Montevideo to Porto Alegre to North Brazil

Hi, I´ll try and break this down into three questions. I´m heading to Montevideo on Monday. About a week later I´m looking to wind up in Porto Alegre.
1. Is it best to get the bus beteween these two cities, and if so which companies should I book with? How long is the journey?
Following this I´d like to catch a plane from Porto Alegre to Sao Polo preferably, or Rio.
2. Who are best (or cheapest) to fly with?
3. Would I be better skipping Porto and just going straight to Sao Paolo or Rio from Montevideo?

Any help much appreciated. Thanks! M

I will try my best to help ya a bit.

1. bus would certainly be cheaper but of course longer. Take all nighter bus so you could easily just sleep on the bus and arrive i the morning. Leito buses are sleepers, large seats, comfotable and like a bed. Name of the bus I dont know but it could be pluma.

2. There are many companies that fly to SP or RJ, most notabley Gol airlines. http://www.voegol.com.br/Paginas/home.aspx

3. I like Porto Alegre. If anything, you should go to Gramado (about 80kms from POA). Its a mountain resort. Next to Gramado is Canela with a really nice waterfall and a cool rollercoaster ( u control the speed). These two things alone is worth the visit. But if you had to choose between SP or RJ, Rio is the place. SP is a financial city, not a tourist city AT ALL. Theres almost nothing to do here except bars and restaurants. Beaches are 60kms away. RJ is the bomb!! I love Rio and everyone knows the name. But Rio is dangerous (outside of the beaches).

I hope this helps.

Thanks so much, that´s a great help! I´m relieved to see the flight with Gol won´t be too expensive. Gramado sounds brilliant - I´ll definitely check it out. Yeah I´ve heard from a few people that Rio is an amazing place. I´m travelling alone so I´ll have to be careful I guess but it sounds lots of fun and worth going. Eventually I´m getting my flight home from Sao Paolo, so I can stay in Rio first then leave a little bit of time for Sao Paolo at the end. Can´t wait. Obrigado! M