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🇨🇱 Chile · Valparaíso
♨ Temperature
34°C
⛰ Altitude
1490 m
⚗ pH
7.2
💧 TDS
870 mg/L
🌊 Flow rate
20 L/s
📅 Established
1822
✓ Verified on 2026-07-22
Termas de Jahuel is Chile's oldest continuously operating thermal resort, established in 1822 and set in a dramatic Andean foothill landscape at 1,490 metres elevation in the Aconcagua valley. The sulphurous bicarbonated spring flows from Andean volcanic geology, feeding a historic resort that retains its 19th-century colonial character alongside modern spa facilities. The setting is extraordinary — an oasis of thermal pools in a dry Andean valley with views of the snow-capped 6,962-metre Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Americas. Accessible from Valparaíso's cruise port in approximately 90 minutes, Jahuel offers cruise visitors an authentic encounter with Chilean history, Andean landscape, and natural mineral therapy in a single excursion.
| Bicarbonate | 420 mg/L |
| Sulphate | 180 mg/L |
| Calcium | 95 mg/L |
| Magnesium | 38 mg/L |
| Sodium | 76 mg/L |
Termas de Jahuel was established in 1822 by the Chilean landowner José Ignacio Zenteno, making it one of the oldest hotel resorts in South America. It played a significant role in Chilean independence history — Bernardo O'Higgins, the founding father of Chile, was a guest at the springs in the 1820s during his campaigns across the Aconcagua region. The original colonial bathhouse structure, restored in 1985, is a Chilean national monument.
Jahuel's thermal culture reflects the blending of Spanish colonial medicinal tradition with Mapuche indigenous knowledge of Andean waters. The local Mapuche name 'Jahuel' means 'place of water' in Mapudungun, acknowledging that indigenous communities used the spring long before European settlement. The Chilean tradition of the 'veraneo' — the summer escape to the mountains — has centred on Jahuel and the Aconcagua valley since the 19th century, creating a social ritual connecting families to the Andean landscape.
Termas de Jahuel operates in the Aconcagua River watershed, which supplies water to over 1 million people downstream. The resort follows a certified sustainable tourism protocol under Chile's SERNATUR system, with water extraction limits set to ensure aquifer stability. The high-altitude setting means the resort uses gravity-fed water distribution, eliminating pump energy requirements. The surrounding native sclerophyllous forest is a protected buffer zone.
Phone+56 34-249-8000
Websitewww.jahuel.cl
AddressTermas de Jahuel, San Felipe, Aconcagua Province, Chile