Uman Lodge Patagonia Chile

Just a few kilometers from Futaleufú, with a stunning cliff top view, Uman Lodge is a spectacular option for accommodation in the south, and perfectly blends a luxury feel with the Patagonian wilderness. At first, it is a little unsettling. A dirt road leads you up to the top of an imposing cliff. When you get out of the car, you find yourself faced with a small doorway that looks like it may lead into a mountain shelter. But once you’re inside, the picture changes quite dramatically. The feeling hits you immediately that this place is something special: hardwoods, polished stone, animal skins, alpaca drapes, high ceilings, elegant decorations, and huge windows overlooking the valley below and its mighty rivers Espolón and Futaleufú. All you can do is admire the splendor of the Uman Lodge. Tucked away in the La Confluencia Ranch (Fundo La Confluencia), some 10km from Futaleufú, the lodge is one of the most spectacular options for accommodation in Chile and, indeed, the world. And, of course, this isn’t just any old lodge. There are 16 suites, a restaurant, a wine cellar, a bar, a spa with a heated indoor pool, a solarium, a sauna, a treatment and massage room, and a gym. All this surrounded by untouched wilderness. “The philosophy here is that our guests should feel at home”, explains Gerardo Ortiz, the ex-lodge manager at Uman. The dream began back in 2007, when Frenchman Olivier Halley and his wife Sybille visited the area and fell in love with the natural beauty. Olivier, son of the co-founder of the retail company Promodes, which later merged with Carrefour hypermarket chain, Paul- Louis Halley – who died in a plane accident in 2003 at Kidlington, England-, had travelled extensively throughout the south of Argentina, especially around San Carlos de Bariloche. It was on one of those trips that his friends told him about this part of Chile. He came to Futaleufú and the 482-hectare La Confluencia Ranch, which was at the time owned by U.S. philanthropist Douglas Tompkins, who died in December of 2015 in a kayaking accident in Lake General Carrera. Tompkins had acquired the property in 2000 in partnership with the Weeden family of Greenwich, Connecticut. The fertile riverside soils at La Confluencia were badly overgrazed and degraded by previous owners. After buying this property, Tompkins restored the farmland to health and productivity, supporting a diverse mixture of farm activities including cherries, raspberries, strawberries, sheep grazing, honey production, and an organic vegetable garden. Alan Weeden also owns a ranch next door called Fundo Encantado (fundoencantado.com). Olivier decided almost immediately to buy the ranch and to build a family home there. The businessman originally dreamed of family gatherings in this far-flung corner of the world, but later decided to build a lodge here, not just for his own kin, but so that friends and guests could visit too. Building the lodge on the top of a steep hill was Sybille’s decision, who