Uruguay is arguably one of the most overlooked countries in South America. Many people only visit for the day from Buenos Aires out of mild curiosity or to tick off another country. But Uruguay is worth a trip (or section of a trip) in itself as it has much to offer, particularly along its southern coastline. Here are some ideas for spending five days in Uruguay.
Day 1: arrive in Montevideo
Most people arrive in Montevideo by plane at its international airport, or by ferry from Buenos Aires. Catch the bus or a taxi to your hotel, dump your stuff and head out.
Montevideo is a great city just to wander around and I recommend spending the rest of your first day doing just that. Montevideo is a curious mix of old and new, of the remnants of its colonial history mixed with the modern day. This is most evident in its buildings – Montevideo constantly surprises with its visual contrasts. At ground level might be an innocuous Starbucks or McDonalds but when you look up you will see grand columns and decorated turrets. Or you might see a building with all the characteristics of colonial grandeur save that it is abandoned, graffitied and overgrown. Despite this, those buildings manage to seem more glamorous than run-down.
In the early evening, head to La Rambla Francia, a wide promenade along the seafront. Its distinctive Columna de Ventilación – a tall, thin column rather like a lighthouse – breaks up the landscape, framing the photos taken by the people gathering along the sea wall to watch the brilliant orange sunset.
Day 2: Montevideo’s city centre and food scene
On your second day in Montevideo, you’ll explore the city centre and its colonial history.
First, though, you’ll need to appreciate Montevideo’s coffee and brunch scene, which was a total surprise for me. Montevideo is laden with choice on this front so to avoid you being overwhelmed with decisions I suggest making your way to Café La Farmacia on Calle Cerrito. As its name indicates, Café La Farmacia used to be a pharmacy but its medicine cabinets now contain jars of coffee and tea, and it serves some of the nicest yoghurt and fruit I had in South America.
After your breakfast, start your mini self-guided walking tour of central Montevideo. Start at Plaza Independencia, a huge square framed by buildings both colonial and corporate in style, its central piece an immense statue of José Artigas on horseback, with his remains in a mausoleum beneath it. Artigas is a national hero, having led Uruguay to independence in the early 1800s.
If you’re keen for a museum, the Palacio Salvo is on the Plaza Independencia and houses the Tango Museum (although if you’re heading to Buenos Aires as well then you can save your tango curiosity for there as that is where tango originated). In any event, the Palacio Salvo is an impressive colonial building and is one of the tallest in Uruguay.
At the western edge of the Plaza Independencia is the Puerta de la Citaduela (Gateway of the Citadel), one of the last remaining parts of Montevideo’s original city wall. You can get a good snap of the Plaza Independencia and the Palacio Salvo through the gate.
Keep heading west and you’ll reach Plaza de la Constitución. Pop into Montevideo’s Metropolitan Cathedral which is on the Plaza, a lovely building with rounded arches and domes.
Finally, head west again to Plaza Zabala and reward yourself with an ice cream or a cold drink in the shade of the Plaza’s palm trees.
As you go along this route, make sure to duck into Montevideo’s many bookshops, keeping a particular eye out for Librería Más Puro Verso and Librería Linardi Y Risso. Montevideo is not a UNESCO City of Literature for nothing, and you’ll find everything from children’s books to classic novels to rare out-of-print books bound in flaking leather and lettered in gold.
You’ll probably be hungry by now, so I recommend heading north west from Plaza Zabala to the Mercado del Puerto. This is a rambling market inside a nineteenth-century industrial warehouse. It’s crammed with stalls and restaurants but its star feature (in my view) is its steak restaurants. Huge cuts of meat hang from iron hooks, and the mouthwatering scent of meat grilling on open charcoal flames fills the space. Waiters deliver loaded plates to tables occupied by groups of friends catching up over a glass of Uruguayan wine. Mercado del Puerto is slightly off the usual tourist track in Montevideo and it feels like more of a local experience. And the steak I had there was one of the best I had in South America.
Day 3: day trip from Montevideo to Punta del Este
High-rise apartments contrasting with the sweeping golden arc of its beach, shining yachts in the marina overlooked by an abundance of upmarket seafood restaurants… Punta del Este is known as South America’s holiday destination for the rich and famous in Latin America.
It is just a two-and-a-half-hour bus ride along the coast from Montevideo, passing through cool forests and smaller Uruguayan towns along the way. It’s a lovely way to spend a day, whether wandering along the beach, sampling freshly-caught fish, or perusing the yachts in the harbour. It’s clearly a wealthy town and is known for being a holiday destination for the super-rich of Latin America so it has an element of that fascinating glamour that evades us normal folk!
Day 4: Montevideo’s museums and beaches
On the fourth of your five days in Uruguay, you might want to start the day with some exercise. La Rambla Francia is an ideal spot for a run. It’s wide enough that pedestrians won’t get in your way and it’s a rare opportunity in a South American city to be able to go for a run without having to navigate traffic. If running isn’t your thing, there are several outdoor gyms along La Rambla as well.
Afterwards, head to La Brasilera for breakfast or brunch. One of Montevideo’s oldest cafés, La Brasilera is another hotspot for top-notch coffee and a wide range of meals and snacks.
Next is a visit to the Museo Andes 1972. This museum commemorates one of the most tragic and dramatic events in Uruguay’s history: a Uruguayan plane which crashed in the Andes in 1972 from which 16 people survived in the harsh mountain conditions for 72 days before being rescued. The events are expertly conveyed by the museum’s detailed information in several languages, and the range of exhibits from the crash.
After this sobering outing, head to the south side of Montevideo and take a walk down La Rambla Francia again, this time to one of Montevideo’s golden beaches, of which you have many to choose from. Soak up the sun and listen to the waves lapping against the shore on your last afternoon in Montevideo.
Day 5: day trip or onward journey to Colonia del Sacramento
With its cobbled streets and rustic feel, Colonia del Sacramento is a popular day trip from both Montevideo and Buenos Aires, a short ferry ride away.
You can get to Colonia del Sacramento by bus from Montevideo’s Tres Cruces terminal. The bus takes about three hours so you can do it as a day trip. Alternatively, if you are travelling on to Buenos Aires by ferry, I recommend catching it from Colonia del Sacramento (rather than Montevideo) and spending an afternoon and a night wandering the town’s cobbled streets, eating at its colourful cafés and exploring its churches and ruins.
My honest opinion about Colonia del Sacramento it is a victim of its own rustic aesthetic. The number of tourists who visit and snap photos of the same things seem almost to outnumber the people who live there, so it felt more like a living museum than a functioning town. On that basis I recommend doing what most people do here: just passing through.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments on this itinerary for five days in Uruguay!
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