Colonia del Sacramento from Montevideo

[edinburgher]

I "searched this forum" but only found posts mentioning this place from a few years ago.

 

HAL offers this as a full day tour from Montevideo. If we do this there wont be time for sightseeing in Montevideo itself, nor in the surrounding area.

 

This tour might be an option although we could consider doing it as a private tour.

 

Has anyone been there recently from Montevideo rather than from Buenos Aires (the other popular option to reach it on a day trip)?

 

Is the 2 hour drive at all scenic? Or this tour only for sightseeing in Colonia itself?

 

Any info appreciated.

[DonahCBrown]

I "searched this forum" but only found posts mentioning this place from a few years ago.

 

HAL offers this as a full day tour from Montevideo. If we do this there wont be time for sightseeing in Montevideo itself, nor in the surrounding area.

 

This tour might be an option although we could consider doing it as a private tour.

 

Has anyone been there recently from Montevideo rather than from Buenos Aires (the other popular option to reach it on a day trip)?

 

Is the 2 hour drive at all scenic? Or this tour only for sightseeing in Colonia itself?Any info appreciated.

 

Aloha!

 

This was our second choice for Montevideo - ended up with a city tour and winery which was very nice, but there is also a fast ferry to Colonia from Buenos Aires, if you are going to be there for a day or two ahead. My Insight South America Guide says the following:

 

"Sights to see in the old quarter incude the Museo Espanol, in a restored 18th century viceroy's mansion, the parochial church; and the Museo Portugues, which has an excellent collection of mahogany and Cordoban furniture and military uniforms. Narrow cobbled streets lead toward the river, where you can walk along the promenade to the remains of the colonial fortifications....A hydrofoil connects Colonia with Buenos Aires; there is also the slower but more nausea proof ferry."

 

Interestingly, when I looked into doing Colonia from Montevideo, there didn't seem to be any ferry service - everyone quoted me a price for driving there, and given the time constraints, that just didn't seem to be worth it. The scenery around Montevideo wasn't all that inspiring, although I'm not entirely certain we went in the direction of Colonia when we went out to the winery.

[edinburgher]

Thanks Donna.

 

Yes, the ferry goes from BA to Colonia then passengers transferring on to Montivideo transfer to buses to complete the journey. The boat trip from BA to Colonia is apparently well used for travelling between both cities.

 

Thought about it from BA as we have 2 days there and its only 50 mins by fast catamaran but read on and discovered that passports and paperwork needed as leaving one country and entering another. Dont want to risk it.

 

Lots of info on Colonia but with a 2 hour drive I wanted to know if it was scenic along the way or not. If not its hardly worth the effort.