Hotel AWA Launches Hands-on Cultural Excursions for Guests to Celebrate New "World Craft Cities" in Chile's Lakes Region

**Guide-led experiences offered through All-Inclusive Rate reveal age-old basket and wool weaving techniques in Ilque and Huelmo and Carretera Austral**

(Puerto Varas, Chile) - Move over, Etsy. Following the World Crafts Council's recent designation of two "World Craft Cities" in the Lakes Region of Chile, Hotel AWA is celebrating its neighbors' distinctions with new hands-on cultural excursions for guests to experience the artisan-driven cultures at the heart of each. Introducing Basketwork with dried rush plants (junquillo and manila) in Ilque and Huelmo, and The Wool Route in Carretera Austral, two in-depth excursions lasting half a day. Each hands-on experience is thoughtfully designed in collaboration with Fundación Artesanías de Chile to reveal Chile's enduring local craft traditions and is available to guests as part of Hotel AWA's All-Inclusive Rate.

Conveniently situated for travelers in the northern reaches of Chilean Patagonia, midway between the Atacama Desert and Torres del Paine, Hotel AWA's mission is to open eyes, hearts, and passions to the natural and cultural beauty of the region. Set along Lake Llanquihue just outside of Puerto Varas, Hotel AWA is both stylish in design and sincere in focus, with an All-Inclusive Rate that grants every guest the dedicated services of a private guide to discover the region through rich programming of wilderness excursions and hands-on experiences with local artisans.

A Basketful of Craft Culture
In May 2023, the World Crafts Council designated the sister villages of Ilque and Huelmo as Craft City of the World in recognition of traditional basketmaking and loom-weaving techniques that pre-date Hispanic culture and have been kept alive by local artisans for more than 150 years. The crafting techniques practiced can be traced back to Chilean cultures that traveled by canoe and were passed along by families that arrived from Chile's Chiloé and Calbuco areas in the mid-19th century.

Those same families - now fewer in number, but no less dedicated to their craft - preserve the tradition of collecting, processing, and weaving junquillo (juncus procerus), a bulbous flowering rush plant that is native to Patagonia, and, more recently and reluctantly for artisans, manila (phormium tenax), an evergreen perennial native to New Zealand that grows in abundance and is easier to gather and prepare. Junquillo is used by artisans to make baskets for gathering shellfish and other sundries, as well as for rugs. This artisanship was at the heart of the local economy until the arrival of aquaculture in the 1990s.

Hands-On Cultural Excursions
Hotel AWA's Basketwork cultural excursion departs just after breakfast, with guests transported by their personal guide a one-hour drive. The experience begins with an overview of the collecting, processing, and weaving of junquillo and manila at Villarroel Almonacid, a family residence and junquillo farm where guests learn to pluck and tenderize the plant before visiting the workshop to see it weaved by skilled artisans into elaborate works.

After joining the family for refreshments, guests move on first to a birdwatching viewpoint, then to the Manila plantation to discover the process of creating basketry from the head of the family, whose weaving method is notable for its perfection. The last stop will be the headquarters of a local group of artisans from three families, with a hands-on opportunity for guests to create a basket of their own as a keepsake.

Dream Weaving: The Wool Route
The weavers of Carretera Austral, located between Quillaipe and Caleta La Arena, about an hour from Hotel AWA, occupy a textile universe developed over a century and a half. Thanks to local women, that universe has achieved a significant degree of specialization with practical, technical, symbolic, and aesthetic elements integral to Chile's heritage.

Craftswomen of the region create works of beauty with sheep's wool via vertical looms, including blankets, shawls, and choapinos (rugs). Their work involves every detail, from sheep shearing to fleece selection, plus scouring, washing, spinning, dyeing, and weaving on the loom. There are currently nine groups of artisan weavers in towns along the Carretera Austral, as well as several women who pursue the weaving craft on their own, more than 70 weavers altogether.

Hotel AWA's Wool Route excursion offers guests the opportunity to learn about the weaving in detail, with visits to three workshops starting at the home of Leonila Chávez, head of the Chaica Weavers Workshop, for a fascinating demonstration of the age-old process of dyeing sheep's wool in a bonfire from branches, leaves, roots, and fruits.

