Ouro Preto

Overview

Ouro Preto is one of Brazil’s most remarkable colonial towns, nestled in the mountains of Minas Gerais and celebrated for its Baroque architecture, steep cobbled streets, and rich mining history. Once the heart of the 18th‑century gold rush, the city became a symbol of Brazil’s colonial wealth and artistic heritage. Its churches, built by masters such as Aleijadinho and decorated with gilded altars, stand as masterpieces of Brazilian Baroque art. Today, Ouro Preto is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an open‑air museum where history, culture, and scenic landscapes blend seamlessly.

Best Time to Visit

The best time to visit Ouro Preto is from April to September, when the weather is dry and mild—ideal for walking through the hilly streets and exploring historical sites. Summer (December to March) brings warmer temperatures and occasional rain, but also lively festivals and cultural events. Winter mornings can be cool, yet the clear skies and crisp air highlight the town’s mountain views. Carnival and Holy Week are particularly vibrant, attracting visitors from across Brazil.

Getting Around

Ouro Preto’s historic center is compact but steep, so walking requires comfortable shoes and some stamina. Most attractions are within short distances, though the slopes can be challenging. Taxis and local vans are available for longer routes or nearby districts. Renting a car is useful for exploring surrounding towns like Mariana, Congonhas, and Tiradentes, but parking in the old center is limited. Many visitors prefer to stay near Praça Tiradentes, where museums, restaurants, and churches are concentrated.

Safety and Local Etiquette

Ouro Preto is generally safe and welcoming, with a calm small‑town atmosphere. Basic precautions—such as keeping valuables secure and avoiding isolated alleys at night—are sufficient. Locals appreciate politeness and respect for historical sites; touching church interiors or climbing monuments is discouraged. When visiting religious buildings, modest clothing is recommended. The town’s pace is relaxed, and visitors are encouraged to enjoy it slowly, appreciating its architecture and local crafts.

Food and Water

Minas Gerais is famous for hearty, home‑style cuisine, and Ouro Preto offers excellent examples. Typical dishes include feijão tropeiro, tutu de feijão, frango com quiabo, and pão de queijo. Local restaurants serve generous portions, often accompanied by artisanal cachaça and sweets like doce de leite. Tap water is generally safe, but bottled water is widely available. Many cafés and inns use local ingredients, and small markets sell regional cheeses and preserves.

Day Trips and Excursions

Ouro Preto is perfectly located for exploring the historic heart of Minas Gerais. Nearby Mariana, the state’s oldest city, offers beautiful churches and mining tours. Congonhas is home to Aleijadinho’s famous sculptures of the Twelve Prophets. Scenic drives lead to Lavras Novas, a mountain village ideal for hiking and waterfalls. Further afield, Tiradentes and São João del Rei showcase colonial charm and local crafts. Each destination complements Ouro Preto’s cultural richness and can be visited as a day trip.

The Essence of Ouro Preto

Ouro Preto’s essence lies in its harmony of baroque architecture, steep cobbled streets and mountain scenery. Churches glow with gold‑leaf interiors, history echoes through colonial façades, and the town’s artistic spirit endures. It feels timeless, dramatic and deeply Brazilian, shaped by heritage, creativity and the rhythm of Minas Gerais.

Highlights of Ouro Preto

• The magnificent Historic Centre of Ouro Preto is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the best-preserved colonial urban areas in the Americas.
• The impressive Church of Saint Francis of Assisi is considered one of the masterpieces of Brazilian Baroque architecture and features works by the renowned artist Aleijadinho.
• Praça Tiradentes serves as the city’s main square and is surrounded by historical buildings, museums, and cultural institutions.
• The fascinating Museum of the Inconfidência tells the story of Brazil’s independence movement and the history of Minas Gerais.
• The historic Gold Mines, including the famous Mina da Passagem, offer visitors the opportunity to learn about the region’s mining heritage.
• The beautiful Church of Our Lady of Pilar contains one of the richest collections of Baroque decoration in Brazil, featuring impressive gold ornamentation.

