# Santa Maria (Rio Grande do Sul)

Santa Maria is a city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in southern Brazil. Known as the geographic heart of the state, the city is the gateway to Paleorrota, the state's paleontological tourism route.

## Understand

With a population of around 285,000 inhabitants, "Santa Maria da Boca do Monte", as it is known for being surrounded by hills, is a university town with a vibrant nightlife, known for the Federal University of Santa Maria, one of the most important public universities in the country. The city is also home to several museums and historic churches. However, the main attraction of Santa Maria is its paleontological tourism. The city has 20 paleontological sites that house fossils found from the beginning of the 20th century.

### Climate

Santa Maria has well-defined seasons and the amount of rain distributed evenly throughout the year. In the summer, highs frequently surpass 30 °C (86 °F) in January, but these temperatures can drop suddenly during a passage of a cold front with quick rains and thunderstorms, providing welcome relief from scorching temperatures. In June, the coldest month, highs reach 19 °C (66 °F) and lows usually go below 9 °C (48 °F), reaching up to −5 °C (23 °F), but snow is rare.

## Get in
### By car

Leaving Porto Alegre, the main highways connecting Santa Maria to other cities in the state are BR-287 and BR-386. BR-287 has a single lane (unlike BR-386, which has four lanes), however, both highways are in good condition. From the west, BR-287 also connects São Borja, on the border with Argentina, to Santa Maria.
From the south, coming from cities like Pelotas and Rio Grande, the main road that connects Santa Maria is BR-392, also with a single lane. From the north, the main road that passes through Santa Maria is the BR-158, which has a single lane. Some of these roads are tolled and have speed traps. Schedule your car trips during the day; it is simply more secure.

### By bus

Santa Maria is a city well served by intercity and interstate bus lines to many cities in the state and in the country. The long-distance bus station is located in the Nossa Senhora de Lourdes neighborhood, 2 km (1.24 miles) from the city downtown. Santa Maria Bus Station$^{[deadlink]}$ has good service infrastructure, in addition to a food court and is connected to the rest of the city by several municipal bus lines.
The main bus operator in Santa Maria is Planalto Transportes$^{[deadlink]}$, which has lines connecting Porto Alegre and other cities to Santa Maria.

### By plane

Santa Maria Airport (RIA ) is the main airport serving Santa Maria. It is a small airport, with minimal infrastructure, which is located in the district of Camobi, 11 km from the city downtown. The only airline that operates at this airport is Azul, with a daily flight between Santa Maria and Porto Alegre International Airport (POA) and seasonal flights to Hercílio Luz International Airport (FLN) in Florianópolis.

## See

* Coronel Pillar Historical Center (Centro Histórico Coronel Pillar).
* Edmundo Cardoso Memory House (Casa de Memória Edmundo Cardoso).
* Gama D'Eça Educational Museum (Museu Educativo Gama D'Eça), Rua do Acampamento, 81 - Centro. Contains fossils from the Paleorrota geo-park.
* Historical Culture Museum of the Franciscan Brothers (Museu Histórico-Cultural das Irmãs Franciscanas).
* I.E.E. Olavo Bilac Historical Archive (Acervo Histórico do I.E.E. Olavo Bilac).
* João Luiz Pozzobon House Museum (Casa-Museu João Luiz Pozzobon).
* Mallet Museum (Museu Mallet).
* Manoel Ribas College Memorial (Memorial do Colégio Manoel Ribas).
* Museum of Astronomy and Planetarium (Museu de Astronomia - Planetário).
* Treze de Maio Community Museum (Museu Comunitário Treze de Maio).
* Vicente Pallotti Museum (Museu Vicente Pallotti), Av. Presidente Vargas, 115 - Patronato, ☏ +55 55 3220-4565. Contains fossils from the Paleorrota geo-park.
* Rio Grande do Sul Japanese Immigration and Culture Memorial (Memorial de Imigração e cultura Japonesa do Rio Grande do Sul).
* Santa Maria Art Museum (Museu de Arte de Santa Maria).
* Santa Maria Railroad Museum (Museu Ferroviário de Santa Maria).
* Santa Maria Sacred Museum (Museu Sacro de Santa Maria).

## Do

Ride a bike "MTB" in Itaara and 4a Colônia.

## Eat

* Frei Pança, R. Prof. Teixeira, 1404, ☏ +55 55 3221-2122. Pizza, pasta.
* Churrascaria Vera Cruz, Avenida Nossa Sra. Medianeira, 1600, ☏ +55 55 3222-0606. Very famous chicken barbecue.
* Imperial 993, R. Floriano Peixoto, 993, ☏ +55 55 3317-2993. Sandwiches, mix juices.
* Bovinu's Churrascaria, Venâncio Aires st, 1596, ☏ +55 55 3221-1790. The best barbecue in the city (all you can eat style, buffet).

## Drink

* $^{[deadlink]}$ Ponto de Cinema.

## Sleep

* Park Hotel Morotin, RST 287 road - km 239 - Nº 1981, ☏ +55 55 3220-1600, park@morotin.com.br. Probably the best hotel in this area. More than 90 apartments and an event structure to receive about 1700 people simultaneously. Each apartment have phone with direct call and answering machine, air-conditioner, TV Directv with remote control and a small refrigerator. The hotel is about 5km from the city centre. The taxi fare is between R$15 and R$20. A single apartment costs about R$ 92,40 per day, a double costs R$ 132,00 and a triple costs about R$ 193,60. Note that this values can be modified during the year.
* -29.68799-53.800511 Altadomo Hotel (Hotel Continental), Benjamin Constant st, 1209, ☏ +55 55 3028-7070, reservas@altadomo.com.br. Check-in: 12:00, check-out: 14:00. 90 apartments. Every room has 28 m$^2$ (300 ft²) of space, air conditioning, cable television, and a private bathroom with a hair dryer. Toiletries are provided at no extra cost, and guests have access to a heated pool, a complete gym, two saunas (one humid, one dry). Breakfast is also provided. The hotel is also pet-friendly. R$194 (deluxe room for one). (updated Nov 2021)
* Itaimbé Palace Hotel, Venâncio Aires st, 2741, ☏ +55 55 3220-1144, itaimbé@terra.com.br. Charming hotel tower with pools and atrium, even if it looks like a Soviet bloc apartment building from outside.
* Hotel Morotin, Ângelo Uglione st, 1629, ☏ +55 55 3220-5200, morotin@morotin.com.br.