This section is dedicated to take away all your "I wish someone had told me that before I went!" experiences. This way, you can spend less time settling in, and more time making new friends in your chosen hostel.
Gramado, one of the nicest cities in southern Brazil, features a small-town feel mixed with the charming German architectural style to set the tone that vibrates in the city. You can visit the city in just one afternoon, but you'll probably want to find a hostel to stay at least a week.
The city has several restaurants with stupendous cuisine -- several choices of Italian or German eateries. In addition, almost all Gramado hostels and guesthouses provide guests with wonderful colonial coffee, with many products coming directly from farms from the closest town directly to your table -- the taste is indescribable.
The city is also well known for its "Covered Street," which is a street that has one hundred percent coverage. It is located in the city center, next to a square, and houses some shops and cafes. Another mandatory stop in the city is the chocolate factories -- each one is better than the last, so it is worth spending several minutes inside these shops and maybe a little visit at the production line of chocolates. For anyone who is interested in buying clothes, the city is well served with several leather clothing stores; head to Canela (a neighboring city), which has much more attractive prices for the same kinds of products.
The city transforms itself for Christmas time and hosts a lot of events to celebrate the occasion, so you may want to get a hostel here during that season. The event highlight is the Christmas parade that happens on the main street of the city -- there are several characters and some floats involved in the production, and of course, Santa Claus!
Written by local expertz for Gramado
Rafaavs
