Things to do in Temuco and around

Temuco is the capital of La Araucanía and the city where the region's flights land. If you are wondering what to do in Temuco, this guide brings together museums, markets, nature and Mapuche food, with the status of each place checked on October 15, 2026.

Before you go: what is open

• Cerro Ñielol Natural Monument: closed. CONAF reports it has been closed since September 23, 2026, until weather and safety conditions allow it to reopen (source: CONAF, page updated October 14, 2026).
• Temuco Municipal Market: being rebuilt. The building burned in 2016 and the authorities aim to finish the works in 2028 (source: BioBioChile, January 9, 2026). It cannot be visited for now.
• Museums and Feria Pinto: when reviewing this guide we found no closure notices from their official sources.

Getting to Temuco

La Araucanía Airport (ZCO) is in Freire, 25 km south of Temuco (source: Sernatur, chile.travel, January 2026). The terminal has taxis, transfers and car rental (source: Chile's Ministry of Public Works, concessions report, February 2026). If you are heading on to the lakes, see the guide How to get to Pucón.

Things to do in the city

• Regional Museum of La Araucanía. It is housed in Casa Thiers, a Historic Monument at Avenida Alemania 084, and holds archaeological, historical and ethnographic collections from the region (source: Regional Museum of La Araucanía). In October 2026 it received ICOM Chile's Grete Mostny Award for an intercultural mediation project (same source, October 7, 2026).
• Pablo Neruda National Railway Museum. It occupies the old engine house at Av. Barros Arana 0565, with locomotives and carriages declared Historic Monuments, including a presidential coach (sources: National Monuments Council; Chile's Museum Registry, record updated August 17, 2026).
• Feria Pinto. A popular market next to the train station, founded in 1945, where Mapuche and rural producers sell vegetables, merkén, piñones, honey and cheese (source: study published in Redalyc).
• Cerro Ñielol, once it reopens. It protects 89 hectares of native forest inside the city, with copihue flowers, since 1939 (source: CONAF). Tickets are bought in advance at pasesparques.cl (source: CONAF, March 2026). Page: Cerro Ñielol.

Neruda in Temuco

Pablo Neruda lived in Temuco until his teens and his father worked on the railway (source: National Monuments Council). There is no house museum of the poet in the city: his three houses open to the public are in Santiago, Valparaíso and Isla Negra (source: Sernatur, chile.travel, August 2024). His local mark is the Railway Museum that bears his name.

Mapuche food

Mapuche cooking is based on seasonal grains and legumes (source: Marca Chile, 2020). Some foods you will see at Feria Pinto or on tables in the south:

• Mültrün or katuto: an elongated bread made from cooked wheat, eaten with honey or jam (same source).
• Piñones: the araucaria seed, boiled and then sautéed with garlic, oregano and salt (same source).
• Merkén: smoked "cacho de cabra" chili ground with other spices (same source).
• Digüeñes: mushrooms that grow on southern beech trees in spring (same source).
• Muday: a low-alcohol fermented grain drink with a ceremonial role in the ngillatun (same source).

Around Temuco

• Budi Lake: about 2 hours from Temuco, in Mapuche Lafkenche territory, with community-based Indigenous tourism and stays in a ruka (source: Sernatur, chile.travel, November 2025).
• Cholchol and Padre Las Casas: Cholchol is a district created in 2004 out of Nueva Imperial (source: Wikipedia, "Cholchol"), and Padre Las Casas lies across the Cautín River (source: Wikipedia, "Padre Las Casas"). We found no current official tourism information for either: check with their municipalities before you go.
• Nahuelbuta National Park: the drive from Temuco takes about 3 hours (source: Sernatur, chile.travel, January 2026).

Information reviewed on October 15, 2026. Opening status, hours and tickets change: confirm with CONAF, each museum and the municipality before you travel.