San Gregorio de Polanco, Uruguay

I just returned from Uruguay. Everyone was very friendly and helpful. I was told there is no racism there. I can attest to the fact that I had no problems while I was there. I ran into serveral people who didn’t speak English, so my basic Spanish came in handy.

I thought the restaurant meals were about the same price as the mid-range restaurant meals in the Southern USA.

The tourist areas near Mercado de Puerto and in Vieja Cuidad were walkable. Be careful because we were told that some places are not safe to walk (ie Cerro).

While in Uruguay, a friend joined me and we did a woodworking workshop through VAWAA. It was amazing! We stayed at Cane B&B. Its a beautiful old house and the owners are very attentive to the needs of the guests. We also did the Curioso Free Tour with Juan Pablo as our guide. He was a great guide and was very knowledgeable.

We rented a car from Avis and drove to Punta del Diablo. It’s a quaint little beach town close to the Brazilian border. We stayed at Brasileirissimo Pousada. It was an excellent place to stay and the owner celebrated our arrival with a champagne toast. We ate at II Tona Cuchina restaurant and the food was fantastic. Service at both places was excellent.

We went to Chuy/Chui and then drove to Pueblo Eden. It’s in the “hill country” with beautiful scenery and cow/sheep pastures. We stayed at Haras Las Tordillas, in the house, not the cabins. It’s an awesome place for privacy and tranquility. We drove to Punta del Este and saw “the hand” and Playa Bellena. Playa Bellena was a great place to see the sunset. We then stayed at the Hampton Inn near the airport. Very close to the airport.

Tips

If you drive, DO NOT SPEED!

There are quite a few tolls on the roads and they are electronic.

They take Uruguayan pesos and USD. We didn’t go anywhere that didn’t take a credit card. If you use the credit card, you get the VAT (they call it IVA) back without having to apply at an office.

Several restaurants asked us if we wanted to add the tip (propina). If you want to tip your server, tell them to add the tip to the bill.

The gas stations are full service. I was told if they do extra like clean the windows or put air in the tires, it’s nice to give them a tip. One of the gas station attendants told me that they don’t take credit cards after 10 pm. I dont know if that’s everywhere or just that station.

It’s very helpful to know some Spanish or have an app to help translate. It was very common to run into people who spoke little or no English, even in the tourist areas.

Flushing the toilet tissue? Some places told us not to do it and some places told us it was okay. It’s better to ask first.

Uber works well. It gives you a choice of Uber or taxi. For example, a 8.5 Km trip in Montevideo costed us about $11 USD.

I cannot attest to the romance and nightlife, but they do stay up late. It looks like there are places for romance.

I really liked Uruguay and I highly recommend visiting there!