Visitors can also enjoy colonial architecture, traditional festivals, artisan workshops, cultural events, mountain scenery, and some of Brazil’s most important historical landmarks.

• Notes from our visits
• Your own experience

By Solopes

Portugal breaths in Ouro Preto, with each street, each corner, each building, showing the Portuguese colonial architecture, preserved in time, and displayed with care. The churches, hundreds of them, rivaling in beauty and richness, are the result of strong competition to perfection, driving the Portuguese baroque to its best.

It was impossible to visit 10% of the marvelous masterpieces, but I think we choose the best. That’s my advice. Prepare well your visit, to profit your time.

​Colonial architecture

The city is very well preserved, and Portuguese heritage shines everywhere.

​Time seems to have been stopped in Ouro Preto, only the cars proving that we are not back in time. 

Wonderful!

​The Town

The whole town is a sculpture, composed by hundreds of churches and colonial buildings. It’s a delight for our eyes, getting the top of one hill, and… to see the other.

​Absolutely marvelous.

Though very steep, the town is small, and easy to see in one or two days, if you skip the details. Otherwise.. only the baroque churches are more then 300!

São Francisco church

One of the “must see” churches of Ouro Preto is S. Francisco, which shows the transition from Baroque to Rococo styles. There, as in most of the best monuments of the epoch, you’ll see the hands of Aleijadinho, but we better learn with who knows – translating from ouropreto.com.br:

Construction started in 1766, by the Third Order of St. Francis of Assisi – the first third order created in Ouro Preto, dating back to 1745. Masterpiece by Antônio Francisco Lisboa, who signs the project and the risk of the cover.

In the ceiling of the central nave paintings of the master Manuel da Costa Ataíde, representing the glorification of Our Lady. Highlight for the crowning of the main door, sculpture in soapstone and, in the sacristy, the toilet, both carved by Aleijadinho. 

The Church of St. Francis of Assisi was one of the first properties to be found individually in Ouro Preto, in the National context in 1938. The windbreak was executed by Manoel Gonçalves in 1806, and the main and lateral doors, by Lucas Evangelista.

They date from 1826 the tiles of the corridors, and the lateral altars were made between 1829 and 1890. (Guia Cultural Trem da Vale, 2nd Edition) it In 2009 was chosen one of the 7 Wonders of Portuguese Origin in the World, in a contest carried out with the purpose of divulging the legacy of the Portuguese Expansion in the World.

​Gold Mines

There are some mines opened to public, allowing to recreate the hard conditions supported by the old miners. 

We visited two of them: the mine of Chico Rei, right in Ouro Preto, and a bigger one in Passagem, close to Mariana. We descent to the mine using an old trolley (so old that Fernanda decided to stay out of it – claustrophobia, she said…).

In our way up we had a demonstration about how to search gold in the mixture of rocks and water.

​Mina do Chico Rei

Right in Ouro Preto, the visitable area of this mine, several kilometers long and dug by the slave Chico Rei, in search of fortune and freedom, is not much than a hole. 

Anyway, specially for the kids, it is funny (Horacio, almost two meters high was the star).

Where to sleep

Sleeping in Ouro Preto – 2 fine nights

​Estalagem de Minas Gerais for sleeping in Ouro Preto Sleeping in Ouro Preto by Solopes Lots of space, inside and, specially, outside the hotel, in a well gardened and forested area, with a large garden, in the outskirts of Ouro ... Read More

If you want to easily publish your own experiences, after registering you may use the form below. It will be added after revision. You may use text, photos till 20Mb or video. For a more complex publication click here.

Publishing form

You need to be logged in to view this page

Username or Email Address

Password

Remember Me

Register  Lost Password?

Your trip will be perfect with the help of our partners

For a great experience:

For your safety:

For your comfort:

For cheap flights:

For local displacements: