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Must-see attractions in Uruguay

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    A visitor looks at a painting by Colombian artist Fernando Botero during an exhibition of painters from Uruguay, Mexico and Colombia at the Museum of Visual Arts in Montevideo on March 22, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Miguel ROJO        (Photo credit should read MIGUEL ROJO/AFP/Getty Images)

    Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales

    Montevideo

    Uruguay’s largest collection of paintings is housed here in Parque Rodó. The spacious rooms are graced with works by Blanes, Cúneo, Figari, Gurvich,…

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    (GERMANY OUT) Punta Ballena (bei Punta del Este):Hotelanlage "Casa Pueblo"- 02.1997 col (Photo by Lothar M. Peter/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

    Casapueblo

    Punta del Este

    Gleaming white in the sun and cascading nine stories down a cliffside, Uruguayan artist Carlos Páez Vilaró’s exuberantly whimsical villa and art gallery…

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    La Mano en la Arena

    Punta del Este

    Punta’s most famous landmark is this monster-sized sculpted hand protruding from the sands of Playa Brava. Constructed in iron and cement by Chilean…

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    'Parilla' Barbeque Restaurant In The Mercado Del Puerto, Montevideo, Uruguay. (Photo by: Julio Etchart/Majority World/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

    Mercado del Puerto

    Montevideo

    No visitor should miss Montevideo’s old port market building, at the foot of Pérez Castellano; the building's impressive wrought-iron superstructure…

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    Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay, South America

    Museo del Gaucho

    Montevideo

    Housed in the ornate Palacio Heber, this museum eloquently conveys the deep attachments between the gauchos, their animals and the land. Its superb…

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    (GERMANY OUT) Teatro Solis (Solis Theatre), Uruguay's oldest theatre, built in 1856, located in Plaza Independencia.   (Photo by Rolf Schulten/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

    Teatro Solís

    Montevideo

    Just off Plaza Independencia, elegant Teatro Solís is Montevideo’s premier performance space. First opened in 1856, and completely renovated during the…

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    A display of vintage tools at the museum of the Marfrig plant in Fray Bentos, Uruguay, May 8, 2009. The plant, part of the Brazilian Marfrig group, is the last link of a chain which began in 1862 when German Georg Giebert founded the Liebig's Extract of Meat Company to produce corned beef and extract of meat. In 1924 the plant was acquired by British investors and became the "Frigorifico Anglo". During both world wars the plant supplied the allied armies with countless cans of corned beef and nowadays the plant employs 125 people and exports 10 pounds (4,5 kg) corned beef cans --up to a total of 500 tons a month-- to the United Kingdom. AFP PHOTO/Miguel ROJO (Photo credit should read MIGUEL ROJO/AFP/Getty Images)

    Museo de la Revolución Industrial

    Uruguay

    Possibly the words 'tour an old meat extraction plant' don't appear on your list of must-dos for Uruguay, but Museo de la Revolución Industrial highlights…

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    View of the Palacio Salvo in Montevideo, Uruguay, on May 29, 2008. The Palacio Salvo, built in 1928 and designed by Italian architect Mario Palanti, has now set up as a symbol of the country's prosperity years in the 20th century.  AFP PHOTO/Miguel Rojo   MORE IN IMAGE FORUM / AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL ROJO        (Photo credit should read MIGUEL ROJO/AFP/Getty Images)

    Palacio Salvo

    Montevideo

    On the east side of the Plaza Independencia, the 26-story structure with the crazy beehive hairdo is Palacio Salvo, the continent's tallest building when…

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    Saturday flea maket at Plaza Constitucion

    Plaza Matriz

    Montevideo

    Also known as Plaza Constitución, this leafy square was the heart of colonial Montevideo. On its west side stands the Iglesia Matriz, Montevideo’s oldest…

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    Low angle view of a church, Iglesia Matriz, Colonia Del Sacramento, Uruguay

    Iglesia Matríz

    Colonia del Sacramento

    Uruguay’s oldest church – begun by the Portuguese in 1680, then completely rebuilt twice under Spanish rule – is the centerpiece of pretty Plaza de Armas…

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    Montevideo, Uruguay Parliament Building

    Palacio Legislativo

    Montevideo

    Dating from 1908, and still playing host to Uruguay’s Asamblea General (legislative branch), the three-story neoclassical parliament building is also open…

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    Plaza Independencia

    Montevideo

    Montevideo's largest downtown plaza commemorates independence hero José Artigas with a 17m, 30-ton statue and the subterranean Mausoleo de Artigas, where…

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    Monte de Ombúes

    Uruguay

    On Laguna de Castillos' western shore (near Km 267 on Ruta 10), brothers Marcos and Juan Carlos Olivera, whose family received this land from the…

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    Museo de los Andes

    Montevideo

    Opened in 2013, this unique museum documents the 1972 Andean plane crash (made famous in the book Alive!) that cost 29 Uruguayans their lives and…

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    Centro Cultural Bastión del Carmen

