We are planning a trip to Chile in December and are planning to go to Torre del Paine, then on to in the Lake District for 5 nights. I am trying to decide between staying in Pucon or Puerto Varas (or both). I was planning on renting a car. Thanks in advance for any advice.

We spent a couple of days in Pucon in October last year before crossing into Argentina and really liked it. It was a bit on the quiet side as it was out of the ski season but a very pretty town with lots of nice restaurants to choose from and the countryside around Villarrica volcano and the lake was really beautiful. Sorry, but can't tell you anything about Puerto Varas

If you are flying from Punta Arenas to Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas is under half an hour away. Both places offer lovely scenery and plenty to do and the drive between them is scenic.They are about 300 kms apart. The one thing Pucón has more of are hot springs as it is closer to the mountains. But national parks abound in the area of both.

Hello, you could possibly do both, especially if you have a car. Could be you do 2 days, one night, in Puerto Varas, at the start, since you will likely be flying into nearby Puerto Montt, then drive the approx. 5-hours to Pucon to check out that area..