The lighthouse
A spiral stair.
Marcelo Campi from Costa de Oro, Uruguay — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Pablo Torrado — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lou1969 — CC0 · Emmasilva29 — CC BY-SA 3.0
A tall white lighthouse on a rocky point in La Paloma, the largest town on the Rocha coast, first lit in 1874 and still guiding ships along a coast where many have been wrecked over the centuries. Visitors climb its long spiral stair to the top balcony at permitted times, revealing the town's streets among pines, beaches on both sides, the rocks and the open ocean. Around the lighthouse are green space and rocks where people sit at sunset. La Paloma is a quiet town with a string of beaches, some calm and some with surf, and pine woods, a good base for Cabo Polonio and Laguna de Rocha. Whales may be seen from the coast between July and November. Sunset is the best time at the lighthouse. The wind is strong at the top. The Rocha coast is wild and quiet most of the year and busy in January; the ocean is cold with strong waves, so swim only at guarded spots.
A spiral stair.
On both sides.
July to November.
Cabo Santa María, La Paloma town
Yes, it is about 45 minutes from the Cabo Polonio gate and has more hotels and restaurants.