New partnership with Termas de Cochamó pairs guided kayaking with a private soak in naturally heated pools

AWA, the 25-room luxury lodge on the shores of Lake Llanquihue, has partnered with Termas de Cochamó to introduce a new experience that combines guided kayaking across the Reloncaví Estuary with a private soak in naturally heated thermal pools. The new outing brings together two defining elements of Los Lagos, Chile’s Lake District: its volcanic landscape and its abundance of naturally heated waters.

The activity launches as Los Lagos embraces a new generation of design-led thermal pools, with several new and forthcoming hot springs emphasizing architecture, landscape, and immersion in a region renowned for its volcanic scenery and traditional termas.

“Kayak & Soak is a perfect example of how we think about the arc of a guest’s entire stay,” said Mauricio Fuentes, General Manager of AWA. “This partnership gives that philosophy a very literal expression: go out and explore the landscape on the water, then slow down and reconnect in naturally heated water surrounded by the same volcanic landscape that defines this region.”

From Estuary to Thermal Spring

Located 30 minutes from AWA, the Cochamó Hot Springs offer an intimate setting of thermal pools surrounded by native vegetation. Thanks to this new partnership, AWA has added the hot springs to its guided activities program, creating an excursion that transitions from active exploration to relaxation.

The experience begins with a guided kayak tour across the Reloncaví Estuary to the Termas de Cochamó, covering approximately 5 miles (8 kilometers) over 2 hours. This tailor-made experience is designed to suit guests of all ability levels.

At the hot springs, AWA guests have exclusive access to one of the pools, where they can enjoy a soak for approximately 2 hours before returning to the lodge. Transportation between AWA, the kayaking departure point, and the Cochamó Hot Springs is part of the experience.

The sequence reflects AWA’s broader approach to exploration and wellbeing: pairing physical activity and time in nature with moments of stillness and recovery.

Rather than treating the thermal experience as a conventional spa visit, the excursion connects it directly to the landscape that created it. Los Lagos sits within one of the world’s great volcanic regions, where peaks including Osorno, Calbuco, Yates and Hornopirén shape the landscape and geothermal activity has produced natural thermal waters throughout the region.

A New Generation of Thermal Experiences

Hot springs have long been part of life in Chile’s Lake District. Now, a new wave of properties is reimagining the region’s thermal tradition through contemporary design and a deeper connection to the landscape.

Roughly 90 minutes south of AWA along the Reloncaví Estuary, Termas del Sol offers one of the most distinctive examples. Rather than a conventional spa, it features a sequence of thermal pools connected by wooden walkways through native Patagonian Forest, making the journey through the landscape part of the bathing experience. Its architecture and design bring a contemporary perspective to the region’s longstanding thermal tradition.

Termas del Sol is not alone. Two additional thermal projects, Termas Botánicas in Ralún and Termas de Pichicolo, are currently under construction within approximately half an hour of AWA. Pichicolo, a group of five natural pools in Hualaihué along the Carretera Austral, was certified by Chile’s Ministry of Health in 2022 as healing and medicinal springs, recognized for their benefits to circulation and skin.

Together with the area’s existing thermal properties, these developments are creating a new generation of thermal experiences around the Reloncaví Estuary, where contemporary design and immersion in the landscape are redefining the region’s longstanding hot-springs tradition.

For AWA, this emerging thermal circuit complements the lodge’s own evolution toward wellbeing: its spa, guided in-room rituals, and nature-based exploration programming. The evolution extends well beyond any single hot spring; it is about rediscovering another expression of the volcanic landscape that has always defined this corner of northern Patagonia.