The excursion continues to Caleta Gutiérrez, a small village where members of Taller Vista Al Mar offer hands-on instruction in the art of spinning fleece on a traditional spindle to create strands of yarn that are both beautiful and fine. Guests will also learn about the traditional brocade loom weaving technique revitalized by the Taller Vista Al Mar.

Last stop? Lenca and the house of artisan Glady Cabero, maker of beautiful plaid blankets and knotted rugs characteristic of local textile tradition. Cabero's home reveals much about the life of a Mapuche woman, farmer, artisan, and healer, with a tour of her greenhouses and lunch with her family as part of the experience. The Wool Bank, a project of Fundación Artesanías de Chile that smooths access of quality wool for the region's weavers, will also be a highlight.

Well-Crafted Cultural Excursions
Every destination on Hotel AWA's new craft excursions promises revelatory experiences, glimpses of local life, hands-on craft-making, and refreshments. Transportation from the hotel and accompaniment by a knowledgeable guide are always included.

Perfect for jumpstarting a visit to Chile's Lake District and gateway to northern Patagonia or experiencing the stunning natural beauty of the region for a few days, Hotel AWA's All Inclusive Rate creates a bespoke excursion menu for guests and assigns a private guide to handle all details and accompany them through their entire stay. Rates start from USD 1,400 per person per night, based on double occupancy; minimum stay is 2 nights. The rate includes:

• Accommodation at AWA Puerto Varas in Superior Category
• A la carte lunch and dinner at the Restaurant, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages include (excluding premium spirits and wines)
• Use of a selection of premium bikes and e-bikes
• Daily breakfast at the Restaurant or in-room
• Use of spa facilities
• Private excursions are chosen during stay in direct consultation with a designated guide
• Private transfer to/from Puerto Montt Airport to the hotel, about 30 miles

For more information or to make reservations at Hotel AWA, please contact +56 9 5397 0740; email reservas@hotelawa.cl; or visit www.hotelawa.cl/en/

More information about this press release: https://andreaschnoor.com/blog/hotel-awa-cultural-excursions/

Links:
https://hotelawa.cl/en/
https://artesaniasdechile.cl/?srsltid=AfmBOopa9ZTddH58rCEeUOiTuInMl1l_ggPRh6p3MvtKUEZ5UIRbcJ2O
https://www.wccinternational.org/craft-cities/craft-cities-latin-america

Media Contact:
Andrea Schnoor Communications
462 7th Avenue, Floor 6
New York, NY 10018 USA
info@andreaschnoor.com
+1 (310) 878-4812

About Hotel AWA
Located just outside of Puerto Varas, Chile, along the shores of Lake Llanquihue, Hotel AWA provides comfort, convenience, and abundant opportunities for guests to explore the northern reaches of Chilean Patagonia. Puerto Varas conveniently breaks up a journey from north to southern Chile mid-way. Open since November 2016, Hotel AWA welcomes travelers to a region rich in natural resources surrounded by lakes, volcanoes, rivers, and fjords. Accommodations include 25 rooms and suites and a private villa with sweeping views of Lake Llanquihue and the Osorno Volcano beyond. The hotel's Brutalist architectural style incorporates the landscape by constantly conversing with nature and the breathtaking surroundings. AWA Restaurant specializes in contemporary farm-to-table cuisine inspired by locally sourced ingredients, including produce grown with regenerative agricultural techniques in the Hotel's organic garden. The onsite Wellness Spa offers extensive holistic treatments and a therapeutic sauna, steam room, glass-walled semi-Olympic pool, and Jacuzzi. Hotel AWA's popular All-Inclusive Rate program presents an appealing proposal for easy-going and adventurous travelers alike, with the dedicated services of a private guide assigned per reservation for the duration of the stay and a recently expanded menu of excursions to explore the natural wonders of the region via foot, bike, horseback, kayak, scenic flight, and more. Sustainability is essential to the appeal of Hotel AWA, which in 2020 became the first Chilean hotel certified as a "B Corporation" in accordance with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and aims to reduce fossil fuel usage by 80% by 2030. For more information, please visit www.hotelawa.cl.

This release was published on openPR.