Cabo Polonio Uruguay
Cabo Polonio – a magic pearl in the Atlantic Ocean
Despite its growing popularity, Cabo Polonio still has some sort of secret and hidden character, which invites the visitor to discover it. One of the most fascinating beaches of Uruguay, Cabo Polonio is still for many a place to go when they need to rest and be apart from the rest of the world.
Departing from the city of Montevideo, you have to travel a bit over 264 kilometers towards the east, following route #10 by car or by bus, until you arrive to the entrance of Cabo Polonio, in the department of Rocha.
Located in a peninsula on the Atlantic Ocean, some 10 kilometers of woods and sand dunes separate the small town of Cabo Polonio from route #10. From the entrance, those who are enjoying their vacations in Uruguay can walk to the town or hire transportation in an appropriate 4×4 vehicle or on horse drawn carriages, which will guide them to their destination.
Another way to access Cabo Polonio is from Valizas, a nearby beach resort, from where you can rent horses or walk some 7 kilometers on the beach, following the coast towards the south until you get to Cabo Polonio.
The Cabo Polonio peninsula got its name from Joseph Polloni, a captain of a merchant ship from Spain that was wrecked there in the year 1753, while on its way to the city of Buenos Aires. Tragedies kept occurring in the following years until in 1881 the lighthouse of Cabo Polonio was inaugurated.
With its light reaching a distance of almost 34 kilometers and sparkles of lights which are activated every 12 seconds, the lighthouse is one of the few places in the town that has electric energy, and one of the favorites for those doing tourism in Uruguay – due to the beautiful view of the town and the surrounding coasts that you have from up there – as well as the inspiration for the album and the song “12 seconds of darkness” of the Uruguayan musician Jorge Drexler, who got the Oscar some years ago for the soundtrack of the movie “Motorcycle Diaries”.
Part of the charm of Cabo Polonio is derived, actually, from the fact that it doesn’t have public lighting, and only a few houses have its own electrical generator for lighting. In all other cases, candle lighting or batteries are employed.
The stable year round population is composed of just a few handcrafts people, fishermen and the personnel of the lighthouse. Nevertheless, from January to March, the main touristic season, a great variety of inns, restaurants and houses for rent remain open.
Many like to visit Cabo Polonio as a day trip, accessing it in the 4×4 vehicles or by walking on the beach, to then spend the day at Cabo Polonio’s beaches, walking on the small main street buying handcrafts or to-go food, and then going back to where they are staying at sunset time. Nevertheless, and due to the lack of electricity, the magic of Cabo Polonio lays on the intensity with which you can see the Milky Way in the night sky, which is one of the best of the beaches in Uruguay.
When it comes to accommodation, Cabo Polonio has the place of your dreams, a small inn called Posada de los Crovinos, where each room seems to have been taken from a fairy tale and you can choose, at shower time, to use a regular traditional bathroom in the house, or to go for the outdoor bathroom, where you will bathe surrounded by butterflies and using water naturally heated by the sun during the day.
When it is time for a special meal, you should never miss a visit to Lo de Joselo, a restaurant and pub surrounded by climbing plants, where you can eat delicious cheese fondues and sip good wine. And when it comes to nightlife, the canteens offer a very pleasant environment, an alternative place in which you can relax, dance or chat with friends, while a quick consultation with locals results in detailed info on where you can see musicians playing live, especially those who choose Cabo Polonio for their vacations in Uruguay every year, like Martín Buscaglia or Eli-u Pena.
Do not forget to pack some warm clothes, since the nights are very cold in this oceanic peninsula, and the ocean in the beach of La Calavera –the skull- but specially in the beach of the South can be very cold, which is also very pleasant in the very frequent sunny and warm days of summer in Uruguay.
For further travel news of other tourist destinations, check our Travel Blog.
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