What to do if you only have 9 days in Uruguay?
Uruguay is a small South American country, which is located between Argentina and sunny Brazil. It’s actually the second smallest in South America and is home to some of the most beautiful coastlines there. Uruguay runs along the South Atlantic Coast, and is actually the only Latin country that is completely outside of the tropic region.
Day 1 – Get there!
My favourite way for getting to Uruguay is by catching a ferry from Buenos Aires, Argentina. There’s a 2-hour ferry, which you can take from the bustling city of Argentina and this will drop you off to Colonia, an old colonial style city of Uruguay with wide, cobbled streetscapes and beautiful trees. Once you’re there, find a hostel and then hit the streets for some local food. Search for something called ‘asado’ it’s essentially the South American style of barbecuing food. It is amazing. Ask your hostel to recommend you place 😉
(Streets of Colonia)
Day 2
After breakfast, maybe do a last lap of the small town, there’s nothing to major to check-off the list here, so just enjoy the small colonial style city for what it is. Ok, so now it’s off to the capital! I’d recommend catching a short bus ride up to the capital, Montevideo. Once in the capital you can easily find a hostel right in the middle of the city and from there the world is your oyster. After you find a hostel, (I stayed at ‘el viajero downtown‘) you can look at planning your next day. It might be a good idea to explore the streets in the evening and then get some rest for day 3
Day 3
Wake up with some energy, take advantage of the hostel breakfast, simple but satisfying, and then its exploring time! You can check out a free walking tour here, and this will provide you with some interesting history about the city and about Uruguay. After the free walking tour, I’d recommend renting a bicycle and going for a ride around this city. You wont need more than half a day to get around … it’s pretty small. Once you feel satisfied with seeing the city you can return to the hostel, maybe get involved with some events that are on in the hostel and then plan your trip for the following day. I would recommend to check the bus times for getting to Cabo Polonio, as these can vary.
Day 4
Prepare yourself for my favourite part of Uruguay. Check out this blog if you plan on going there and I’ll explain in detail the process. Basically it involves arriving at a tiny beach village, which is inhabited by lots of sea lions and penguins. In order to get there you’ll need to catch a bus, and then a sand buggy for 15 minutes, passing through sand dunes. You’ll love it!
Basically all you have to do from here is find a hostel, there’s only a handful. I stayed at the Viejo Lobo Hostel. Once you’re there try to find your bearings (the jeep should drop you off just out the front of the hostel) and then get some rest.
(View from the sand buggy)
Day 5 – 8
Enjoy the beach village life. Read my blog here on this awe-inspiring beach village as I explain in further detail the things that you can do in this amazing wonder of South America.
Day 9
Time to go! I recommend travelling early in the morning. You can just catch the returning jeep! And from there a bus up to Brazil, or a bus back to Montevideo where you can either fly out of, or catch a ferry back to Argentina.
(I scored a bus to myself!)