Termas de Chihuío

On the upper course of the Curriñe River, in the municipality of Futrono in Chile's Los Ríos Region, Termas de Chihuío sits at the foot of the Andes, roughly 70 km from Futrono along an unpaved road. The waters, rich in sulphur, magnesium and calcium, trace their origin to the volcanic activity of the surrounding cordillera. The setting stays simple: one large outdoor pool and rustic tubs hollowed from native coigüe wood.

The site owes much of its fame to a literary episode: Chilean poet Pablo Neruda stopped here in 1949, after weeks of fleeing on horseback, just before crossing the Andes clandestinely into exile in Argentina and then Europe. That final bath before the border remains tied to the poet's memory and to the writing of his Canto General.