This was the oldest settlement in Uruguay and one of the oldest cities in South America. The city was founded as a fort on the coast in the 1690s by the Portuguese.  Much of the old buildings, fortress walls and stone streets are still in place along the river. With such an old history, Colonia is the only UNESCO World Heritage Site within Uruguay. The day I visited, they were celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the UNESCO designation.

This small city of 10,000 people is used by the people of Buenos Aires as a vacation spot to decompress from their hectic urban life. The ferry from Buenos Aires comes directly into Colonia after a one-hour voyage across the River Plata. The cost is about $ 30 US each way.

There wasn’t a whole lot to do in this small city other than walk around the old city and visit a series of small museums. Many of the museums were located in the original historic stone buildings. There were a lot of upscale restaurants which cater to the tourist crowd.

Old fortress walls of Colonia

I found a large, nearly-deserted beach located along the newer part of Colonia which faced the river. It took about 15 minutes to walk there from the center of the old city. It was a nice walk in the warm sun.

Fortress walls and cannon

I stayed for two days before hopping the ferry back to Buenos Aires and then on to Rosario, Argentina.