Plan on about 12 h 4 min of driving for the 523-mile (841 km) trip from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado, Uruguay, before any stops. You cross from Brazil into Uruguay at about mile 390.
- Level 4: Do Not Travel in Brazil: informal housing developments (favelas, vilas, comunidades or conglomerados).
Full advisory: Brazil, Uruguay. Advisory issued: Brazil August 31, 2026; Uruguay July 28, 2026; checked October 10, 2026.
On the roads, the State Department says:
- Brazil: “Road maintenance is inadequate in many areas.”
- Uruguay: “Several of the main highways are particularly accident-ridden.”
| Distance | 523 mi (841 km) |
|---|---|
| Driving time, no stops | 12 h 4 min |
| Main roads, in order | BR-470 → ERS-446 → ERS-122 → ERS-240 → BR-116 → BR-392 → BR-471 |
| Border crossing | about mile 390, Brazil → Uruguay |
| Regions on the route | Rio Grande do Sul, Rocha, Maldonado |
| Fuel estimate (car at 25 mpg) | about 20.9 gal; actual use varies by vehicle and traffic |
| Stops listed below | 8 |
Getting across the Brazil–Uruguay border
The route crosses at about mile 390, from Rio Grande do Sul into Rocha. Plan on two checks on each side: immigration for your passport and customs for the car.
| Entering Uruguay (U.S. citizens) | No visa needed for visits of 90 days or less. Passport: must be valid for 6 months beyond your arrival date. |
|---|---|
| Driving in Uruguay | You can drive on your U.S. license. |
| Entering Brazil (U.S. citizens) | Visa required: apply and get approved before you travel; travelers without visas can't enter. Passport: must be valid for one month at entry, with a blank page for each stamp. |
| Driving in Brazil | If you'll stay more than 180 days and drive, carry an Inter-American Driving Permit with your U.S. license. |
| Rental car | Cross only if the rental company authorizes it in writing and gives you the papers for the border; ask before you book. |
Sources: U.S. State Department, Uruguay (updated August 13, 2026); U.S. State Department, Brazil (updated August 06, 2026). Checked October 10, 2026; rules change, so confirm before you go.
Driving Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado: the shape of the trip
BR-471 (137 mi) and BR-116 (113 mi) carry about 48% of the 523 miles. The first 390 miles are in Brazil; the last 133 are in Uruguay. It runs through 3 regions: Rio Grande do Sul, Rocha, Maldonado. Of the 8 stops listed below, 2 are within a mile of the road.
Road-by-road breakdown: Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado
| Road | Route miles (from–to) | Length, mi | Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| local roads | 0–1 | 1 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| BR-470 | 1–10 | 9 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| ERS-446 | 10–19 | 9 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| ERS-122 | 19–43 | 24 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| ERS-240 | 43–52 | 9 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| BR-116 | 52–165 | 113 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| local roads | 165–225 | 60 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| connecting roads | 225–227 | 2 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| BR-392 | 227–253 | 26 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| BR-471 | 253–390 | 137 | Rio Grande do Sul |
| local roads | 390–512 | 122 | Rocha, Maldonado |
| connecting roads | 512–515 | 3 | Maldonado |
| local roads | 515–523 | 8 | Maldonado |
- Mile 390 of this route: Rio Grande do Sul → Rocha (international border)
- Mile 490 of this route: Rocha → Maldonado (region line)
Places worth a stop between Bento Gonçalves and Maldonado
- Right off the route (under 1 mile): Parque Histórico General Bento Gonçalves (mile 166), Santa Teresa National Park (mile 413)
- Nature and outdoors: Salto Ventoso (mile 17), Santa Teresa National Park (mile 413), Laguna José Ignacio (mile 501)
- Museums and history: Casa da Feitoria Velha - Atual Museu do Imigrante (mile 53), Museu de Comunicação Social Hipólito José da Costa (mile 73), Catedral da Santíssima Trindade em Porto Alegre (mile 73), Parque Histórico General Bento Gonçalves (mile 166), Catedral São Francisco de Paula (mile 231)
Salto Ventoso
Salto Ventoso is a waterfall in Farroupilha, Brazil, and a tourist attraction of regional importance.
Casa da Feitoria Velha - Atual Museu do Imigrante
The Casa da Feitoria in São Leopoldo, in the Rio dos Sinos valley, housed a royal hemp-linen farm from 1788 until March 1824 and is also known as the Casa do Imigrante.
