Quilaquina – Beach, Hiking and Culture

Quilaquina offers a variety of ways to shape your trip around your interests: Paraje Quila Quina is home to the expansive La Puntilla beach, and the approximately one-hour Sendero El Cipresal trail starts there. The Mirador de Quila Quina offers views of Lago Lácar. Other options include horseback riding, boat trips and cultural discoveries. When planning your holiday, you can first consider whether the beach, the views, an active outing, or an excursion on horseback or by boat appeals to you most.

Beach and views as separate focal points

La Puntilla and the Mirador offer different experiences. La Puntilla is an expansive beach in Paraje Quila Quina; the Mirador de Quila Quina offers views of Lago Lácar. If you are primarily looking for a scenic viewpoint, this gives you a specific one to consider. If the beach is your main focus, you can plan a visit to La Puntilla as a standalone activity. For families, it may be helpful to discuss everyone’s interests in advance: should the outing be a trip to the beach, or are views of the lake the priority? That way, choosing a day’s activity becomes part of planning together.

Horseback riding and Mapuche connections

In Quila Quina, the horseback-riding excursions “La Esperanza,” “Amanecer Sureño” and “Cabalgatas del Lácar” are organized by Mapuche communities. Along the way to Villa Quila Quina, you can also see the homes of members of a Mapuche community. These are two distinct points to consider when planning your trip: organized horseback excursions and homes visible along the route. If you are travelling with your family, you can discuss together which of these aspects is of particular interest.

Two different types of hiking

The Sendero El Cipresal offers an approximately one-hour hike starting from Paraje Quila Quina. The approximate duration gives this outing a specific place in your day’s plans. Also listed is the Quila Quina–Hua Hum trekking route in the southern zone of the park. This gives you two different hiking options to consider: a hike with an approximate duration provided, and a route listed as a trek. You can decide whether the stated duration of the Sendero El Cipresal fits your plans for the day, or whether the trekking route is more interesting to include in your trip planning.

Boat trips and rock paintings

Naviera Lacar y Nonthué offers boat trips and excursions, as well as lake transfers to Villa Quila Quina and Hua Hum. Hua Hum also appears in the name of the Quila Quina–Hua Hum trekking route. These are two separate things to consider when planning: one is about lake transfers, the other is a trekking route listed in the southern zone of the park.

Rock paintings a few kilometres from the shore can be visited from Paraje Quila Quina. They add a cultural discovery to the themes of the beach, hiking and excursions. Together with the homes visible along the way to Villa Quila Quina and the horseback-riding excursions organized by Mapuche communities, they raise another question for planning your trip together: which experiences and cultural connections would you like to include in your stay?

Discover more destinations at San Martin De Los Andes and Paso Hua-hum.

For the broader travel overview, see: Departamento Lácar.