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Santa Maria
The city of Santa Maria is known as the geographical heart of Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state in Brazil.
Understand
The city stays at 151 m (495 ft) of altitude. The estimated population in 2004 was 261,980 inhabitants.
Santa Maria is home to a large federal university, and is also known as "Cidade Cultura" (Culture City) and "Cidade Universitária" (University City).
Get in
- BR-158
- BR/RS-287
- BR-392
- RS-509
- RS-516 - north-northwest from Caçapava do Sul
By bus
- Rodoviária de Santa Maria (in Portuguese). Information on lines and schedules.
Get around
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.
Buy
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
Sleep
- Park Hotel Morotin, RST 287 road - km 239 - Nº 1981, ☏ 55 55 3220-1600, ✉[email protected]. 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.
- Altadomo Hotel, Benjamin Constant st, 1209, ☏ 55 55 3028-7070.
- 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, ✉[email protected].
Go next
| Routes through Santa Maria |
| Frederico Westphalen ← Cruz Alta ← | N  SW | → Rosário do Sul → Santana do Livramento |
| São Borja ← Santiago ← | W  E | → Santa Cruz do Sul → Canoas |
| Porto Xavier ← | W  E | → Caçapava do Sul → Pelotas |