Exploring History in the Beautiful Settings of Colonia, Uruguay

There are a few places in the world that have an intriguing history attached to them and a few that have a stunning scenic beauty and even fewer that have both of them. The Western Uruguay’s historical town of Colonia del Sacramento is one of those places that have not only a long history with historical monuments but also located on a splendid point overlooking the Rio de la Plata. This 17^th century town was first built by the Portuguese as a smuggling base for their products on the route to Buenos Aires and was captured by the Spanish in the late 18^th century, and has the architecture that resembles that of both of these European neighbors.

The Colonia has been the main attraction of Uruguay for the last one century and is still flocked with the tourists for the most part of the year. As for reaching Colonia, you first have to take a cheap flight to Montevideo the capital of Uruguay and then make the rest of the journey to Colonia by road. If you are already visiting Argentina then you can take the boat from the Buenos Aires for Colonia.

As it is the premier tourist spot of the country there are quite a lot of hotels that cater to the tourists of all tastes and budgets but the price depends upon the season you arrive in the area, the months of May leading to August are considered as the high season for traveling to Colonia and the prices of the hotels during these months in usually higher than usual.

The main attraction is the historical center of the town with its nine different museums that provide a deep insight in to the history of the town. Colonia is part of the UNESCO world heritage sites because of the colonial architecture of the town that has remained mainly intact even after hundreds of years. These nine small museums can be visited by paying a single fee at the town center and are a must visit place during your stay at the town. There is a 20^th century entertainment ring built just outside the town, it use to have a working bull fighting ring with a capacity of 10,000 viewers, a casino and theatre. Bull fighting is illegal in Uruguay so most of the buildings in the ring lay in ruins but a tour of them can surely provide you with an awesome historical experience of early 20^th century entertainment scene.

For the best view of the town head to the old light house which provides a bird view of the colonial architecture of the town. The restaurants in the city center serve some of the best dishes of South America along with some serving international cuisine. The fresh ice cream in the stalls of the city center is quite famous with the tourists. In the last decade Colonia has made a name for itself as the place with the best nightlife scene in the country and its pubs and clubs are worth visiting.