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|currency = Uruguayan peso (UYU$)|hitch = <rating country='uy' />

More than half of Uruguay's population is concentrated in the capital of [[Montevideo]], meaning a very low population density in the country's interior. In the Uruguayan countryside you will doubtlessly encounter some of the most laid back, friendly folks you could imagine. Humble, generous and curious about anyone passing through, it is the people rather than the geography that make travel memorable in this overlooked corner of the continent. A stable, democratic country with low levels of corruption, high levels of education, and the noticeable absence of the class division, Uruguay is sometimes called the Switzerland of South America. The tranquility of the countryside and the openness of the people will leave an impression on any traveler. Uruguay is a relatively small country, so traveling from the top Northern city to [[Montevideo]] would not take much time. From [[Rivera]] (a border town with [[Brazil]]) to Montevideo it is only about 520 km. Even the [http://www.elpais.com.uy/informacion/hombre-hacia-dedo-nadie-paraba.html president is picking up hitchhikers] in this country (January 2015).

Regarding hitchhiking and vagabonding, Uruguay's a pretty easy place to hang out. Many Uruguayan locals have hitchhiked through their country, and have had great experiences and good rides. Probably about 1 in 4 cars will give you a lift (outside of Montevideo). There are many stretches of desolate (but pretty) highway where you'll be lucky to see 4 cars pass in an hour. Expect long waits. Next to that, in the countryside much traffic just goes to the next farm or ranch, thus local traffic is prevalent and short rides more likely than somebody travelling longer distances. The coast, from [[Chuy]] to [[Colonia del Sacramento]], is more trafficked and therefore an easier place to get a lift. Along the way Interbalnearia some cool towns, sand dunes, and even sea lions can be seen.

Montevideo is the only city in the country where it's not recommended to sleep on the street, in the rest of the country you can sleep rough without a care. In the countryside, when camping out or walking through fields, be aware of (toxic) snakes. Football stadiums are recommended. Another option in the countryside is to do a visit to the local police office. They most likely might be bored and in many cases invite you for dinner and to sleep in the station, or to put your tent nearby.

== Food Personal Experience ==Don't forget to try ''alfajores''There is very few traffic on the Uruguayan highways, a cookie-ish delicacyhence the fact that the entire country only has 3.5 million inhabitants. And to maximize your experience, you'll need to drink We could not hitch a lot of mate. For Uruguayanssingle ride on that day, and so we called it is practically a religionnight after it started getting dark. Everyone carries a thermos The next day we walked and hitched, and walked and a mate gourd pretty much everywhere they gohitched... ''Me convidas con un mate?'' is until a good truck picked us up, and took us all the way to start a conversation and make a new friendMontevideo. Which was some 490 kilometers from where we were standing. Hitchhiking in Uruguay is definitely better then Argentina. '' -- (Tony Tung)

Like in [[Argentina]], '''Uruguay''' is also known for their traditional barbecues called ''asado''Traffic can be very low at times, as described above. Especially Hitchhiking around the Ciudad de la Costa east of (next to) Montevideo seems to be very difficult, several times failed in towns like [[Rivera]] or [[Tacuarembó]], barbecues starts from 6 pm hitchhiking between Carrasco airport and meanwhile everybody drinksAtlantida. All other roads are fine, sings and dances until just be aware that anywhere outside of the meat is gonecities traffic gets rare fastly, which will be already 10 pmmostly locals driving to the next estancia. Expect When waiting to get a straight ride to eat huge amounts of meata next, bigger city, e.g. between Melo and Tacuarembo, one can wait ages. Hopping between estancias works fine, especially but even seemingly short-distance trips in townsthe countryside can take their time. One of their favorites Notable, though, is probably the sausage that has cheese inside [[night hitchhiking]] works pretty awesome so far, from Paysandu to Montevideo it was no problem at all, and also from Rocha to Maldonado once ittook me less than a couple of minutes to score a ride (given that traffic exists at that time of day). A delicious treat ! Again, like in Argentina--[[User:Platschi|Platschi]] ([[User talk:Platschi|talk]]) 22:34, the ''dulce de leche'' is very widely known.21 December 2013 (CET)

== Personal Experience ==''There Here is very few traffic on the Uruguayan highways, hence the fact that the entire country only has 3.5 million inhabitants. We could not hitch a single ride on that day, and so we called it a night after it started getting dark. The next day we walked and hitched, and walked and hitched...until a truck picked us up, and took us all the way to Montevideo. Which was some 490 kilometers from where we were standing. Hitchhiking short analyze of hitchhiking in Uruguay is definitely better then Argentina.'' from [[User:Korn|Korn]] on [https://warmroads.de/en/hitchhiking-in- (Tony Tung)8-uruguay/ - warmroads].