A fabulous and lovely 18th-century village deeply stuck in the valleys of Minas Gerais' mountains. Anachronistic, amazing, fascinating... Ouro Preto resurges as a vision, a mirage amidst the dense mist of dawn. The impression for first-time visitors is exciting. All of a sudden, it seems as if a journey back in time is a reality. A pilgrimage of the living mixing up with a pilgrimage of the dead. Historical and anonymous personages spreading fallacies and mixing themselves shoulder to shoulder to the contemporaries.

Ouro Preto is above goodness and evil. Those who won't be able to realize this, will not enjoy this town accordingly. It is extremely humane, therefore courageous and cruel. Cruelty has been written in the darkened walls burned by whale oil of the old gold mines. Slaves were forced to enter in small openings and stay there all day long, breathing smoke from the torches, smelling sweat from exhausted bodies and the suffocating odor exhaling from urine and excrements. Courage, by its turn, rests radiating in the Hall of Freedom inside the town's main museum, where the remains of those patriots who once dreamed Independence of Minas Gerais and, at large, of Brazil rest in solemnity.

Ouro Preto is no place for good-or-bad dualism. We just have to send ourselves back to a time when there were no laws, a chaotic soup-like mixture of diverse interests that took its own shape and gave birth to the first society bearing modern characteristics in Brazil. As the country was born at some point on the maritime coast, its conception as a nation actually took place in Minas Gerais. Vila Rica was the Alma Mater and the new-born nation was nurtured in Gold.

Due to its outstanding value, Ouro Preto was decreed a National Historic Monument in 1933 by the Brazilian federal government. World eyes and recognition would come later in 1980, when UNESCO declared this 18th-century old colonial village as a Cultural Heritage of Mankind. Ouro Preto legacy well exceeds its borders, and its essence is the proper essence of mankind.

1- Depart Belo Horizonte - Arrival in Ouro Preto
Meet and greet at the hotel or airport in Belo Horizonte and arrival transfer to your hotel/pousada in Ouro Preto. The masterpiece of colonial architecture in Brazil, Ouro Preto is located 100 km (approximately 1 hour 30 minutes) southeast of Belo Horizonte, and it is the one town in Brazil to remain as an outstanding artistic and architectural example of that era.

2- Ouro Preto
City Tour as walk through Ouro Preto with its old buildings and cobblestone streets. Visit some well-preserved baroque churches, like the Church of St. Francis of Assis, one of the most beautiful examples of Brazilian religious architecture and the Mineralogy Museum. For lunch, taste one of the typical dishes of the region: Feijão Tropeiro or Tutu à Mineira. You may change the date of this tour at your convenience.

3- Ouro Preto
At leisure in Ouro Preto. As an optional tour, visit the town of Congonhas, containing important works from the Golden Age of Brazil. The main points of interest are Aleijadinhos sculptural masterpieces of the twelve Prophets, carved in soapstone and his sculptural representation of the Via Crucis (Stations of the Cross), done in polychromatic woodwork.

4- Depart Ouro Preto - Arrival in Belo Horizonte - Next City
Check-out at noon. Transfer to the hotel or airport in Belo Horizonte. Homebound flight or proceed to your next destination.

Land-Only prices in US-Dollars per person in double occupancy (single supplement available), including:

• Private roundtrip transfer Hotel or Airport CNF in Belo Horizonte/Hotel in Ouro Preto/Hotel or Airport CNF in Belo Horizonte featuring air-conditioned vehicle with English speaking guide.

• Full Day Walking Tour through Ouro Preto (private, approximately 8 hours) with lunch and English speaking guide.

• Accommodation in the hotel/pousada of your choice.

• Daily Brazilian buffet breakfast, unless indicated above.

• Meals as per description (B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner).

• Hotel taxes.

-> To reduce or extend number of nights in this package, simply click on the hotel of your choice and check the desired period.

To receive more information, please email us at office@opcotours.com.