Oberá

Oberá grew in the twentieth century as waves of settlers arrived in central Misiones from Sweden, Poland, Ukraine, Germany, Japan, Switzerland, Brazil and elsewhere, and the town has made that mixture its identity. Its Fiesta Nacional del Inmigrante, held each September, takes place in a park where each community has built its own house in its own style, and for a week those houses become kitchens, dance floors and exhibition rooms serving pierogi, sushi, strudel and feijoada, with folk dancing every night. Outside the festival the park can be walked and several houses open on weekends. The surrounding hills grow yerba mate and tea, and small waterfalls and a nature reserve lie a short drive out.

History

Nomadic peoples first lived here, and the area belonged to Corrientes before Misiones was separated from it; immigrant colonies spread through Misiones from the 1890s, Finns founded Bonpland in 1907, and when a Brazilian scheme to settle Swedes in Rio Grande do Sul failed in the floods of 1911, many of them moved south. In 1913 a group of immigrants, most of them Swedes, crossed from Brazil through the forest, many dying on the way, and founded the town as Svea, after the mother figure of Swedish tradition, clearing virgin forest and building from nothing (Wikipedia, Oberá).

Highlights

• The immigrant park - houses built by each national community in its own style.
• The September festival - a week of food, dance and music from a dozen cultures.
• The yerba and tea country - plantations in the hills around the town.
• The nearby falls - small waterfalls and reserves within a short drive.

When to go

September for the festival, which is the town's whole reason for being on an itinerary; book accommodation early. Otherwise April to October is comfortable, and the park is worth an hour on a weekend when houses open.

Before you go

Outside festival week the park is mostly closed buildings and the town is ordinary. During the festival, nights run late and the town fills. The community houses vary widely in how much they show visitors.

Nearby

Posadas lies west; Salto Encantado and the central Misiones hills are north.

Key facts