    Colonia del Sacramento

    Incorporating part of the city’s historic fortifications, this theater and gallery complex adjacent to Colonia's Puerto Viejo hosts rotating art exhibits…

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    Casa Rivera

    Montevideo

    Former home of Fructuoso Rivera (Uruguay’s first president and Colorado Party founder), this neoclassical 1802 building is the centerpiece of Montevideo’s…

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    Museo del Carnaval

    Montevideo

    This museum houses a wonderful collection of costumes, drums, masks, recordings and photos documenting the 100-plus-year history of Montevideo’s Carnaval…

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    SOS Rescate de Fauna Marina

    Uruguay

    Ten kilometers south of Piriápolis is Uruguay’s premier marine-animal rescue and rehabilitation center. Run entirely by volunteers, its emphasis is on…

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    Represa Salto Grande

    Uruguay

    A source of national pride, this massive hydroelectric dam 14km north of Salto provides over 50% of Uruguay’s electricity. Free 90-minute guided tours …

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    Museo Carlos Gardel

    Uruguay

    Housed in a former pulpería (the general store/bar that used to operate on many estancias), this sweet little museum documents Tacuarembó’s claim as…

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    Faro

    Colonia del Sacramento

    One of the town’s most prominent landmarks, Colonia’s 19th-century working lighthouse provides an excellent view of the old town and the Río de la Plata…

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    Isla Gorriti

    Punta del Este

    Boats leave every half hour or so (daily from December through Carnaval, weekends rest of year) from Punta del Este’s yacht harbor for the 15-minute trip…

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    El Faro del Cabo Santa María

    Uruguay

    The 1874 completion of this local lighthouse marked La Paloma’s genesis as a summer beach resort. The unfinished first attempt collapsed in a violent…

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    Isla de Lobos

    Punta del Este

    About 10km offshore, this small island is home to the world’s second-largest southern sea-lion colony (200,000 at last count), along with colonies of…

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    Laguna de Rocha

    Uruguay

    An ecological reserve protected under Uruguay’s SNAP program, this vast and beautiful wetland 10km west of La Paloma has populations of black-necked swans…

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    Castillo Pittamiglio

    Montevideo

    On the Rambla between Punta Carretas and Pocitos is this eccentric legacy of local alchemist and architect Humberto Pittamiglio. Its quirky facade alone…

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    Convento de San Francisco

    Colonia del Sacramento

    Off the southwest corner of Plaza Mayor 25 de Mayo are the ruins of the 17th-century Convento de San Francisco, within which stands the 19th-century faro…

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    Fortaleza de Santa Teresa

    Uruguay

    This impressive hilltop fortress, 4km north of park headquarters on Ruta 9, is the star attraction of Parque Nacional Santa Teresa. Construction was begun…

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    Yacht Harbor

    Punta del Este

    In summertime, Punta del Este's busy yacht harbor overflows with beautiful people, who come to see and be seen at the surrounding restaurants and clubs…

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    Mausoleo de Artigas

    Montevideo

    In the middle of the downtown Plaza Independencia is the Mausoleo de Artigas, whose above-ground portion is a 17m, 30-ton statue of the country's…

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    Museo de Artes Decorativas

    Montevideo

    The Palacio Taranco, a wealthy 1910 merchant’s residence designed by famous French architects Charles Girault and Jules Chifflot, is filled with ornate…

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    Museo Naval

    Montevideo

    Along the eastern waterfront in Buceo, this museum traces the role of boats and ships in Uruguayan history, from the indigenous Charrúa’s canoe culture to…

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    Museo Histórico

    Uruguay

    This historical museum displays evocative images from the multiple 19th-century sieges of Paysandú, including of the bullet-riddled shell of the cathedral…

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    Portón de Campo

    Colonia del Sacramento

    The most dramatic way to enter the Barrio Histórico is via the reconstructed 1745 city gate. From here, a thick fortified wall runs south along the Paseo…

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    Museo Indígena

    Colonia del Sacramento

    Houses Roberto Banchero’s personal collection of Charrúa stone tools, exhibits on indigenous history, and an amusing map upstairs showing how many…

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    Museo del Indio y del Gaucho

    Uruguay

    Paying romantic tribute to Uruguay’s gauchos and indigenous peoples, this museum’s collection includes stools made from horse and cow bones, elegantly…

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    Museo Paleontológico Alejandro Berro

    Uruguay

    About 3km west of town, in an sprawling 19th-century edifice, this museum displays a substantial fossil collection, including an impressively well…

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    Museo Portugués

    Colonia del Sacramento

    In this old house on Colonia's main square you’ll find Portuguese relics including porcelain, furniture, maps, Manuel Lobo’s family tree and the old stone…

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    Museo Figari

    Montevideo

    One of Ciudad Vieja’s newest museums is devoted to Uruguayan painter Pedro Figari, whose landscapes and portraits masterfully convey a sense of Uruguayan…

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    Archivo Regional

    Colonia del Sacramento

    On the northwest edge of Plaza Mayor 25 de Mayo, the tiny Archivo Regional contains historical documents along with pottery and glass excavated from the…

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