Coming from Argentina

There are three ways to bring a bike across from Argentina, and they are not equal.

The ferry is the one to take. Buquebús runs the direct crossing to Montevideo on the Francisco in a little over two hours, the shorter hop to Colonia in about an hour and a quarter, and a ferry-plus-bus combination for around fifty dollars (fares move, so confirm when you book); Colonia Express covers the Colonia route too, and has announced a direct Buenos Aires–Montevideo service, though whether it has actually launched isn't confirmed. The bike travels free on the crossings — officially so on Colonia Express, and by every traveller's account on Buquebús.

The bus is the cheaper overland option — Bus de la Carrera, Cauvi, EGA and Pullman General Belgrano all run the roughly eight-hour corridor, crossing at Fray Bentos — but, as on every bus into Uruguay, no company publishes a bike policy, so call ahead and expect to wrap the wheel and pay a small surcharge.

And then there are the bridges — which is where the romance meets the catch. Three road bridges link the two countries: the Puente Libertador General San Martín between Gualeguaychú and Fray Bentos, the Puente General Artigas between Colón and Paysandú, and the Salto Grande dam between Concordia and Salto. On the first two, cycling across is flatly prohibited — CARU, the binational commission that governs the Uruguay River, bans pedestrians and bicycles by name (Resolution 34/2007). Whether the Salto Grande dam allows it is genuinely unclear; no official source settles it either way.

So what do riders do? They hitch a lift across in a truck. In February 2025 the House brothers, riding up from Argentina, reached Gualeguaychú, were told plainly that bikes weren't allowed but that "loads of people" get a lift, waited about two and a half hours, and crossed in the cab of a passing lorry. That is the real shape of "prohibited" here: not impossible, just a wait and a favour.

A flight is the last resort — Aerolíneas Argentinas runs the short Buenos Aires–Montevideo hop, but it's expensive once the bike fee is added.