Saturday - March 17, 2007

17 days in Uruguay

1. Our route:

2. Money matters:

The rate was 31 pesos to a euro. Payment is in Uruguayan pesos, but is indicated with $ [often $U, and US dollars with U$], which can be confusing. In every town it is possible to get money from ATMs. 

3. Documentation:

Third party insurance:

In Uruguay we didn't buy a third party insurance and weren't checked for it.

Carnet de Passage/Temporary Import Document:

Carnet is not needed, at the border you obtain a Temporary Import Document.

NB: At the border you have to hand over all your vegetables, dairy and meat products because they fear foot-and-mouth disease.

4. Car, diesel, petrol stations, roadmap:

Diesel and petrol stations:

Diesel costs 21-23 pesos per litre [around 73 eurocent].  

Petrol stations may be found everywhere.

Car:

We drove an average of 8 kilometres to a litre and during 17 days of traveling we covered 1021 kilometres [an average of 60 kilometres per day]. We didn't have any maintenance done on the car nor did we have a breakdown.

Traffic:

Very easy country to travel in, with good roads and hardly any traffic.

Road maps: 

We are happy with Reise Knowhow maps, they are made of strong quality paper [they don't tear and are water resistant]. Unfortunately there is no specific map for Uruguay, so we used the Argentinean and Brazilian maps, both of which cover part of the country. You can order them on the internet at www.reise-know-how.de at € 8.90 a piece [price December 2006], excluding shipping costs.

In Uruguay, tourist information centres are plentiful and they have many maps of cities and regions.

5. Paid accommodation and bush camping

There is lots of space, few people and you're often on your own, so no problem finding perfect spots for bush camping. Campgrounds can be found in Mercedes, Carmelo and Colonia del Sacramento. For the gps waypoints, check out the gps overview.

6. Internet:

Available in the towns, costs vary from 13 to 25 pesos per hour. In Colonia we had wifi at the Plaza Mayor.

7. Tourist information:

Tourist information centres can be found everywhere - they have leaflets in Spanish and English.

8. Food and drinks:

Water:

Can be drunk from the tap.

Food:

Lots of meat, good quality and cheap [cheaper than chicken]. Vegetables don't look too exciting and sometimes you need to search for some quality. They eat lots of bread, so bakeries are abundant.

Going out for dinner is cheap compared to European standards, somewhere between 3 and 7 euros per meal.