5 reasons to put Uruguay on your travel bucket list
The unassuming South American nation of Uruguay is off-the-radar to most Europeans and North Americans. But Brazilians and Argentines have been flocking there for years.
Here are five reasons why Uruguay should be at the top of your travel bucket list.
1. Deserted beaches for ten months of the year
Roam the sandy streets of hippie hideaways next to the Brazilian border in Rocha, commune with thousands of seals in the Hebridean solitude of Cabo Polonio (pictured below) and chill out in Jose Ignacio, a laid-back fishing town frequented by the likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Shakira. Uruguay has an extremely short high season when glamour puss hot spots team with Brazilian magnates and Argentine super models. The remaining ten months of the year you’ll have the entire beach pretty much to yourself.
During the summer, Uruguay’s population of just three million people doubles as Argentines—many who have holiday homes in Uruguay—and Brazilians who love the safety a holiday in Uruguay offers, flood in. It’s no surprise. In South America, Uruguayan beaches have been hugely popular with its neighbours for well over a century. Europeans, Americans and Canadians make up just one in ten visitors so you’re in the vanguard.
2. Gaucho country – step into a kinder, gentler time
Uruguayans refer to anywhere beyond Montevideo and the coast as “the interior” or “Uruguay profundo”. As you head into Deep Uruguay, the land is virtually untouched by development. You’ll cross more gauchos on horseback than you do cars. Take a few days to step back into a kinder, gentler time. The best way is to spend a few nights on one of Uruguay’s traditional cattle and sheep ranches known as estancias.
San Pedro de Timote (photo above) is Uruguay’s oldest estancia. There are options to suit all tastes and pockets. From a rustic ranch run by actual gauchos who make ends meet by taking in visitors, to a grand estancia managed by the fifth generation of an Austrian-Uruguayan family with a lovely pool and capybaras in the garden, to a ‘million-star’ vegetarian inn specialising in adventurous horse rides lying in an alternative enclave in the stunning hills of Rocha. [Estancias described are in the Guru’Guay Guide to Uruguay, not on this website]
3. Friendliest wine country ever
If you’re wondering why you haven’t tried Uruguayan wine yet, it may be because the entire wine production of Uruguay is equivalent that of just one medium-size vineyard in neighbouring Argentina! In the last couple of decades wine-making has professionalised and Uruguayan wines are winning international recognition.
However a visit to a winery in Uruguay is still a uniquely friendly and personal experience. Your host will often be the actual owner or wine-maker, the great grand son or daughter of Italian immigrants. These are people who produce their award-winning wines themselves and bottle and label them by hand. There’s no standing on ceremony. No pomposity. Just love of wine.

Los Nadies winery (picture above) produces magnificent, complex, aged wines in very limited editions. In the Maldonado region world-class vineyards are just thirty minutes drive from the coast – perfect to pair with a beach holiday. The close proximity of the tiny vineyards clustered around Carmelo, a rural town in western Uruguay, make it simple for you to organise your own two-night wine immersion programme (so to speak). And the largest wine producing area is just minutes from the capital.
4. It’s not just the beef, stupid
…though there are 3.5 cows to every Uruguayan. Until five years ago “Uruguayan cuisine” was principally a slab of grass-fed beef accompanied by a simple lettuce, tomato and onion salad. Things have really changed in the capital and on the coast with a boom in gourmet but still affordable eateries. Places like Macachín, an 18-seat bistro in an urban backstreet minutes from downtown Punta del Este run by an ex-motorbike mechanic whom chefs are saying is the most exciting thing to hit Uruguay culinarily in years.
5. Dressing down obligatory
Uruguayans take pride in being a very egalitarian society. No one likes to stand out and that includes regarding attitude and dress. Uruguayans dress down even at the most exclusive of locations. At the beach and in the countryside the dress code is so laid-back as to be non-existent. Do yourself a favour. Leave the formal wear at home and save space for the wine you’re going to want to bring back.
VISIT ALL YEAR ROUND
Uruguay is a temperate country with four seasons in the opposite order to seasons in the UK and USA.
December-February (our summer) These are the hottest months with daily averages of around 90°F. Around New Year temperatures can rise above 100°F but just for a few days.
