Montevideo: a first-timer's guide to the capital

The neighbourhoods to know

Montevideo is best understood as a string of barrios along the water.

• **Ciudad Vieja** is the old town on a peninsula at the western end. Walk from Plaza Independencia through the Puerta de la Ciudadela, along pedestrian Sarandí street, to Plaza Matriz and the Mercado del Puerto. It is lively by day and quieter at night.
• **Centro** runs along Avenida 18 de Julio, the main boulevard, with the Palacio Salvo, cafés, shops and the Palacio Legislativo at the far end.
• **Barrio Sur and Palermo** are where candombe was born. On many Sunday afternoons and evenings you can hear the drum groups, called comparsas, practising in the streets.
• **Parque Rodó** has a lakeside park, a small funfair, the National Museum of Visual Arts and a busy Sunday market.
• **Pocitos and Punta Carretas** are residential and leafy, with the city's favourite beach, good cafés and restaurants and easy access to the rambla. Most first-timers stay here or in the Ciudad Vieja.
• **Carrasco** is the green, upmarket area near the airport, with wide beaches and quiet streets.

What to do

Start with the **rambla**, the waterfront promenade that runs for many kilometres along the coast. Walk or cycle it at sunset with everyone else. In the Ciudad Vieja, take a guided tour of the **Teatro Solís**, the country's grand opera house, and climb the **Palacio Salvo**, once the tallest building in South America. The **Museo Andes 1972** tells the story of the plane crash survivors with great care, and the **Museo del Carnaval** explains the city's long Carnival, the longest in the world by many accounts.

On Sunday morning, the **Feria de Tristán Narvaja** fills several blocks of Cordón with antiques, books, produce and junk. In the afternoon, head to Parque Rodó or the beach at Pocitos. If you visit in January or February, see a **tablado**, a neighbourhood stage where murga groups perform satirical songs late into the night.

Food and drink

The **Mercado del Puerto** is an old iron market hall full of parrillas, where grills piled with beef, chorizo and provoleta cheese smoke over wood embers. Go at lunchtime and order a medio y medio, a local mix of sparkling and white wine. Try a **chivito**, the national sandwich stacked with steak, ham, cheese and egg, and look for Tannat, Uruguay's signature red grape, on every wine list. Pocitos, Punta Carretas and Cordón have the best spread of modern restaurants and cafés.

Getting around

The old town and the rambla are walkable. City buses cover everything and take an STM card or cash; ride apps and metered taxis are easy to find. Tres Cruces bus terminal, in the centre, is where long distance buses leave for Colonia, Punta del Este and the rest of the country. From Carrasco airport, taxis, ride apps and airport buses reach the centre in around half an hour to forty five minutes.

Staying safe

Montevideo is generally relaxed, but petty crime is real. Bag snatching and phone theft happen in the Ciudad Vieja and Centro, especially at night and on empty streets. Keep your phone out of sight near the kerb, take a taxi or ride app after dark rather than walking through quiet blocks, and avoid outlying neighbourhoods that have no reason to be on a visitor's route. Check your government's travel advice for the latest guidance.

Day trips

Colonia del Sacramento is under three hours west by bus, and Punta del Este around two hours east. Closer in, the wineries of Canelones, such as Bouza on the edge of the city, make an easy half day of tastings and lunch among the vines.