Practical Information for visiting Uruguay

The currency is the Uruguayan peso ($UY or $U). Uruguay is among the most expensive countries in South America, so budget closer to Chilean than to Bolivian prices.

Cards are accepted almost everywhere, including on buses and in small shops, and Uruguay is markedly more cashless than its neighbours. Carry some cash for markets, beach kiosks and the smaller inland towns.

ATMs are widespread — look for Banred and RedBrou — and some dispense US dollars as well as pesos. Fees are charged per withdrawal.

There is a real tax break for visitors, and it is automatic. Uruguay's IVA is 22%, among the highest rates in the world, but non-resident tourists are exempt from it on hotel accommodation, and restaurant and catering bills paid with a foreign-issued card receive a substantial IVA rebate applied at the point of sale. Pay with a foreign card rather than cash in restaurants — it is simply cheaper, and no paperwork is involved.

Tipping is around 10% in restaurants and is genuinely optional; Uruguayans often round up instead. Taxis are not tipped beyond rounding.

Antel — the state operator — plus Movistar and Claro cover the country, and Antel has the best rural reach. Prepaid SIMs are cheap and sold at the airport, in Antel shops and in kiosks; eSIMs work.

Uruguay has some of the best connectivity in Latin America. Fibre broadband is widespread, coverage is good across almost the whole country including the coast and the interior towns, and there is free public wifi in many plazas and along parts of the Rambla.

The exceptions are few: Cabo Polonio, which has patchy signal and no mains electricity by design, and stretches of the dune coast in Rocha.

Power is 220V at 50Hz. Uruguay uses a mix of plug types — the Argentine-style angled flat pins are most common, with European round pins also found — so bring a universal adapter rather than one of each.

Uruguay is one of the safest countries in South America and is an easy place to travel, including alone. Violent crime against visitors is rare. Petty crime in Montevideo has increased over the last decade and is the realistic risk.

• Montevideo: keep phones out of sight in the street, and be alert in the Ciudad Vieja after dark, around the port, and in the Barrio Sur and Goes areas at night. The Rambla is busy and fine by day and quiet late.
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• Do not leave anything in a parked car, and use guarded parking where it exists.
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• The Atlantic coast has strong currents. Rip currents off the open Atlantic beaches east of Punta del Este cause drownings each summer, lifeguards are only on duty in season and only on some beaches, and the water is colder and rougher than it looks. Swim between flags where they exist and ask locally where they do not.
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• Driving. Roads are good, but rural routes are unlit, livestock get onto them, and cyclists ride without lights. Avoid long rural drives at night.
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• Summer sun and wind. The Atlantic breeze disguises a strong UV index, and people burn badly on windy beach days.
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• Emergency number: 911.

No vaccinations are required, there is no malaria and no yellow fever risk, and routine vaccinations are all that is generally advised.

Tap water is safe to drink throughout Uruguay, including in small towns — one of very few countries in Latin America where that is true nationwide. Bottled water is a preference here, not a precaution.

Uruguay's health system is among the best in the region. Private mutualistas and hospitals in Montevideo are good and comparatively inexpensive, and emergency departments will treat anyone. Care in the interior is adequate for routine problems and serious cases are moved to Montevideo. Travel insurance is still worth having, since you will be billed as a private patient.

Sun is the most likely thing to affect a visitor. The UV index in summer is high and the constant sea breeze hides it completely.

Food safety is not a general concern — standards are high and stomach upsets are uncommon. The realistic dietary issue is the opposite: a beef-heavy diet with very little in the way of vegetables, which is worth planning around on a long trip.

Winter damp and poorly heated older buildings make colds common; bring more warm clothing than the temperature range suggests.

Cannabis: legal, and not for you. Uruguay was the first country in the world to legalise and regulate the entire market, in 2013. But purchase is restricted to registered Uruguayan residents — through pharmacies, membership clubs or home growing — and tourists cannot legally buy it. Personal possession of a small amount has long been tolerated, but there is no legal way for a visitor to acquire any, and buying on the street is a criminal transaction.

Mate etiquette is the same as elsewhere in the region: take the gourd, finish it, hand it back without wiping the straw, and save gracias for when you want out of the round. Being offered mate is an inclusion, and refusing outright is a small snub.

Greetings are a single kiss on the right cheek between women, and between a man and a woman; men shake hands or embrace. Greet everyone present individually.

Do not ask for a steak well done in a parrilla, or at least not expecting sympathy. Meat here is a serious subject.

Smoking is banned in all enclosed public spaces — Uruguay was the first country in the Americas to do it, in 2006 — and the rule is observed.

Drink-driving is zero tolerance: the legal limit is 0.0 and it is enforced with roadside testing.

Uruguayans are direct, unhurried and allergic to boastfulness, and they are quietly firm about not being an appendix to Argentina. Football, mate and the origin of tango are all subjects where that comes up.

911 reaches police, fire and ambulance nationwide. 105 is the ambulance service directly and 104 the fire brigade.

Emergency medical care in Montevideo is good and response times are short. Private emergency services — Uruguay's emergencias móviles, which most residents subscribe to — will attend a visitor and bill them, and are often faster than the public ambulance.

Hospitals: the Hospital Británico and the Asociación Española in Montevideo are the usual choices for foreigners, and Punta del Este has adequate facilities in season. The interior has regional hospitals for routine care and transfers anything serious to the capital.

Pharmacies are widespread, and a rota keeps one open overnight in each area.

On the coast, lifeguards are on duty only during the summer season and only on designated beaches — outside those, there is nobody watching. The Prefectura Nacional Naval handles sea rescue.

Uruguay has no significant natural-disaster risk: no earthquakes, no volcanoes, no hurricanes. Severe storms and coastal flooding are the realistic weather events, and warnings come through INUMET and local radio.