'Cold hunters': how the dream of seeing snow in Brazil moves cities in the Serra de SC

Tourism of expectation: Hunting for the cold in SC boosts the economy in Serra de SC The expectation of seeing snow and encountering typical winter scenes without leaving Brazil is a dream that brings thousands of visitors to Serra de Santa Catarina every year. More than high-altitude wines – grown in high regions – and gastronomy, the cold has become a protagonist and drives the economy of cities such as São Joaquim, Urubici, Urupema and Bom Jardim da Serra, famous for their frost and snow phenomena. ??? It was the expectation of "cold hunters" – tourists who travel to take advantage of low temperatures – that brought the family of Maria Gabriela de Lucca Oliveira and Francisco Carlos Machado de Oliveira, from São José do Rio Preto, in São Paulo, to São Joaquim. The visitors arrived in a group of 5 people, hoping to make an old dream come true. "Of course, we came because we've always heard about São Joaquim, right? That it snows here and that the people are very welcoming. So, we came to see if it's all that," says Maria. ?Click and follow the g1 SC channel on WhatsApp Image shows the family of Maria Gabriela de Lucca Oliveira Francisco and Carlos Machado de Oliveira in São Joaquim, in the Serra de SC Mycchel Legnaghi/Disclosure Mariene Simas and Lucian Galiotto, residents of Joinville, also traveled to São Joaquim at the end of June in search of the cold. The move was successful and the family woke up in the morning with the thermometers showing -8°C in the region, in addition to the fields covered in frost. Only the snow didn't appear. "It's going to be a back and forth. We came to see some cities, landscapes, and some we already knew. We're enjoying it and feeling the cold", said Lucian. Mariene Simas and Lucian Galiotto with their son in São Joaquim, in the Serra de SC Caroline Borges/g1 ?? The Serra de SC has altitudes between 900 and 1,500 meters and is recognized as the coldest region in Brazil. In 2025, three episodes of snow were recorded in the region. In 2026, Bom Jardim da Serra once again gained national prominence when it registered the first flakes of ice of the year. Where to hunt for frost and cold phenomena in the Serra ????? Images show São Joaquim, Bom Jardim da Serra and Urubici, in the Serra de SC Reproduction/Personal Archive According to the region's city halls, tourists can 'hunt' cold scenarios especially in valleys, lowlands, fields and hilltops. See the main locations: São Joaquim: at a distance of 1,300 meters from the ground, the municipality is known for the formation of frost in Vale Caminhos da Neve, where some of the lowest temperatures in the country are recorded. Praça João Ribeiro also usually dawns covered in frost. Urupema: recognized as the National Capital of Cold, it is the highest city in the state, at 1,400 meters and is home to tourist attractions such as Morro das Antenas and Vale das Pedras Brancas, where waterfalls and frozen vegetation attract visitors. Urubici: with an average altitude of 915 meters, the city is one of the most visited in the region and recognized as the most welcoming in the country. Locations such as Vacas Gordas and Morro da Igreja record strong episodes of frost. Bom Jardim da Serra: with an altitude of 1,200 meters, the city recorded, in 2026, the first snow of 2026 and reached -9.2ºC. The most popular spots for hunting the cold are Terra do Gelo and Mirante da Serra do Rio do Rastro. Map shows the cold weather destinations in Serra de SC Art g1 Who are the 'cold hunters'???? Another tourist who went in search of the cold scene is Elias Leopoldino Basto, 51 years old. Resident of Guarujá (SP), the businessman saw the news of the sudden drop in temperatures and decided to travel by motorhome with his family. Due to the ease of travel, he was able to travel through the main 'freezing' scenarios in the region: "It has its advantage, because you just have to look at the weather forecast and hit the road. Sometimes, it's a little tight to do things, take a shower, the bathroom is small. And when there's no place to stay at the inn, we have to have time to organize", says Elias, who describes the experience as the freedom of "hunting the lowest temperatures in the region". Tourists pose for photos amidst the snow-covered landscape in the Serra do Rio Rastro region, in the south of Santa Catarina, on the morning of this Friday, 21. GUILHERME HAHN/ISHOOT/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO According to the research "Winter in the Serra Catarinense" by the Federation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism of Santa Catarina (Fecomércio-SC), the profile of the "cold hunters", in 2025, is: 52.4% prefer hotels and similar and around 24.3% stay in rented properties The majority of visitors, 86.1%, travel in their own car 27.9% travel on excursions, contrary to the idea of them being more romantic destinations; only around 2% make the trip as a couple The length of stay in Serra Catarinense varies between 2 and 5 days 24.7% of tourists have an income range between 5 and 8 minimum wages and 21% of visitors earn between 2 and 5 minimum wages 28.7% of tourists are between 31 and 40 years old and 28.5% are between 41 and 50 years old The majority, 80.4%, of tourists are men ?The research shows that Serra Catarinense has already received tourists from Germany, Argentina, Spain, Uruguay and Peru. ?In relation to Brazil, the majority of visitors are from Santa Catarina, followed by Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo. Winter drives interest in weather forecasts Resident enjoying the snow in São Joaquim, in the Serra de Santa Catarina Mychel Legnaghi/São Joaquim Online The cold also drives the search for weather information. Marcelo Martins, from Epagri/Ciram, explains that the expectation of snow and frost increases the demand and search for information about weather forecasts. In 2025, for example, three episodes of snow and several days of negative temperatures led to reports and announcements about the weather in the state. “In the weather forecasting environment, it is very common that, with the arrival of winter, people from other regions of the country, mainly from the North, Northeast and Central-West, where it is not cold and there is little habit of seeing snow, come here with the hope of seeing the phenomenon”, he says. Meteorologist at Epagri/Ciram, Marcelo Martins Personal Archive/Disclosure Tourism in numbers A survey carried out by the Federation of Commerce of Goods, Services and Tourism of Santa Catarina (Fecomércio-SC) showed that the average expenditure per group of visitors was a record last year. ? The value jumped from R$ 2,824 to R$ 3,550 per group of visitors, the highest number in the historical series, which began in 2017. Daniele Cruz, a research analyst who has been following the tourism scenario in Serra since the beginning of the survey, states that the region has been looking for ways to expand attractions, with other options for visitors. Morro das Antenas, in the municipality of Urupema on a snowy day in the Serra de Santa Catarina in 2024 FOM CONRADI/ISHOOT/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO According to her, in recent years there has been an increase in options for tourists who arrive in the region looking for attractions related to the cold: “Although we have these ‘snow hunters’, who come in search of the phenomenon, and this volume of tourists increases when there is an expectation of intense cold, even so, if they come to the Serra and he doesn’t find snow, he isn’t completely disappointed because he has many options to enjoy”, says Daniele Cruz. ? In the month of May 2025, which precedes the start of winter, the movement of employment in three of the four cities that are destinations for "cold hunters" was positive, with the admission of 72 new workers in the tourism sector. According to the survey "Movimentação de Empregos SC", by Fecomércio-SC, they were: