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Barrio Historico

Barrio Historico

Barrio Historico
4.5
About
This historic section of town takes you back to the 17th and 18th centuries, with an array of interesting museums, an historic lighthouse and Uruguay’s oldest church.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles8,642 reviews
Excellent
5,802
Very good
2,460
Average
332
Poor
34
Terrible
15

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JohnP72
London, UK544 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Solo
The old town with cobbled streets and nice colonial architecture is a UNISCO world heritage site.
I visited by taking the ferry from Buenos Aires which was easy to do as a day trip by booking the ferry via the “Sea cat” website, but actually the ticket was for a ferry on the “Buque bus service” and strangely for a cheaper price than booking direct. But everything ran smoothly. The old town is a left turn from the ferry port and a 10 minute walk.
The old town itself is very small and can be walked in a couple of hours. There are lots of places for lunch which all take credit cards (although not as cheap as BA), so unless staying in Uruguay there’s no need to change cash.
There’s a lighthouse you can climb and the remains of an old fort. It was nice that the place wasn’t overcrowded with tourists. I took the lunchtime ferry (12.15) and the 17.01 return and felt that was adequate time. I didn’t feel there was enough to see for a full day. It was a nice enough day trip but not a must see, so if you are short on time in Buenos Aires, I’d pass. And don’t forget your passport!
Written 10 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

andream0402
Melbourne, Australia4,078 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2023 • Couples
A nice place to visit, have a walk around and enjoy the peace. There are a few little museums you can visit. Buy a ticket for 150 pesos at the government museum and the ticket will get you into all of them. They’re very small, no English anywhere so won’t take you long if you can’t read Spanish. A good way to pass some time. A very pretty and peaceful area with small shops , cafes and bars. A UNESCO site.
Written 13 May 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jasmine D
California428 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022
If you're into UNESCO World Heritage Sites, this historic old town is not to be missed. We took the ferry across from Buenos Aires. The Barrio Historico is only a few blocks walking distance from the ferry and bus terminals. If you arrive with luggage and need a place to store it for a few hours while you explore Colonia, the Viaggio rental car shop across from the ferry terminal will store luggage for a small fee. As of December 2022, luggage storage is not available at the bus terminal.

Spend a few hours ambling through the old cobblestone streets, appreciating the old buildings with Spanish and Portuguese architectural influences, and stop into the myriad of cafes and restaurants for refreshments. The ice cream at the shop across from the old city gate is divine!
Written 3 January 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Robert H
30 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Couples
Spent a few days in Colonia del Sacramento in a nice B&B in the historic area. Great to walk around and see the architecture, shops, restaurants and people as there are lots of locals living and working there.
The sunsets are colorful as you watch the sun set over Argentina across the Rio de La Plata.
Written 11 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

IN_Travelers47906
West Lafayette, IN4,717 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
Nice If in the Area. Don’t Make a Special Trip

If you are in Buenos Aires and considering taking a ferry to Colonia so that you can get the Uruguay stamp in your passport, don’t. It isn’t worth the hassle unless you have seen EVERYTHING worth seeing in Buenos Aires itself.

Don’t get me wrong, Old Town and the adjacent shopping district are not a bad way to spend a ½ day, if they were a local attraction. Not a bad stop if along the route of a driving tour, but certainly nothing worthy of the hassle and inconvenience that can be associated with a ferry ride there.

The Old Town resembles a deserted set for old western movies. The lighthouse is nice, but pales if you’ve visited other lighthouses. The associated shopping district is perhaps 5 blocks long and probably won’t take most shoppers more than 2 hours to navigate. There are a couple of nice ice cream shoppes and restaurants are so-so. It was not a displeasing place, but after a couple of hours, we asked ourselves “Why did we bother?” “Why did we lose a day in Buenos Aires for this?”
Written 14 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sm05060
4,471 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019
We took a day tour here from our cruise ship, a very busy area for tourists. This beautiful, historic town is a UNESCO world heritage site. A wonderful place to walk around and look at all the old architecture. We were happy that we were there on a tour as our guide was able to point out things and tell us the history of the town and buildings. A lovely place to spend the day.
Written 13 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

1962globetrotter
Lutterworth, UK326 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Couples
We went with a guide and I'd advise this as it largely looks like a bunch of old (and some run down) buildings unless it's historical significance is explained. When you hear 'UNESCO world heritage site's you imagine it to be amazing, but don't build your hopes up as a lot of the area has been rather left to go to rack and ruin rather than being carefully restored. An interesting place to visit nonetheless but you won't need more than a few hours or a one night stopover
Written 25 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Samadhi Muller
Sao Jose Do Rio Preto, SP292 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2023 • Family
The historic neighborhood of Colônia Del Sacramento is very cool, you can do it in just over 1 hour and has great restaurants and bars, if you can afford it, it's worth sleeping for a night or two. We did a round trip from Montevideo, and you can come on the Buenos Aires Ferry, it takes around 1:15. It's very worth it.
Google
Written 10 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Carolina P
Juiz de Fora, MG1,299 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2024 • Family
Cologne and its beautiful beautiful and instagramavel historical center won my heart. I only went from Buenos Aires but the city asks you to stay at least 3 days to enjoy all that tranquility and beauty. The houses are super well preserved and one is more beautiful than the other. The desire is to stay there just admiring their architecture. Unfortunately we went on a day when there was no sun, but I imagine how beautiful the sunset must be. I want to come back anyway. Oh not to mention the various and various restaurants one more beautiful than the other, which was even difficult to choose which to stop. There are few shops in this Historic Center but some are pretty. And they are not just to sell souvenirs no, there are some that sell some beautiful wall dishes, we buy a logical 🤣🤣🤣.
And we found the city price much cheaper than Buenos Aires.
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Written 27 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

trevecov
Santiago, Chile126 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2023 • Friends
I have always really liked the historic neighborhood of Colonia de Sacramento. It had not been very clean, very well maintained and comfortable to move around in for years. The only thing I don't like is that the cars park inside, which would be nicer if they parked in the points located for this purpose and not on the historic streets.
Google
Written 23 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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BARRIO HISTORICO (2024) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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