Buenos Aires, Argentina to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay by Ferry

Colonia del Sacramento is one of the prettiest cities in Uruguay. Located only a short ferry ride across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires in Argentina, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is a very popular day trip from the Argentine capital. In this short guide, we’ll provide you with all the necessary details if you’re thinking about travelling from Buenos Aires to Colonia by ferry. We’ve included information on the different ferry companies you can choose from, as well as all the embarkation procedures and other useful tips, such as where to exchange currency.

Whilst Uruguay wasn’t initially on our radar when we planned our Argentina itinerary, both our Argentine and Uruguayan friends convinced us that we had to visit at least Colonia. Of course, we never need too much persuasion when it comes to seeing new places, so before we knew it we were planning a 10-day trip to Uruguay.

If you’d like to see what we got up to in the country, make sure to watch our dedicated Uruguay video, which we shared on our YouTube channel Kitti and Jon. In addition, you can also watch our Buenos Aires video and Argentina playlist for more visual inspiration.

Buenos Aires to Colonia Ferry Companies

The two main ferry companies that provide easy and quick transport between Buenos Aires and Colonia are Buquebus and Colonia Express.

Both companies will get you across the Rio de la Plata in about 1 hour 15 minutes. In Buenos Aires, there is a separate Colonia Express Terminal and Buquebus Terminal, both within the Puerto Madero neighbourhood, an upscale area of Buenos Aires. There’s only one joint terminal in Colonia del Sacramento where the ferries depart from.

No matter which company you book your ticket with, you’ll need to have your passport details ready. It’s also important that all your personal details are correct. After all, you’re travelling to a different country – even if it’s only for a day – and you have to treat it as you would when you purchase a flight ticket.

So, after all those similarities, let’s quickly discuss the few minor differences between Colonia Express and Buquebus.

How to Get to the Ferry Terminal in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires International Airport to Terminal Madero Bus Station

We initially flew from Bogota, Colombia to Buenos Aires in Argentina, but travelled directly to Colonia in Uruguay on the same day. If you’re also heading straight to Colonia, then after landing at the International Airport in Buenos Aires, book a bus ticket ticket to Terminal Madero with the Tienda Leon bus company. Just walk out of the arrivals terminal and the bus station will be about 200 metres from it, close to the main car parking area. The journey takes about 40-45 minutes depending on traffic.

From Terminal Madero in Buenos Aires, you can just walk over to either Terminal Buquebus or Terminal Colonia Express. Both of them are between a 5 to 10 minutes’ walk from there.

Buenos Aires Neighbourhoods to Ferry Terminal

Depending on where you’re staying in Buenos Aires, you can reach the Ferry Terminals by either a local bus or metro if you want to use public transport. Alternatively, you can also just get an Uber or a taxi. Lastly, if you’re staying relatively close to the ferry terminals, then consider walking.

Read our dedicated post if you want to learn more about how to get around Buenos Aires. We provide many useful details, including all about the SUBE card, which you can use in every major city in Argentina, not just the capital.

We also suggest using Google Maps to plan the best way to get to the ferry terminal.

Check-in and Immigration Process at the Ferry Terminal

Since you’re traveling to a different country, at the ferry terminal you’ll have to go through a similar check-in and immigration process than you would at any airport or land border crossing.

You should arrive to the terminal about 2 hours before departure to check-in. We were at the Buquebus Terminal earlier than we needed to be, but luckily they had seating areas, a small café and toilets. Once check-in was open, we dropped our big luggage’s off and went through immigration.

On the Argentine side they took our photos and fingerprints, then we went to the Uruguayan side to get our entry stamp. Whilst they didn’t ask us for proof of leaving Uruguay, it’s probably good to have your return ticket handy just in case. Getting our entry stamps to Uruguay was great because it meant that we could just get off the ferry in Colonia without going through immigration there as well.

After immigration, we had to wait in a lounge area, which had a few eateries and toilets. Boarding started about an hour before the ferry departed.

On the way back, you’ll have to do everything in reverse.

The Ferry Ride from Buenos Aires to Colonia

The Buquebus ferry had many comfortable seats, toilets and even a duty free shop. The boat felt spacious even though there were many people on it.

The ride itself was smooth and took a little over an hour. It was easy to kill time while looking through the duty free shop and taking a little nap after our long journey!

Once we arrived in Colonia, we collected our bags, walked through the arrivals terminal, and headed straight to our nearby apartment in the centre of Colonia del Sacramento.

Top Tip. On the way back, we only had time to exchange our remaining Uruguayan pesos to Argentine pesos at the Colonia Terminal. As you would expect, we got a very bad rate, so we don’t recommend changing a lot of money here. If you want to take money out of an ATM in Uruguay, try to use RedBROU bank, as they seemed to have the lowest transaction fee. Plus, we could get some crisp $100 USD notes here too, which we could then exchange to Argentine pesos in Argentina. We wrote a separate guide on navigating money in Argentina, so give it a read before your trip.

Final Thoughts on Taking the Ferry from Buenos Aires to Colonia

Taking the ferry from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento was very easy and straightforward. We were happy that we went with Buquebus, although Colonia Express would’ve gotten us to our destination too. Overall, we enjoyed our experience and would highly recommend visiting Colonia from Buenos Aires, even if you only have a day to spare. Don’t forget to read our complete guide to Colonia, the most beautiful city in Uruguay, next.