[Travel Advice] Colonia Uruguay in One Day

Solo side quest to Colonia de Sacramento in Uruguay

Random Observation/Comment #909: Solo day trips with good weather and a walkable photogenic city? Yes, please.

//Famous lighthouse at Colonia de Sacramento little old town area

Preparation & Logistics

• Ferry - Buy your tickets ahead of time. There are a few options, but I think the BookaWay site was just a little more trusting than the ColoniaExpress (which looked like it hadn’t been updated in 25 years).

  • Round trip costs were about $120 per person

  • The Buquebus is a high speed ferry (which is around 1hr on the water)

  • I booked the first ferry from Buenos Aires at 8:30AM arriving at 9:45AM

  • I booked the last ferry back at 8:30PM with supposed arrival at 9:45PM (this timing did not happen)

  • In reflection, 4 hours was more than enough for just the small area and a lunch.

• Luggage Storage - If you are carrying bags, you can use “Wekeep” at the ferry terminal. Booking is pretty straightforward: https://wekeep.app/es/guarderia-equipaje/buenos-aires/

• Wear walking shoes - Oh boy did I do a lot of walking.

• Download a bunch of podcasts and music - I also enjoyed my time just wandering and catching up on some familiar voices.

My Itinerary (just winging it)

7:45AM - Arrive to the Terminal Buquebus at least 45 minutes before departure!

Note that there is no specific kiosk with the sign “Wekeep.” You just need to speak to the Information desk and show them your confirmation email, and they will take your bags to the back.

Remember to check that the number you’re added to the bag is the same as the one you booked! I got super lucky when I came back to pick up the bag because I had an extra name tag on my luggage from checking it on my last trip so they can check with my passport.

8:30AM - Boarding

Be prepared for a migration process similar to an airport, which includes a metal detector and a passport stamp. Do the local thing and bring a cup of mate with a thermos of hot water.

9:45AM - Arrival

Old Town area - I had no idea where I was going, but I knew I wanted to walk through the old town area so I followed the path toward the West coast. This is a tiny old town with a square and some historic landmarks.

10:15AM - Oh look, a Lighthouse

Lighthouse looks like a lighthouse.

10:35AM - Oh look, some pretty flowers.

The streets looked pretty old and the flowers were blooming during spring.

11AM - More walking

See some pretty old cars. I must say, there were quite a few just sitting around.

11:30AM - Hey, there’s the water.

If you keep walking, you’ll find some pretty things to photograph.

12PM - Let’s really go out of the way for lunch. Half off prices since tourists don’t walk that far North.

Buen Puerto - Really love lunch with some seafood paella made in a bit of a risotto way. Since my phone was low on battery, I took my time just charging and hanging out.

1:30PM - Sitting outside for drawing and reading

2:30PM - Maybe I’ll check out the origami museum?

Museo del Origami - If you have 15 minutes and 100 pesos ($2) then pop over. Pretty.

3PM - Let’s have a drink

Charco Bistro - I have no idea how I’m going to spend the next 5 more hours, so drinking was a very good option.

5PM - Oh look, a parade.

Not sure if this was a normal event, but these people really liked dancing in the street.

6:15PM - Let’s look for dinner

Restaurant Amor Amor - What a beautiful place. I was the only one there because most people were at a restaurant right West of it which had a beautiful view of the sunset. I purposeful do not like crowds, so this was perfect. I got another seafood paella, which was absolutely delicious. Highly recommended.

7:15PM - Walk to a place for a great sunset.

Sunset - This was glorious. I’m sure anywhere would be fine, but you’ll see a bunch of people on the rocks. This is worth missing the ferry.

7:45PM - Oh crap, I’m late to the ferry.

8:30PM - Oh crap, I’m not on the ferry yet, but it’ll wait for everyone to board (which is usually a line that goes around the whole terminal space).

9PM - Oh crap, why isn’t the ferry going yet?

10:15PM - Oh crap, why is it taking forever to disembark?

Departure Note - The return ferry ride can be stressful due to the time it takes to board everyone for the last boat. If you have a tight connection (like rushing to the airport for a flight boarding at 11PM), plan for potential delays. I don’t know how it happened, but I was in Uruguay at 9:30PM and somehow got on the plane by 11:20PM. Lucky!

Verdict - Would I do it again? I probably could have found a lot of awesome places to walk in Buenos Aires. I think leaving Buenos Aires at 8:30AM and leaving Colonia Sacramento by 4PM is more than enough time. I do like adding another country to the list!

~See Lemons Love Uruguay