La Paloma is an ocean resort located at the Cape of Santa María, founded on September 1, 1874. It is located in the east in the Rocha Department. It is 240 km from Montevideo and is approximately 90 km from Punta del Este and 160 km from Chuy, a town bordering Brazil. It is known for its tranquility and its beautiful beaches, whose length is approximately 20 km. It has a permanent population of 5,300 inhabitants, but with tourist arrivals it swells to 30,000 in the summer months (January–February–March). The resort owes its name to that formerly the Cape Santa María was a very feared by sailors tip, and from afar because of the amount of rocks and the foam of the waves, it seems to make the outline of a dove.
