Colonia

"Colonia" sign

Like Montevideo, Colonia has a sign by the water displaying the city's name in big white letters, though this one is newer (installed in 2017) and less well known. A popular spot for taking pictures.

"Dr Bautista Rebuffo" Municipal Museum

Museo Municipal Dr. Bautista Rebuffo

Museum in two floors presenting objects of daily life 200 years ago as well as the works of scientists and explorers that have lived and worked in the town. In the room dedicated to a biologist there are various two-, six-, and eight-legged creatures on display, as well as small and very large fossils. If you're lucky you get to meet the offspring hanging next to the fusebox in the back corner. This museum is also where you buy the U$50 ticket that allows you into all eight museums.

Closed Tue

Armando Calcaterra Paleontological Museum

Museo Paleontológico Armando Cancaterra

Fossils, including a glyptodon, and other paleontological and archeological discoveries on display.

Thu-Sun

Basilica del Santísimo Sacramento

Iglesia Matriz

The oldest church in Uruguay. Constructed by the Portuguese in 1808, but the first church on this place was built in the 1690s.

Calle de los Suspiros

Probably Colonia's most famous street and the view along the street towards the main square is featured on many tourist related publications of the town. The name of the street translates to "the street of sighs". There are two stories of how the street got its name: either because the houses along it used to be brothels, or because prisoners were brought along it before being put to death.

Casa Nacarello

Casa de Nacarello

A Portuguese 18th-century building: an example of a furnished home from those times.

Closed Tue

Dock

Muelle

Built in 1866 as the city's port, before the new port was built on the other side of the peninsula. Relax on the water and see the yachts and views of the northern part of the city.

08:00–01:00

Granja Arenas

A farm outside of Colonia with an animal reserve and two unique attractions.

Indigenous Museum

Museo Indígena

Showcases numerous artifacts, mostly from the indigenous population of the area.

Closed Mon Thu

Paseo de San Gabriel

Goes along the seashore with a beautiful white handrail all the way.

Plaza 25 de Mayo

Plaza Mayor

Everyone wandering around the barrio histórico will pass through the main square at some point. It is lined by several points of interest for travelers such as museums, places to eat, drink and sleep, and some small stands selling souvenirs. On the western edge there are old cannons laying on the ground and in the middle there is a palm functioning as an electrical pole and a lamp post complete with a fuse box and even electrical sockets! If you wonder about the noise from the palms, it's from small green parrots that have their nests there.

Plaza de Armas

Next to the basilica and several restaurants, this square includes the ruins of the former governor's house (Casa del Gobernador), with signs explaining the different rooms.

Portuguese Museum

Museo del Período Histórico Portugués

In this 18th century building, objects from the time when Colonia was a part of the Portuguese empire are on display including the coat of arms that was mounted on the city gate.

Closed Wed and Fri

Portón de Campo

The gate of the city with its draw bridge. Next to it are the ruins of the city walls.

Regional Historical Archive

Archivo Histórico Regional

The house was built by the Portuguese in the 18th century and called "Casa de Palacios". The museum shows documents from the various epochs in Colonia's history.

Closed Sat Sun

Spanish Museum

Museo Español

Closed for renovations as of October 2017. Here you can see everyday objects from the Spanish era, the late 18th century.

The house of the Viceroy

Casa del Virrey

Reconstructed somewhat on the ruins of the original building. Don't miss the whale skeleton on display just to the west of it!

The lighthouse

For a nominal fee you can go up to the top of the lighthouse (faro) and see most of the city and look out over the city and Rio de la Plata. On a clear day probably even Buenos Aires is visible. The lighthouse was built in 1857 and it is 26.92 m high with 118 steps. Its light is not white but red.

Open until sunset·AR$/U$25

The old bullfighting ring

Plaza de Toros

Outside of the city is Uruguay's only bullfighting ring that is almost "unused". It was finished in 1910 with room for 8,000 spectators, but bullfighting was banned by law in the country two years later. The ring is now abandoned to total disrepair and fenced off for visitors' safety.

The ruins of the San Francisco convent

Small brick ruin between the lighthouse and the main square. You would not know what kind of building it was if there weren't a sign next to it.

Tile Museum

Museo del Azulejo

19th-century tiles are on display in the tile museum. At Paseo San Gabriel just behind the museum, there is a beautiful map of Colonia as it looked in 1762 painted on tiles.

Closed Fri

Museo de las Colecciones

A museum of local eccentric Emilio Arenas's extraordinary collections of everything from ashtrays to baseball caps. The museum includes the Guinness World Records–certified largest collections of matchboxes, keychains, and (the highlight of the museum) pencils. We're talking more than 10,000 pencils—the farm is worth visiting just to see that collection.

Mon–Fri 09:00–17:30, Sat Sun and holidays 09:00–18:00·Free

The quarries

canteras

There are three beautiful quarry lakes on the outskirts of Colonia, two pretty close and one almost 20 km away. Don't go swimming in them, but they're lovely to look at.

Cantera de Ferrando

Cantera de Riachuelo

Cantera el Calabrés

Naval Museum

Museo Naval

Enríquez de la Peña/San Francisco

Mon–Fri 11:00–17:00