World Country Guide

Travel - International

Air
Uruguay’s national airline is Primeras Lneas Uruguayas de Navegacin Area (PLUNA) (PU) (website: www.pluna.com.uy), which operates flights to various destinations in Argentina and Brazil.

Approximate flight times
From Montevideo to London is 15 hours 15 minutes (including one hour 30 minutes' stopover in Madrid) and to New York is 14 hours.

International airports
Montevideo (MVD) (Carrasco) is 19km (12 miles) from the city (travel time – 35 minutes). There is an airport bus to the city centre. Taxis are also available. Facilities include a duty free shop, post office, restaurants, car hire and a bank/bureau de change.

Air passes
The Mercosur Airpass: Valid within Argentina, Brazil, Chile (except Easter Island), Paraguay and Uruguay. Participating airlines include Aerolineas Argentinas (AR) (however, flights on this airline cannot be combined with any others, as it has no agreements and its tickets are not accepted by other airlines), Austral (AU), LAN-Chile (LA), Pluna (PU), TAM (PZ), Transbrasil Airlines (TR), VARIG (RG) and VASP (VP). The pass can only be purchased by passengers who live outside South America, who have a return ticket. Only eight flight coupons are allowed with a maximum of four coupons for each country and are valid for seven to a maximum of 30 days. At least two countries must be visited (to a maximum of five) and the flight route cannot be changed. A maximum of two stopovers is allowed per country.
The Visit South America Pass: Must be bought outside South America in country of residence and allows unlimited travel to 36 cities in the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile (except Easter Island), Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. Participating airlines include LanChile, LanPeru and American Airlines. A minimum of three flights must be booked, with no maximum; the maximum stay is 60 days, with no minimum, and prices depend on the amount of flight zones covered. For both air passes, children under 12 years of age are entitled to a 33 per cent discount and infants (under 2 years old) pay only 10 per cent of the adult fare. For further details, contact one of the participating airlines.

Departure tax
US$12 is levied on international departures (US$6 to Buenos Aires), if departing from Carrasco International Airport. All other airports to all other destinations levy US$6.

Sea
Montevideo, the main international port, is served by cargo lines from the USA and Europe. There is a night-ferry service from Buenos Aires to Montevideo (travel time – 10 hours). High-speed ferries (called ‘planes’ due to their speed) also operate between Montevideo and Buenos Aires (travel time – two hours 30 minutes; website: www.buquebus.com). There are also services from Colonia (160km/100 miles west of Montevideo) to Buenos Aires by ferry and a thrice-daily hydrofoil service. A port departure tax may be levied.

Road
Coaches and buses travel regularly between Brazil and Uruguay – these are modern coaches with bar, TV, WC and radio. The travel time between Montevideo and Porto Alegre (Brazil) is 14 hours; to Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) is 59 hours. Buses run by COT depart weekly for Asuncin and Iguaz Falls in Paraguay, while other services, also weekly, link Montevideo with Florianpolis, Rio de Janeiro and Santiago in Brazil and with northern and southern regions of Argentina.