09/02/2021 17:02
Clarín.com
Travels
Updated 09/02/2021 17:07
As announced, this Wednesday, September 1, Uruguay began to gradually reopen its borders to foreigners, with the aim of having a
summer that allows
its economy to
recover
.
This first stage, which will be used as a test, enables foreigners
who are property owners
to enter the country
.
Taking into account that many Argentines have properties in the neighboring country, especially on the Uruguayan coast, this opening was eagerly awaited in our country.
To enter, in this first phase, people must be
fully vaccinated
and have a certificate that proves it.
In addition, present a
negative
Covid
test
(carried out up to 72 hours before admission) and prove their status as owners.
The Market of the Port in Montevideo.
Photo Enrique Pérez / Ministry of Tourism of Uruguay
It is expected that, with good results in this first stage and a controlled epidemiological situation, on
November 1
the borders will be opened
to all foreigners
, including those traveling for tourism.
So far so good, except for one issue that always worries on trips abroad:
how much things cost
.
Is that according to a recent publication of the newspaper El País of Uruguay, Argentines who can travel will find "an
extra expensive
Uruguay
."
And they explain: "The problem is that beyond the good sanitary conditions that Uruguay offers today (70% of the population vaccinated with two doses),
the exchange rate situation is very unfavorable
for the main market for the arrival of tourists: Argentina" .
The panel with the letters of "Montevideo" in the historic Fortaleza del Cerro.
Photo EFE / Federico Anfitti
The passages
In addition to the possibility of crossing the Río de la Plata with Buquebús, this week Aerolineas Argentinas announced that it was resuming operations in Montevideo and Punta del Este.
As of September 14, on Tuesdays and Fridays, the company will offer flights to and from
Montevideo
(it leaves Buenos Aires at 8.45am and returns at 10.30am).
Tickets can now be purchased on the company's website.
To get an idea of prices, departing on September 14 and returning on September 17 or 21, the roundtrip ticket
It costs
from $ 23,429
.
On the other hand, from September 16 there will also be flights to
Punta del Este
, Thursdays and Sundays.
In this case, tickets for September departing on the 16th and returning on the 19th or 23rd, for example, are obtained
from $ 28,633 round trip.
La Mansa, one of the beaches of Punta del Este.
Photo Leonardo Correa - Enrique Pérez Mintur
For those who are thinking of moving
by boat
, a ticket to Montevideo for next week, with a departure on September 8 and return on September 10, costs from
$ 36,865 round trip
with Buquebus.
In October, from
$ 28,769
.
If you travel to Montevideo, also in October, tickets start at $ 34,609 and include a direct ship to the Uruguayan capital and then a bus to Punta del Este.
For those who drive, the focus will be on fuel.
Since September,
Super
95
gasoline has
cost 70.41 Uruguayan pesos per liter (
US $ 1.65
);
Premium 97 gasoline, $ 72.34 (US $ 1.70) and diesel, $ 49.94 (US $ 1.17).
A goat on the plate and a liter of milk
Regarding prices in Uruguayan land, let's start from the basis that
a dollar is worth 42.56 Uruguayan pesos
.
"You do not need physical dollars to travel, and we all know that you do not have to travel to Uruguay with Argentine pesos", is the phrase that Ricardo Terán starts with, who worked until the pandemic as a press officer in Argentina of Uruguay Natural .
Obviously, you can travel with the dollars you have saved, but it is best to use
a credit or debit card
, with which you can pay "even a soda on the beach," says Terán.
And he explains: “All expenses can be paid with a credit or debit card, which is paid at the value of
the tourist or solidarity dollar
, about 170 Argentine pesos per dollar.
To this must be added the VAT refund, a measure that was taken historically in Uruguay - it will be necessary to see if they will implement it again this season - plus the promotions that the banks may have. "
Terán also recalls that "that tourist dollar has a
35% perception
of the PAIS tax, which
can be recovered
by making the annual tax deductions for Profits and Personal Assets."
With these considerations, in a supermarket like Ta-Ta in Maldonado, the
one-liter
Parmalat
whole milk sachet
costs 36 Uruguayan pesos ($ 0.82, which if we calculate it on the basis of the tourist dollar, would be almost
140
Argentine
pesos
) , while
Conaprole
long-life skim milk
costs 56 Uruguayan pesos (US $ 1.31; that is,
222
Argentine
pesos
).
Other times, Gorlero Street in Punta del Este.
Photo Guillermo Rodriguez Adami
At the Disco supermarket in Punta del Este, a 2.25-liter Salus still mineral water costs 63 Uruguayan pesos (US $ 1.48);
a 3-liter Coca Cola, 166 Uruguayan pesos (US $ 3.90);
the lactal bread x 350 grams, $ 95 (US $ 2.23);
common minced meat, $ 319 per kilo (US $ 750);
and 900 ml sunflower oil, $ 98 (US $ 2.30).
A classic in the neighboring country is to eat, at some point, a
goat
.
And La Passiva is perhaps the most traditional place to order it.
There, a
Canadian goat on bread with fries
costs $ 525 (US $ 12.33, which according to the tourist dollar would be
about 2,100 Argentine pesos
), while a Canadian goat on the plate costs $ 645 (US $ 15, fifteen).
For a pizza in Punta del Este, in Tomato and Cheese, you have to calculate about $ 690 Uruguayans (US $ 16.21, or 2,755 Argentine pesos).
And the McDonald's combo of the day - the one that is requested by the app and is the offer of the day - costs 239 Uruguayan pesos, about US $ 5.61.
One coffee, two dollars;
one beer, four.
In Montevideo, in one of the best grills, La Otra, a chorizo costs 190 Uruguayan pesos, while meats cost between 620 and 680 (US $ 14.56 to US $ 16), depending on whether it is roasted, empty, entraña or steak. tenderloin.
Summer tourism
It has already been mentioned that if this first phase in which the entry of vaccinated owners and with tests is allowed is successful and infections do not grow, on
November 1
the borders would be opened to all foreigners, with a view to the
summer season
.
Taking into account the exchange difference, going with most of the expenses resolved is a very good option.
In the DeTurista.com agency, for example, they offer
stays at the all-inclusive
Tío Tom complex in Punta del Este, on the beach.
One week (7 nights) with accommodation and all meals in Family Plan, costs 63,000 Argentine pesos per person in December, 86,500 in January and 75,905 (January 29 to 5) and 79,900 the rest of February.
"The opening of the borders of Uruguay is great news for the tourism industry because it is always in the ranking of the destinations preferred by Argentines. This is an
engine for the recovery
of the sector", says Paula Cristi, general manager of Despegar travel agency for Argentina and Uruguay.
Cristi offers some
accommodation prices for
reference.
In Cologne, 5 nights accommodation in December costs from $ 26,000 for two.
In Punta del Este, accommodation with private beach area and outdoor pool, 5 nights in December from $ 57,000 for two.
And in Montevideo, accommodation in the Barrio de Las Artes overlooking the river and the city and indoor pool, 5 nights in December, from $ 32,000.
Look also
An “expensive” Uruguay reopens its borders to foreigners after a year and a half of closure
Aerolineas Argentinas already plans flights to Uruguay from mid-September