Hello! Welcome! In this article, I´ll share with you, in my opinion, the best things to do in Montevideo.
Montevideo is the capital of Uruguay, a country of South America, and the most populated city of the country. This small city is located in the south of the country, on the banks of the Río de la Plata. This river is the widest river in the world.
Montevideo is the city where I live since I was born, more than 31 years ago. So, this will not be the typical article about the best places to visit in Montevideo, but it will be, according to my opinion, about the best things I recommend you do in this small city.
1-Jogging, walking or just enjoy in the Rambla (beach sidewalk) – one of the best things to do in Montevideo
Even if it’s sunny or not, walking in front of the beach is one of the best things to do in the city. Here, you can do some exercise, enjoy the view, or just have meetings with family or friends.
I try to go there every weekend if it’s not raining. After enjoy some hours in the open air, I usually go to the malls of Punta Carretas or Montevideo.
The best parts of the Rambla that I recommend you to visit are the Rambla of Pocitos, Punta Carretas, and Carrasco.
2- Go to Punta Carretas Shopping
In my opinion, Punta Carretas Shopping is one of the best shopping centers in Montevideo. This might be because it is so near to the Rambla, to a lot of restaurants in any kind of food, even to the Zorrilla Museum.
At the entrance, you will notice a great gate and the famous fast food restaurant of McDonald´s, in front of another restaurant called Don Pepperone, located a few steps from Starbucks.
A curious fact, this shopping was a jail. The prison was closed in 1986 and in 1994 Punta Carretas Shopping opened its doors.
3-Eat in La Estacada
La Estacada restaurant is located by the water, near Punta Carretas Lighthouse, away from the noise of the city.
Here, you can choose between many kinds of foods like grilled meat, burgers, milanesas, pasta, seafood and more.
A curious fact is that La Estacada restaurant is the southernmost restaurant in Uruguay.
4- Visit the Oceanographic Museum
This small museum is located on the beach sidewalk of Buceo, in a nice place.
The Oceanographic Museum it’s one of the least visited museums but is so go to go there before or after doing some outdoor activities.
5- Visit the downtown of the city and the Plaza Independencia
The downtown is the heart of the city, where a lot of people work and live. There you can find many stores, bars, restaurants and its so easy to move around because the center is full of bus stops.
Plaza Independencia is the most important square in the city of Montevideo. This square separates the commercial and downtown parts of the city with the old part of the city, called Ciudad Vieja.
In Plaza Independencia you can visit the monument of José Artigas, one of the great heroes of the country.
Here, it is a good place to take some photos. In addition to the monument, you can admire the Puerta de la Ciudadela, the Palacio Salvo, and the Solís theater.
I usually go to Plaza Independencia with my wife because a Korean Restaurant she loves is just one block from there. That restaurant is the Myeong Ga, a very nice place to eat if you like Korean foods.
6- Walk around in Ciudad Vieja (the old city)
Behind the independence square, passing the gate of the citadel, the old part of the city begins. If you are one of those who like history, you`ll love to walk around here.
Firstly, I recommend you to walk in Sarandí Street. There you will see a different type of stores and people selling souvenirs on the street. Secondly, you can go to the Plaza Matriz (the Matriz Square) and visit the Catedral Basílica Metropolitana (Montevideo`s Cathedral), located in front of the square.
From here, you can easily walk to the Port of Montevideo and also you can notice a lot of stores, bars, old houses, change money houses and some museums.
Another of the best places to go in the old city is the Mercado del Puerto, located in front of the port of Montevideo. Here you will find a lot of souvenir stores and many restaurants of “Uruguayan food”
7- Visit the Tristan Narvaja`s Fair
This fair is the most important fair of the city and only open on Sundays. The schedule is from 9 am to 3 pm.
I think I visited this fair more than 200 times in my entire life.
At the fair, you will see many antiques, books, clothes, foods, and animals such as birds, parrots, rabbits, cats, dogs, fishes and etc.
8- Visit the Art History Museum
If you love History, this is one of the places you must visit. This museum is located in downtown of the city, and inside, you will find part of the history of America, Egypt, and other places.
You don´t need to pay anything if you want to enter. There´s no entrance fee to visit this museum.
9- Go to Carrasco
Carrasco is a residential neighborhood located at the east of the city, starting the road to the best beaches in Uruguay.
Carrasco is full of beautiful houses, plenty of restaurants, bars and a beautiful Casino called Casino Carrasco, located inside the Hotel Casino Carrasco, a great Hotel in front of the beach.
One of the things I like most about going to Carrasco is eating at the Bar Arocena. In that bar, you can try one of the best “chivitos” of Montevideo, one of the typical uruguayan food. The “chivito” is a sandwich of meat with some ingredients like cheese, egg, mayonnaise, olives, ham, lettuce and tomatoes.
10- Visit the “Botanic Garden” and “The Rosedal” of Prado neighborhood.
These places are very close to each other, approximately 8 blocks.
If you are a person who loves nature and landscapes, I recommend you to visit these places because there you can take very good photos and enjoy relaxing moments.
There’s no entrance fee to visit these places.
11- Visit the Japanese Garden and the Museo Blanes.
Both are so near to each other, just a few steps. Located in the Prado neighborhood, in Av. Millán 4015. These places have their charm and you will like them a lot if you love nature and history.
The Japanese garden is next to the museum, and don´t expect to see a big garden, no, it´s really small, but beautiful. This garden open its doors at 12:00, monday to sundays and you can visit until 18:00.
There´s no entrance fee and according to the tradition when entering you will have to take the right path to attract good luck.
If you visit this beautiful garden, you should visit the Blanes Museum if you haven´t already done.
The Blanes Museum has been a National Historic Landmark since 1975. Inside it, you will find a large collection of paintings and others, about part of the history of Uruguay.
Well, I hope I have given you enough information about some things you should do if you come to Montevideo. You can take advantage of some of my recommendations.
You can visit the recommended tourist spots by bus, taxi or using uber. Personally, I recommend using Uber or bus.
So, which place of Montevideo would you like to visit? Which place do you think I forgot to mention on my list?
Please, feel free to comment down below !!
If you have time to read more, I reccomend to read the articles we wrote about Portugal and The Philippines!
Hope you enjoyed the read, and i’ll see you around!
Pablo M.