sleeping on the volcano was something amazing! Recommend!

Richard is the greatest guy, buena vibra and asesore knowledge about the area and the sport. Thank you for the unforgettable experience

Amazing ascent of Lanín! The trip was excellent and I’d highly recommend it to anyone who’s interested. The guides are brilliant. They are friendly, professional and we were in really good and safe hands. The whole company is well organised, they use good equipment and everyone is very friendly and welcoming. It was a great experience and I had a great time.

AMAZING GUIDES!! The hike was tougher than I expected (especially coming down) and the guides could not have been more helpful. They were motivating and pushed me to keep going but we’re very also very patient. Even though I was getting a little frustrated with myself at times, they remained calm and reassuring. They made it a fantastic experience and I couldn’t recommend them enough!!

Ich kann Ermitaño Expediciones nur empfehlen. Ich war mit ihnen auf den Vulkanen Lanin und Llaima und im Conguillio Nationalpark. Alle drei Touren waren toll. Die Agentur und die Guides sind sehr professionell, hilfsbereit und freundlich.

Maravillosa experiencia en la montaña, con un muy buen equipo y grato ambiente para compartir en medio de la cordillera. Totalmente recomendado

Mi parte favorita fue el campamento, comimos juntos con el grupo y vimos el atardecer. Habia una buena onda con los guías. Ellos eran muy bacan con nosotros. Un consejo ? Trae tu buena onda y disfruta cada momento ✌️

Me encantó la experiencia de acampar en el volcán Lanin y llegar a la cumbre con el Ermitaño. Lo pasé espectacular, se formó un muy buen ambiente, los guías son muy cordiales y buena onda, además de ser muy profesionales. Siempre me sentí muy seguro, y nadie se quedó solo en ningún minuto (fueron 3 guías y 7 participantes). En especial, destaco el almuerzo y desayuno que nos prepararon los guías … una experiencia 5 estrellas! El paisaje y la vista son espectaculares en todo el trayecto, especialmente durante el atardecer.