Museu de Comunicação Social Hipólito José da Costa
Run by the Rio Grande do Sul state culture department, the Museu da Comunicação Hipólito José da Costa is a museum on Rua dos Andradas in Porto Alegre.
Catedral da Santíssima Trindade em Porto Alegre
On Rua dos Andradas in Porto Alegre, the Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Trinity is the seat of the Southern Anglican Diocese and the national cathedral of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil.
Parque Histórico General Bento Gonçalves
Created by state decree in 1972 and linked to Rio Grande do Sul's culture department, this historic park stands on the old Sesmaria do Cristal, land once granted to the father of Farroupilha leader Bento Gonçalves da Silva.
Catedral São Francisco de Paula
Seat of the Archdiocese of Pelotas, the Catedral Metropolitana de Pelotas is a Catholic church in Rio Grande do Sul dedicated to Saint Francis of Paola.
Santa Teresa National Park
Santa Teresa National Park on Rocha's coast was created to frame the colonial Santa Teresa Fortress; its grounds hold more than two million planted trees from five continents, a greenhouse and native wetland and woodland wildlife.
Laguna José Ignacio
In Uruguay's Maldonado Department, Laguna José Ignacio is a coastal lagoon kept apart from the Atlantic Ocean by a sandbank.
Arriving in Maldonado
Cathedral of Maldonado
The Cathedral of Saint Ferdinand is Maldonado's main Roman Catholic church and has been a cathedral since 1966, when the Diocese of Maldonado-Punta del Este was founded.
Laguna del Diario
Close to Maldonado and Punta del Este, Laguna del Diario is a lagoon where the first settlement of Maldonado was built in 1755, before the town moved to its present site in 1757.
Museum of the Sea
Opened in 1996 in La Barra, Maldonado, the Museum of the Sea is a natural history museum of about 2,300 square meters split into four large halls.
More drives to Maldonado
- Salto to Maldonado
- Buenos Aires to Maldonado, Uruguay
- Rosario, Argentina to Maldonado, Uruguay
- Santa Fe to Maldonado, Uruguay
- Paraná to Maldonado, Uruguay
- La Plata to Maldonado, Uruguay
More drives from Bento Gonçalves
- Bento Gonçalves to Guaíra
- Bento Gonçalves to Tubarão
- Bento Gonçalves to Santana do Livramento
- Bento Gonçalves to Chuí
- Bento Gonçalves to Mercedes, Argentina
- Bento Gonçalves to Rivera, Uruguay
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to drive from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado, Uruguay?
About 12 h 4 min of driving without stops, over 523 miles.
What is the driving distance from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado, Uruguay?
About 523 miles (841 km) on the Wayro route. Other map services may show a few miles more or less, depending on where they start and end in each city.
Where does the Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado drive cross the border?
At about mile 390, from Brazil into Uruguay.
What do U.S. citizens need to drive from Bento Gonçalves into Uruguay?
No visa needed for visits of 90 days or less. Passport: must be valid for 6 months beyond your arrival date. You can drive on your U.S. license. (U.S. State Department, updated August 13, 2026.)
Is it safe to drive from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado, Uruguay?
The U.S. State Department rates Brazil Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution; Uruguay Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution. Read the full advisory before you go.
Which highways go from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado?
In order: BR-470, ERS-446, ERS-122, ERS-240, BR-116, BR-392 and BR-471. The road-by-road table above shows the route miles for each one.
Where can you stop on the way from Bento Gonçalves to Maldonado?
Closest to the road: Parque Histórico General Bento Gonçalves (museum, mile 166, 0.5 mi from the route); Catedral São Francisco de Paula (cathedral, mile 231, 2 mi from the route); Santa Teresa National Park (national park, mile 413, 0.1 mi from the route). All stops are described above.
How we put this guide together
Wayro calculates the route from OpenStreetMap road data; mile numbers are positions along this route, not highway markers, and "from the route" distances are straight-line, so the real detour depends on access roads. Stops are chosen from parks, natural sites, museums, historic sites and attractions close to the route: at least one strong stop for each stretch of the drive, then the best-known places nearest the road, up to nine in all. Places that are closed, private or not open to visitors are removed. Place descriptions are written by the Wayro team from official park, museum, tourism and government websites and other published sources. Safety levels and entry rules were checked against the U.S. Department of State on October 10, 2026. Conditions change, so check the linked sources before you travel.
Route data © OpenStreetMap contributors.