Colón

Colón is a town in Entre Ríos on the Uruguay River, across from Paysandú, linked to it by the General Artigas International Bridge, opened in 1975. Justo José de Urquiza founded it in 1863 as the port of the San José Colony, settled by immigrants from Switzerland, Savoy and Piedmont.

Its five beaches add up to about 14 kilometers of sand along the river, among the longest in the province. Quirós Park, on high ground in town, is a lookout over the shore and hosts the National Crafts Festival. Close by stands the Forclaz Mill, a Dutch-style mill built by a Swiss settler, now a National Historic Monument.

The town has a hot-spring complex with more than ten pools and a water park. And in the same department lies El Palmar National Park, which protects one of the southernmost yatay palm groves in the world, with palms that live 200 to 400 years.