Trevelin vs Punta del Este

In summer the city lives on tourists: 1.3 million of them entered the country in December–February, and Punta del Este is the main destination. A two-bedroom apartment for half of January rents for 6,500 dollars.

SpecialistPuntanews: results of the 2025-2026 summer season according to the Ministry of Tourism · checked 29 Sep 2026

Maldonado is the fastest-growing department in the country, 212,951 residents in the 2023 census. It grows through the arrival of Uruguayans and foreigners.

OfficialINE: final results of the 2023 census, population by department · checked 29 Sep 2026

For living with children, realtors recommend Cantegril, Beverly Hills, Pinares and Mansa. Península, La Barra and Roosevelt are jammed with traffic in summer.

SpecialistLa Cite Realtors: international schools in Maldonado and where to live nearby · checked 29 Sep 2026

Small units are about ARS 400–420k a month, 2 bedrooms 550–750k. Supply is limited, and good houses go quickly.

SpecialistLong-term rental listings — Zonaprop, Mercado Libre, local agencies · checked 30 Aug 2026

1 ha is roughly USD 26–50k, more interesting than Esquel per area. With gas at the entrance and year-round access, about USD 80k.

SpecialistListings for land and houses for sale — Zonaprop, Mercado Libre, Argenprop · checked 1 Sep 2026

Family houses are more often around USD 190–260k; a new 180 m² house with 3 bedrooms is USD 260k.

SpecialistListings for land and houses for sale — Zonaprop, Mercado Libre, Argenprop · checked 1 Sep 2026

Maldonado department: average existing contract 23,083 pesos a month, new 25,177 - more than Montevideo (July 2026). INE does not calculate the city separately.

OfficialINE: average rent by department, existing contracts · checked 29 Sep 2026

A two-bedroom apartment for a year or for winter is asked at 700 to 3,500 dollars a month, median about 1,550. Plus gastos comunes separately, up to 1,000–1,400 dollars in towers.

SpecialistGallito: two-bedroom apartments for rent in Punta del Este, 80 listings on the page · checked 29 Sep 2026

A two-bedroom apartment in Punta del Este is on sale for 138–967k dollars, median about 270k for 75 m². These are asking prices, not transactions.

SpecialistGallito: two-bedroom apartments for sale in Punta del Este · checked 29 Sep 2026

Trevelin is not measured separately, so use Esquel (25 km) as a benchmark: poverty line ARS 1,874,639 a month. Supermarket prices are the same.

SpecialistObservatorio de Economía UNPSJB — cost of the basket in Patagonian cities, July 2026 · checked 9 Sep 2026

The minimum basket in the Esquel measurement is ARS 844,304 a month. In Trevelin the shops are smaller and the choice is narrower; big shopping is done in Esquel.

SpecialistObservatorio de Economía UNPSJB — cost of the basket in Patagonian cities, July 2026 · checked 9 Sep 2026

The INE minimum food basket for the country excluding the capital is 5,421–5,621 pesos per person a month, for a family of four 21.7–22.5k. Data from 2025.

OfficialINE: income poverty estimate, first half of 2025, with poverty lines · checked 29 Sep 2026

A family of three renting housing outside the capital is considered poor at an income below 42,055 pesos a month. In Punta del Este the real bar is much higher.

OfficialINE: income poverty estimate, first half of 2025, with poverty lines · checked 29 Sep 2026

There are schools in Aldea Escolar (about 12 km away, with a school bus for some students) and in Sierra Colorada. Places are assigned through the provincial DINO system.

OfficialSchool Nº7724 Aldea Escolar · checked 31 Aug 2026

International schools Woodside, St Clare's and Garzón School. According to a realtor's estimate, 6–15k dollars a year per child, with higher grades costing more.

SpecialistLa Cite Realtors: international schools in Maldonado and where to live nearby · checked 29 Sep 2026

There is no serious healthcare of its own: the hospital, clinic and diagnostics are in Esquel, 20–30 minutes along RN 259. Check the winter travel time to the hospital by address.

OfficialMinisterio de Salud — services of Hospital Zonal Esquel · checked 25 Aug 2026

The ASSE state hospital and the Mautone sanatorium are in the neighbouring city of Maldonado. In Punta del Este itself, on Roosevelt, parada 13, is the head office of the private mutualista Asistencial.

