José Ignacio

There are several stories behind the name: one links it to an early settler called José Ignacio Sylveira, another to a cattle driver from the Jesuit missions. In 1763 the Spanish viceroy Cevallos set up a ranch in the area and called it José Ignacio. The lighthouse opened in 1877 to prevent shipwrecks; it was run by a private concession until the state took it over in 1907, at a time when the place could only be reached on horseback, by carriage or by sea.

The first plots were surveyed in 1907, but brick houses and the first general store only appeared at the end of the 1920s. A road to Route 9 and a bus service to San Carlos followed in 1954. Argentine holidaymakers began arriving in the 1960s, and over time well-known figures built holiday homes here, bringing exclusive restaurants with them. In December 2015 a circular bridge over Laguna Garzón opened, linking Maldonado with Rocha Department and extending development along the coast.

José Ignacio has fewer than 300 permanent residents, according to the 2011 census, and its character changes completely between the quiet months and the summer season. Its restaurants have made it a gastronomic destination, built around local fish and seafood. The surrounding countryside of the Garzón municipality is farming land, with livestock, olive groves, vineyards, beekeeping and nut orchards.