The Rota Romântica () is a scenic

tourist route A scenic route, tourist road, tourist drive, scenic byway, or holiday road is a specially designated road or waterway that travels through an area of natural or cultural beauty. It often passes by scenic viewpoints. The designation is usually det ...

that runs through 13 municipalities located in the

Serra Gaúcha The Serra Gaúcha (''Gaucho Highlands'') is a cultural region comprising the mountainous areas in the northeastern portion of Rio Grande do Sul state in southern Brazil. Most of its inhabitants are of German and Italian ancestry. Consequently, ...

region of the southernmost

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

ian state of

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, ; ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative units of Brazil#List, fifth-most populous state and the List of Brazilian s ...

. The area was first colonized by

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

s in the first half of the 19th century, and the strong German influence can still be seen in each of the towns and villages. The Germanic roots are visible in the architecture, gastronomy and occasionally in the accent and language (

Riograndenser Hunsrückisch Hunsrik (natively ''Hunsrik'' , ''Hunsrückisch'' or ''Hunsrickisch'' and Portuguese ''hunsriqueano'' or ''hunsriqueano riograndense''), also called Riograndese Hunsrik, ' or ', is a Moselle Franconian language derived primarily from the Hunsr� ...

) of the region. The Rota Romântica is approximately 184 km (about 114 miles) in distance and extends from

São Leopoldo São Leopoldo () (Portuguese for ''Saint Leopold'') is a Brazilian industrial city located in the south state of Rio Grande do Sul. Geography It occupies a total area of 103.9 km2 (around 80 km2 urban area) at ''circa'' 30 km fr ...

to São Francisco de Paula. The 13 municipalities along the route are:

Novo Hamburgo Novo Hamburgo ('New Hamburg', ; ) is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, located in the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre, the state capital. As of 2020, its population was 247,032. Th ...

, Estância Velha,

Ivoti Ivoti is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, located in the Porto Alegre metropolitan area. The population is 24,690 (2020 est.) in an area of 63.15 km2. History Originally occupied by indigenous people since 12,00 ...

, Dois Irmãos, Morro Reuter,

Santa Maria do Herval Santa Maria do Herval ( Hunsrick: Teewald) is a municipality in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Santa Maria do Herval is one of 17 municipalities in Brazil where Hunsrick is an official language. See also *List of municipalities in Rio ...

, Presidente Lucena, Picada Café,

Nova Petrópolis Nova Petrópolis is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the Southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The main seat of the municipality is also called Nova Petrópolis. It is located in the Serra Gaúcha region, at 29º22'35" Sout ...

Gramado Gramado is a municipality in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is located in the Serra Gaúcha region. The city was originally settled by Azorean descendants and later received a contingent of German and Italian immigrants. Gramado is ...

, Canela, São Francisco de Paula, and Linha Nova. The cities of

, Canela, and São Francisco de Paula are also included in the

Região das Hortênsias The Região das Hortênsias, in English "Hydrangea Flower Region", is a tourist destination in the Serra Gaúcha region of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The cities in this region are: Nova Petrópolis, Gramado, Canela and São Fr ...

, one of Brazil's tourist hot spots and very popular throughout the country in the winter and holiday seasons, for its breath-taking scenery, rich European cultural heritage and picturesque architecture.

External links

The Rota Romântica
Tourist attractions in Rio Grande do Sul Geography of Rio Grande do Sul Scenic routes {{RioGrandedoSul-geo-stub