OfficialASSE: Hospital Departamental de Maldonado Dr. Elbio Rivero Moreno · checked 29 Sep 2026

A Jacobsen bus runs to Esquel: on weekdays almost every hour from 06:45, about 45 minutes on the way. To the border at Futaleufú there are services on Mondays and Fridays; the crossing is open 8–18 h.

SpecialistTransporte Jacobsen: schedule Esquel - Trevelin - Aldea and trips to the Chilean border · checked 1 Oct 2026

The nearest airport is Esquel's, about 45 km away according to the Trevelin municipality. There are more flights in summer than in the shoulder season; a ticket costs more than to Bariloche (per an aviation blog).

OfficialTrevelin municipal tourism · checked 1 Oct 2026

A Montevideo – Punta del Este ticket from COPSA costs 466 pesos, return 932. To Maldonado 450, with a student discount.

SpecialistCOPSA Línea Este: intercity bus fares from 7 January 2026 · checked 29 Sep 2026

Only Buenos Aires and São Paulo have regular flights all year round. Santiago, Asunción and Campinas are added only in summer. Data for the 2024–2025 season.

SpecialistAviacionline: Punta del Este adds flights for the 2024-2025 season · checked 29 Sep 2026

About 963 mm a year, an annual average of 9.7 °C, winter is wetter than summer, and part of the precipitation is snow. Trevelin is noticeably greener than Esquel.

OfficialTrevelin municipal tourism · checked 24 Aug 2026

The average July temperature is 1.7 °C, from the Esquel Aero station, the one closest to Trevelin. There is no station in the town itself. In winter there is more precipitation than in summer, with snow in places.

OfficialSMN — climate normals 1991–2020 · checked 1 Oct 2026

July is the coldest month: average minimum 8.7 degrees, maximum 14.4. Summer is mild: in January 18.1 and 25.2.

OfficialWMO, World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Punta del Este · checked 29 Sep 2026

About 1,010 mm a year, evenly distributed: from 67 mm in December to 94 mm in August, 8–10 rain days in any month.

OfficialWMO, World Weather Information Service: climate normals for Punta del Este · checked 29 Sep 2026

In Chubut in 2025 the rate was 3.5 per 100k residents (21 cases), below the national average (3.6). The figure is provincial; there are no separate statistics for Trevelin.

OfficialSNIC — Informe del Sistema Nacional de Información Criminal, year 2025, table 5 (intentional homicides by province) · checked 9 Sep 2026

In 2025 there were 14 homicides in the Maldonado department, about 6.6 per 100 thousand residents. Nationwide, 10.3.

SpecialistMontevideo Portal: breakdown of 2025 homicides by department · checked 29 Sep 2026

Since May 2026, Canal 4 fiber in town at 200/400/600 Mbps. On rural plots, wireless and satellite are more common: do not assume the town's fiber carries over.

SpecialistCanal 4 — fiber launch in Trevelin · checked 25 Aug 2026

Antel fibre from 1,650 pesos for 400 Mbit/s to 4,342 for a gigabit. For holiday-home owners there is Fibra Temporada for 865 pesos: unlimited data from December to March.

OfficialAntel: data plan price list, 2026 · checked 29 Sep 2026

There is a gas network in Trevelin, and connection requests have been accepted again since January 2026. Electricity and water are supplied by the 16 de Octubre cooperative, which has its own office in Trevelin.

SpecialistCamuzzi — gas connections resume in the Cordillera · checked 1 Oct 2026

The UTE tariff is uniform: 300 kWh comes to about 2,940 pesos, 600 kWh about 5,470. In apartments, gastos comunes come on top: from 13k pesos to 1,400 dollars.

OfficialDecree 339/025: UTE tariffs from 1 January 2026 · checked 29 Sep 2026

OSE, Maldonado resort zone: 47.41 pesos per m³ up to 15 m³ plus a fixed charge of 636.68. For 15 m³ with sewage about 2,200 pesos a month, more than in Montevideo.

OfficialDecree 340/025: OSE water and sewerage tariffs from 1 January 2026 · checked 29 Sep 2026

We did not find network gas in Punta del Este: the distributors Montevideo Gas and Conecta do not list Maldonado. Refilling a 13 kg cylinder costs about 1,216 pesos.

OfficialURSEA: network gas, tariffs of distribution companies · checked 29 Sep 2026