March-May (our fall) You can swim until April when the waters are warmest after heating up all summer. These months are particularly lovely weather-wise, days are mild (70°F), and there are frequent Indian summers.
September-November (our spring) With temperatures around 70°F, spring is a wonderful time to visit. It may be a bit cold for most people’s idea of swimming but it’s the prefect time to visit an estancia as the countryside is in full bloom with newborn animals.
June-August (our winter) Even during the coldest months, the average sunlight hours are 6-7 hours a day. And even if you hit rain and cold, like Matt Landau of The Vacation Rental Show during his July visit to Montevideo, imbibe of the wine and live music.
Read more about the best time to visit Uruguay
So get planning your holiday in Uruguay
Equip yourself with the only travel guides ‘made in Uruguay’. Being so small, Uruguay typically gets relegated to a chapter in a guidebook to Argentina. It’s not because there’s little to do, it’s because up until now all the travel guides have been written by people who jet in for a few weeks. Now Uruguay has the guides that do it proud. The author of this website and the Guru’Guay guides is a Brit who has lived almost twenty years in Montevideo and has accrued all the contacts and secret destinations that only a local could have.
Guru’Guay is even part of Uruguay Natural, the official country brand of Uruguay.
Photos: Marc Veraart, Guru’Guay
Adapted from an article first published on Boutique da Silva a London based boutique PR agency generating media coverage across UK & international media in print, online & on air for hotels and brands.
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Hello,
Wonderful guide and I can see how much passion you put in conceiving it.
Congratulations!
Some practical question: even that I am not a shopping addicted, I would like to know if there is some shops with shoes or feminine normal dresses, that you can recommend ? (as I am coming from Europe, after a period in Colombia…where there is almost nothing interesting to buy…I am thinking of something similar with Ecco, Clarks, for the shoes).
Thank you so much.
Hi Elena, thank you for the kind words! I will confess I normally stock up on clothes when I am back home in the UK (especially dresses) because the prices are generally better for the same quality. There is actually a Clarks in Montevideo! As well as Hush Puppies and a number of stores stock Merrells. I would recommend you try shopping on the main avenue, 18 de julio. It has fallen out of fashion since several big malls opened up, but has basically the same shops with the prices being less than in the malls. Enjoy! Best, Karen PS I was in Colombia myself earlier this year and happily looking forward to buying new clothes and was highly disappointed so I feel your pain. The bikinis were good though!
Hello. Could you please post a bit about Spanish language school options in Montevideo. Perhaps a listing or rank ordering of serious programs of instruction? Thanks.
Hi Alfredo, we don’t keep a ranking, but we do recommend Academia Uruguay as a very serious Spanish school. All the best and have a great end of year, Karen
Hello. I’m coming off an Antarctica cruise into Montevideo Port. Our hotel is Dazzler by Windham. Is that a walk or a taxi job? If a taxi, will American dollars be accepted?
Hi Lesley, it is a 15 minute taxi ride. You can exchange dollars at the port (not a good rate) or get cash from the port ATM. Enjoy! — Karen PS If you would like great tips and guidance for your time in Montevideo, definitely checkout The Guru’Guay Guide to Montevideo
Hola!
Gracias por querer tanto mi pais, hace ya 10 anos estoy radicado en New York, pero ya casi con un pie en avion para regresar a mi querido Uruguay.
Muchas veces los Uruguayos no valoramos lo que tenemos como pais, y muchos son solo para criticar, pero Uruguay es hermoso.
Gracias por destacar cada una de estas estampas Uruguayas.
Publique en mi facebook tu link de esta pagina para que muchos conoscan y sepan lo que es Uruguay, ya que aqui los medios de tv no dan casi nada de informacion.
Otra vez gracias
Hola Luis, muchas gracias por tus palabras tan cálidas! Supongo que te enteraste de Guru’Guay por la nota hoy en El Pais sobre el actor de NYC que se quedó varado aquí? Agradezco mucho tu colaboración con darle visibilidad con tus redes – para nosotros esto es muuy importante. Es cierto que los medios habla inglesa no dan mucha corte al Uruguay. Beso grande y mantenete en contacto! — Karen