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Uruguay is the smallest Spanish-speaking country on the continent. Look at a map of South America, and you may even miss it. Although lesser known than its glamourous neighbours Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay is probably the safest of the Latin American republics. The country also lays considerable claim to being the birthplace of tango; the most famous tango of all, La Cumparsita was written here in 1916 by Gerardo Matos Rodriguez and some experts claim that tango's most famous crooner, Carlos Gardel, was born in the northern town of Tacuarembó. In the gorgeous town of Colonia del Sacramento (a UNESCO World Heritage site), you will see cobbled streets, ruined forts and gorgeous flowering lapacho, ceibo and jasmine trees, and an elegant central promenade where couples stroll every evening. Founded in 1726, the pretty capital Montevideo has a fine harbour and impressive Art Deco buildings. Contemplative, dusty and with an air of decay, the city is a collage of Madonnas, antique Coca-Cola signs, vinyl records and old Campari ads. A far cry from Montevideo, the accent in the beach resort of Punta del Este is on playful, brash modernity - a glitzy cross between Miami and Ibiza. WHERE TO STAY IN URUGUAY CARMELO FOUR SEASONS RESORT CARMELO Ruta 21, Km 262 (00 598 542 9000; www.fourseasons.com). Uruguay's most upmarket hotel, with enough distractions - spa, 18-hole golf course, tennis courts, horse riding - to fill a week, although most people come here just to lie down and chill. ££ COLONIA DEL SACRAMENTO HOTEL PLAZA MAYOR Calle del Comercio 111 (00 598 52 23193; www.hotelplazamayor.com.uy). Has a green, hummingbird-filled courtyard and friendly staff. £ FRAY BENTOS LA POSADA DEL FRAYLE BENTOS 25 de Mayo 3434 (00 598 56 28541). This colonial-style mansion is in keeping with the low-key atmosphere of the town. £ MONTEVIDEO HOTEL PALACIO Bartolomé Mitre 1364 (00 598 2 916 3612). Plain-looking from the outside, but with great views and lovely old wooden rooms. £ RADISSON MONTEVIDEO VICTORIA PLAZA Plaza Independencia 759 (00 598 2 902 0111; www.radisson.com). The city's classiest corporate pad, adjacent to the Artigas statue and the casino. £ PUNTA DEL ESTE/PUNTA BALLENA CASAPUEBLO Punta Ballena (00 598 42 578611). Sleep here or just have a cocktail, it is worth a visit alone for the weird exterior. £ CONRAD RESORT AND CASINO Parada 4, Playa Mansa (00 598 42 491 111; www.conrad.com.uy). Meeting spot for the free-spending Punta community - all mod cons, all services, big views. £ PALACE HOTEL Avenida Gorlero corner Calle 11 (00 598 99 154 529). Punta's oldest hotel, built in 1889. Near the lighthouse, with a lovely garden that is big and quiet enough to escape the throb of the main drag. £ SOLANA DEL MAR Ruta Interbalnearia Km 118, Punta Ballena (00 598 42 578 888; www.solanadelmar.com.uy). An Art Deco-influenced hotel built by the pioneering Antonio Bonet in 1946. This luxury beach complex opened up Punta; its location and cool stone interior continue to attract discerning visitors. £ MANTRA PUNTA DEL ESTE La Barra (00 598 42 771 000; www.mantraresort.com). What used to be the Cipriani Punta del Este, is now the stylish 88-room and 12-suite Mantra Punta del Este, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean at La Barra, Punta del Este's hippest beach. The architecture smacks of both Miami and Dubai on a smaller scale: it is sleek, modern and flashy. Rooms have marble bathrooms, bed linen by Poggesi, high-speed Internet access and terraces. The hotel offers Eastern treatments in the Balance Spa, organised whale-watching trips and numerous dining options, including modern Mediterranean fare at the Main restaurant. There is also a small casino. ££ HOTEL FASANO LAS PIEDRAS La Barra (00 598 42 670000; www.laspiedrasvillasfasano.com). Las Piedras is just 15 minutes' drive from glitzy beach resort Punta del Este, on 480 hectares of pastures, dells and forest glades. Award-winning Brazilian architect Isay Weinfeld has emphasised the landscape's subtle folds, carving an Italian restaurant from a granite-ringed grotto, turning a spring-fed rock pool into the hotel's swimming pool, and placing an informal, all-day restaurant in a century-old farmhouse, where sitting rooms are stuffed with well-chosen antiques and industrial oddments. It's debatable whether the 20 bunker-style cabins scattered across a craggy hillside (12 more are planned) enhance the landscape, but inside, clean, angular lines pay homage to 1950s Brazilian design; each spacious room is scattered with jute sofas and sheepskin rugs and finished in a farmland patina of wood, wool and stone. Accustomed to the caprices of celebrities, models and Fasano's fashionable friends, the untiring, multilingual staff happily shuttle guests to the beach, fix up a hamper for a picnic in the woods, or fire up the jet skis to use on a private stretch of river. At dusk, guests sip cocktails at the poolside bar and watch the sun set. WHAT TO SEE IN URUGUAY IN COLONIA DEL SACRAMENTO On the eastern bank of the Rio de la Plata, in the town of Colonia del Sacramento, you get a vivid, postcard-pretty image of colonial Uruguay. This small town of cobbles, ruined forts and gorgeous flowering lapacho, ceibo and jasmine trees has rightly been made a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its old posadas (inns) are built around shady patios and lush gardens, and the promenade is an elegant setting for the strolling couples who turn out every evening. The Portuguese were ousted from Colonia, and the Spanish from the rest of the country, during Uruguay's fight for independence in 1825-1828. IN MONTEVIDEO A collage of Madonnas, antique Coca-Cola signs, vinyl records and old Campari ads, dusty, contemplative Montevideo is the country's capital. Its harbour made it a natural site for colonial development and the city was founded in 1726 to counter the Portuguese presence in Colonia. It became a major capital, as its grand railway terminus and impressive Art Deco office blocks testify. If the capital has sucked in most of the Uruguayan population, it has not created the city clickers of most megalopolises, but rather, an earnest, egalitarian national character: in dingy, drinking holes like the bars in the Mercado del Puerto, you will see bankers chatting to farmers. Street parades are a common occurrence even when it is not carnival, and the preferred music is candombe, a legacy of the slaves who were shipped here from West Africa to work as farm labourers and domestics.

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