The sea lions

Driving in Uruguay guide

By car to the terminal, then dunes.

Cabo Polonio is a fishing village inside a national park, with no streets, no cars and almost no electricity. You drive to the access terminal on Route 10, and from there you continue in the authorized 4x4 trucks.

  • Distance278 km
  • Approx. time4 h 30 min
  • 3 tolls · $ 642 one way

The road, stop by stop

Kilometers from our office (La Paz 1319). Approximate times, without stops.

When to set off. It’s about 4 h 30 of driving: set off early. The trucks from the terminal to the village run on a schedule, so ask about the last one back as soon as you arrive.

  1. km 32
    Pando toll · $ 214, paid when you return the car
  2. km 81
    Solís toll · $ 214, paid when you return the car
  3. km 191
    Garzón toll · $ 214, paid when you return the car · On Route 9, the road to the Rocha coast.
  4. km 199

    Rocha

    The department capital. A good place to refuel and buy what you need: there are few shops in Polonio.

  5. km 226
    La Paloma

    La Paloma

    Short detour

    The largest beach town in Rocha, with the Cabo Santa María lighthouse.

  6. km 275
    Barra de Valizas

    Barra de Valizas

    Short detour

    A small village among dunes by the Valizas creek. From here you can also walk to Polonio along the beach, in about 3 hours.

  7. km 278

    Cabo Polonio access terminal

    This is where you leave the car: private vehicles can’t go in. The 4x4 trucks cross the dunes in about 30 minutes; you can also walk, about 7 km.

PandoSolísGarzónMontevideoCabo Polonio
See all of Uruguay’s tolls

When you arrive

  • The sea lions

    The sea lions

    A colony resting on the rocks next to the lighthouse, a few meters from where you walk.

  • The lighthouse

    The lighthouse

    In service since 1881, built because of the shipwrecks in the area. At some times you can climb it.

  • The dunes and the night sky

    The dunes and the night sky

    With no cars and almost no electric light, the stars at night look like in few places in the country.

  • Where to leave the car

    The car stays in the terminal parking lot on Route 10. Pack what you need in a backpack: from the truck to the village and all around it you walk on sand.

Choose your car

Lowest daily rates of the upcoming seasons: they vary with the dates. You’ll see the exact total when you choose yours.

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Explore Uruguay at your own pace

For this trip

A round trip is about 556 km: rent for 3 days or more, which include unlimited mileage. With fewer days the included km won’t cover it and extra km is charged.

Book your car
  • Everything is closeUruguay is small: from Montevideo, Punta del Este is just over 2 hours away and Colonia 2 h 30. In a few days you can combine coast, countryside and city.
  • Your own paceStop wherever you like, change plans on the go and reach places buses don’t.
  • Hassle-freePick up at the office, the Airport, the Port or Tres Cruces. The car has an electronic toll tag and from 3 days mileage is unlimited.

More getaways

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Before you go

What must be in the car

  • Your valid driver’s license, the physical card (local or foreign).
  • Your ID card or passport.
  • The car’s documents (a copy of the registration and of the insurance policy): they’re already in the car, don’t take them out.

Driving without fines

  • Low beams always on. On highways they must be on day and night.
  • Zero alcohol. The limit is 0.0 g/l for all drivers.
  • Speed limits. The general highway limit is 90 km/h, but signs show where it goes up or down along the way. Waze also shows the limit for each stretch and warns about speed cameras: it’s the app that works best for this.

Fines and the deposit

Traffic fines are sent to us, and local governments take about 15 to 20 days to notify us. That’s why the deposit stays held on your credit card for that period after you return the car. If a fine arrives after the return, it’s charged to the deposit.

Renting an electric car?

You can also make this trip in an electric car. Good to know:

  • Charging on the roadSeveral apps show public charging points, and some let you pay for the charge from your phone. UTE’s app is UTE Mueve, with points all over the country.
  • Emergency cableThe car comes with a cable of about 2 kW to plug into a Schuko outlet rated for that power. It charges slowly: it’s to get you out of a jam.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons. Some photos are cropped.

Carolinasosa17 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Igna (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Elvis Boaventura (CC BY 3.0) · GabyElizalde (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Matiasqr (CC BY-SA 3.0)