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Punta del Diablo Travel Guide

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Jaunted's Guide To Punta Del Diablo, Uruguay

December 16, 2008 at 4:50 PM | by pbb | 0 Comments

Earlier this year, Jaunted editor Paul Brady spent a few days in Punta del Diablo while on his Uruguay Field Trip. It was so enjoyable, he went back, and today brings us this guide to the boomingest beach town on the South Atlantic.

One thing you'll fast realize when planning a trip to Uruguay is that there doesn't seem to be any information out there about visiting the country. Yes, there have been newspaper articles about Punta del Este, but that's no more Uruguay than South Beach is the United States. In perhaps the biggest info dump available to English speakers, Lonely Planet's guide to South America on a Shoestring gives the entire country 29 pages; Argentina gets 138.

But even if Uruguay remains off the radar, on the other side of the equator, summer is heating up, and tourists are flooding into Punta del Diablo, the beach town I've called home for the past month. One of many fishing-turned-surfing-turned-tourist towns that dot the country's seemingly endless and sandy coastline, it's perhaps the most popular of the moment: An article in Sunday's El Pais reports that as many as 10,000 day-trippers will be visiting each day this high season--on top of the 40,000 that will spend the night.

To help you cut through the crowds, you'll need our guide--and this map to all the must-sees.

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Uruguay Field Trip: PdD's Best Beach Bar

March 27, 2008 at 4:30 PM | by pbb | 1 Comment

If there's any sign that Punta del Diablo is about to become an It spot for backpackers in South America, it's the supremely well-done Diablo Tranquilo Bar, right on the beach. The satellite food and booze spot for the hostel up the road, it's got great service, great design, a great menu and tons of cold beer. If that's not enough, did we mention it's right on the beach?

Though it's only been open for a few months, there really isn't anything bad to report. The place is simply one of the best hostel-affiliated bars we've ever seen--and we've done a lot of boozing at hostels.

Also worth checking out: the panoramic view of PdD from the third floor. Be sure to take your cocktail and that cute surfer chick from across the bar.

Related Stories:
· Uruguay Field Trip coverage [Jaunted]
· Uruguay coverage [Jaunted]

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Uruguay Field Trip: PdD's Best Empanadas

March 27, 2008 at 1:45 PM | by pbb | 0 Comments

In Punta del Diablo, the two biggest questions you'll face are "What should I get in my empanda?" and "Is it too early for a Patricia?" The answers: Fish and cheese and no, no it isn't.

The place to be is the no-name empanada shack just off the beach in front of the Cueva Luna bar. There are four tables, one guy taking orders and two ladies crankin' out super tasty pockets of golden fried goodness. The sweeping ocean view doesn't hurt either.

Our lunch of four empanadas and a big beer was just 190 pesos ($9). To help you find the no-name spot, we've marked it on our Uruguay Travel Map.

Related Stories:
· Uruguay Field Trip coverage [Jaunted]
· Uruguay coverage [Jaunted]

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Uruguay Field Trip: Punta del Diablo

March 26, 2008 at 12:05 PM | by pbb | 1 Comment

After a couple days in vacant-for-Holy-Week Montevideo, we were ready to hit the beach. And while we could've gone the easy route and skipped over to Punta del Este, we decided to get ambitious. So we loaded up the iPod and bought bus tickets for a five-hour haul out to Punta del Diablo, a village not far from the Brazilian border.

It's your standard sleepy fishing town--except people are sleepy because they were at the beachfront disco El Pico until 6 am. Most people visiting rent a cottage--which locals call cabanas--and stay for a week or more, self-catering their trip. We could stay only a couple days, so we shacked up at the Diablo Tranquilo hostel. (It's brand new and nice.)

Besides sitting on the beach and drinking big frosty bottles of Patricia beer, there's not much to do. And that's just fine.

Related Stories:
· Uruguay Field Trip coverage [Jaunted]
· Uruguay coverage [Jaunted]