Ouro Prêto is one of the most beautiful colonial cities in Brazil. It’s located in Minas Gerais, where gold was found for the first time at the end of the 17th century. This important city was part of the ‘Caminho do Ouro’ (gold route).
1. What is there to do and see?
2. Where to stay for a good night’s sleep?
3. What is a nice place to eat and drink?
4. How to get to Ouro Prêto?
1. What is there to do and see?
There are no less than thirteen churches in this former mining town. They were built in the baroque architectural style and extravagantly decorated with gold. This is the burden of proof of the enormous wealth this city once knew. The Museu da Inconfidência showcases that the city not only has a wealthy, but also a bloody history. Ouro Prêto has been built from scratch by thousands of slaves and often under abominable conditions. A trip to the former gold mines will prove this.
2. Where to stay for a good night’s sleep?
In Ouro Prêto you can stay in a very special hotel called Grande Hotel de Ouro Prêto, designed in 1938 by legendary architect Oscar Niemeyer. The hotel has a good location, breathes history and breakfast is really amazing.
Address: Rua Senador Rocha Lagoa 162 in Centro
3. What is a nice place to eat and drink?
How proud Brazilians may be about their place of birth, all of them will admit that Minas Gerais’s kitchen is the best in Brazil. In Ouro Prêto you can enjoy delicious food. For example, in the cozy restaurant O Passo Pizza Jazz or in the great buffet restaurant Chafariz. For the best pudim, a local delicacy, you must be at Ópera Café.
4. How to get to Ouro Prêto?
From the bus terminal Rodoviário Governador Israel Pinheiro in Belo Horizonte, buses from Pássaro Verde run daily to Ouro Preto.
Address: Praça Rio Branco 100 in Centro, Belo Horizonte
