Isla Victoria Lodge is set in a privileged location and offers a full board experience to enjoy its gastronomy, spa, pool, and outdoor activities, and to discover the history of this secluded Patagonian spot. Leer en español.
By Cintia Soldatich
Photos by Isla Victoria Lodge
The adventure starts in the exact moment you choose to stay in Isla Victoria Lodge. You arrive to the Lodge after sailing for 20 or 30 minutes through lake Nahuel Huapi while you admire the Andes mountain range. The vessel docks at the Lodge’s private pier*, where personnel awaits in a 4×4 vehicle to transport the guests. The stretch is short, and it can be done by foot. When you arrive, you enter through a cosy reception, where you can walk through different halls decorated with native items and crafts made by indigenous peoples. From the terrace of the main lounge you can enjoy the view of the foothills, Mount Tronador and Del Toro beach, which is absolutely stunning.
The history of the Lodge dates back to 1946, when it was designed by Miguel de Césari, an architect with the National Parks Service, and by then it only had seven rooms and a big dining room for 200 guests. But in 1982, after a big fire, only the foundations remained. Today it is operated and managed by the Iachetti family: Clara Iachetti and Josefina López Llovet are on site through the whole season; Sandro Iachetti coordinates operations including the port and Tunquelén Hotel -which also belongs to the family-; and from Buenos Aires brothers Fabio and Valeria are in charge of management and commercial teams.
The pioneer that headed the first part of the project was Marco Iachetti, who imagined the idea while sailing the Nahuel Huapi, and when the National Parks Service opened the public call for tenders for the Lodge, he didn’t hesitate and convinced the rest of the family to take a chance on this hotel with all their heart, and a touch of madness. A little madness was called for: it was a lodge on an island that had to be rebuilt almost from scratch. “It as a Pharaonic enterprise to rebuild it, activate it and operate it”, says Clara Iachetti, a Marine Biology PhD graduate, National Parks guide and the Lodge’s manager. “We had to really think through the logistics to bring materials on a boat through a lake that sometimes is calm, but sometimes is very rough. It was a project that was carried out with a lot of shared effort. That’s why the words that summarise our history are work and sacrifice”, she adds.
All the wood for the reconstruction comes from fallen coihues and cypresses that Clara’s grandfather, along with a great team of former builders and carpenters, searched for and collected throughout the island. “I’m a witness of that, I remember going for walks with him and searching for the perfect wood with the precise fold that was needed, always from fallen trees”, she recalls. The beauty is stunning, and absolutely incredible, when you learn this detail. In terms of the original blueprint, the lodge’s reconstruction respected the original facade, but added rooms, the outdoor pool, an indoor pool, and the spa.
Full board experience
Isla Victoria Lodge provides full board accommodation, which includes four meals, always with two starter options, main course and dessert with house wine. And days of outdoor activities, after which you can end the day in the spa with dry sauna, jacuzzi, pool, and incredible vistas.
It has twenty rooms and two suits with balcony and central terrace with a view over the lake. All of them include jacuzzi, but they don’t have TV or telephones. About this, Clara explains: “We want the guests to feel the connection with nature, breathe pure air, take the time to admire the trees, and appreciate the environment. Besides, we always encourage them to do the activities that are included in our rates, like guided hikes with local guides, and biking or touring kayaking through the bay”.
Gastronomy is in charge of executive chef María Belén Rodríguez, who designs the dishes with fresh seasonal products inspired in the colour palette of each season. The lodge was an organic orchard with biointensive production. “Just as with our service and attention, we want our gastronomic proposal to be of excellence. The menu changes and also adapts to the special needs of each guest: coeliacs, vegetarians, etc. The culinary idea is to keep that which is typical and local, but with a Mediterranean touch, as we are an Italian family”, Clara states.
Environmental awareness
The Iachetti family, as well as the hotel personnel, work towards sustainability and waste management, and, above all, towards drastically reducing single-use plastics. In the future, the lodge plans to change their energy supply and use solar and biomass energy, to reduce their carbon footprint.
The lodge seeks to support the Botanical Garden managed by engineer Adolfo Moretti. The goal is to enhance the value of the seed bank, which contains species from around the world. “Visiting the plant nursery can be a rewarding experience for our guests, and we want to encourage that”, says the lodge’s manager.
Staying in Isla Victoria Lodge allows you to soak in nature, connect with the environment, and also reflect on what our contribution to conservation can be.
Isla Victoria Lodge
Nahuel Huapi National Park
Tel. (011) 4394-9605
IG islavictorialodge
FB islavictorialodge
*You can get to the lodge on a private boat; through lake excursions that arrive daily from Puerto Pañuelo to Puerto Anchorena (Isla Victoria); or coordinate transfer directly with the lodge. In this last case, if the guest checks in on Tuesday, Thursday or Sunday, navigation is included in the rate.
Comments are closed.