2 Days in Uruguay: The First-Timer Itinerary
Two days in Uruguay means Montevideo plus a Colonia del Sacramento day trip, and nothing else, so ignore anyone claiming you can also squeeze in the beach coast. Uruguay is its own country between Argentina and Brazil, not a slice of either, and the capital is Montevideo, not the resort town of Punta del Este. The currency is the Uruguayan peso (UYU), stamped with the same $ sign as the US dollar, so a menu price that looks cheap in dollars is almost always pesos, USD shows up locally as U$S. Seasons flip down here too: summer runs December to February. Buses and the Buquebus ferry get you around, no car needed for this route.
Got more time? See the 3-day , 4-day , 5-day , 6-day , or full 7-day version of this same route.
Book these before you go
- Hotel: compare Ciudad Vieja rates on Booking.com before you land
- Colonia day tour: check current departures on GetYourGuide
- Arriving via Buenos Aires: check crossing times directly on Buquebus
| Day | Focus | Travel time | Daily cost (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Montevideo: Ciudad Vieja, Mercado del Puerto, the Rambla | Airport to center roughly 20-25 min taxi | $60-90 |
| Day 2 | Colonia del Sacramento day trip, UNESCO old town, lighthouse | Bus roughly 2h45 each way | $50-80 |
Day 1: Montevideo, Old Town To The Rambla
Morning
- Land at Carrasco International (MVD) and grab a taxi (roughly $30-45, about 20-25 minutes) or the far cheaper COT public bus into Ciudad Vieja
- Drop your bags and head straight into Ciudad Vieja, the colonial-era peninsula core, free to wander
- Stand in Plaza Independencia at the equestrian statue of Jose Gervasio Artigas, Uruguay’s independence hero, then look up at Palacio Salvo, the eclectic 1928 tower that was briefly the tallest building in Latin America, architect Mario Palanti built an almost identical twin, Palacio Barolo, across the river in Buenos Aires
Afternoon
- Lunch at Mercado del Puerto, the 19th-century iron-roofed market that is Montevideo’s parrilla headquarters, order the mixed grill and do not skip the morcilla dulce, a sweet blood sausage made with orange peel and walnuts that genuinely surprises first-timers
- Walk past Teatro Solis, opened in 1856 and the oldest opera house in the Americas, book a tour if a slot is running, Toscanini conducted here in 1903 with Caruso singing lead
Evening
- Walk the Rambla, Montevideo’s roughly 22km unbroken waterfront promenade, locally called the world’s longest sidewalk, a strong local claim rather than a certified record, but the sunset over the Rio de la Plata does not need the superlative
- Order a chivito for dinner, Uruguay’s national sandwich (steak, cheese, ham, egg, olives), invented in 1946 at a Punta del Este bar when the owner swapped in beef for the goat meat a customer actually asked for
Day 2: Colonia del Sacramento, The Day Trip
Morning
- Catch an early Tres Cruces bus to Colonia del Sacramento, the ride runs roughly 2h45-2h50 and costs about $14-20, take a morning departure so you get real time in town
- Walk the Barrio Historico, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995, the cobblestones mix Portuguese and Spanish colonial styles because Portugal and Spain fought over this town for a century, start on Calle de los Suspiros, the Street of Sighs
Afternoon
- Climb the Faro de Colonia, the 1857 lighthouse built into the ruins of an old convent, entry runs roughly UYU 100 (about $2.50), carry small pesos since card readers are unreliable at the door
- Lunch on the waterfront, fresh river fish or another round of parrilla, then wander the old city walls and the Portuguese-era gate before the afternoon ferry crowds from Buenos Aires arrive
Evening
- Bus back to Montevideo (same roughly 2h45 run) in time for a last dinner near Ciudad Vieja or Pocitos before an early flight out
Is 2 days enough for Uruguay? Enough for a real taste of Montevideo and Colonia, not enough for the coast. Two days gets you the capital’s old town and one genuinely great UNESCO day trip. It does not get you Punta del Este, Jose Ignacio, or Cabo Polonio, those need a minimum of 4 to 6 days added on, see the longer versions above.
Is that $ sign pesos or US dollars in Uruguay? Pesos, essentially always. Uruguay’s currency symbol is the same $ used for US dollars, but locally it means Uruguayan pesos (UYU), roughly 40 to 1 USD in 2026. US dollars get marked U$S when a business actually means dollars, so read every price sign twice before you assume you found a bargain.
Can I do Uruguay as a Buenos Aires day trip instead? You can reach Colonia alone that way, not this whole route. Buquebus and Colonia Express both run Buenos Aires to Colonia in about 1h15 for roughly $60-90 one way, but that only covers Colonia, not Montevideo, which sits another 2h45 bus ride further east.
Things To Know
- Cards work fine in Montevideo and Colonia’s tourist core, carry small pesos for the lighthouse and market stalls anyway
- Check current hours and any holiday closures on Uruguay’s tourism ministry site before you lock in a tight two-day schedule
- Uruguay is consistently rated the safest country in South America, normal city caution still applies in crowded Ciudad Vieja
- Cannabis has been legal here since 2013, but sales are restricted to residents and citizens through pharmacies, clubs, or home grow, tourists cannot legally buy it anywhere, do not treat this as a shopping stop
Confirm your Colonia bus departure the night before, the earliest Tres Cruces buses sell out on long weekends and you do not want to lose a chunk of your one day there.