Belo Horizonte Sights

  1. Casa do Baile

    The Casa do Baile is one of Oscar Niemeyer's creations dotted around a huge artificial lake in the Pampulha district. This former dance hall now holds all types of temporary art exhibits. Its lovely on-site café is a great place to take a break.

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  2. Igreja de São Francisco de Assis

    The Igreja de São Francisco de Assis is one of Oscar Niemeyer's architectural delights and the paintings by Portinari are beautiful.

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  3. Museu de Arte de Pampulha

    The Museu de Arte de Pampulha, with its cute garden designed by landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx, is worth a look. It was designed by Oscar Niemeyer as a casino and shows the obvious modernist influence of Le Corbusier.

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  4. Museu de Artes e Ofícios

    The brand-new Museu de Artes e Ofícios, in Belo's historic train station, houses a wide-ranging collection of objects used in the daily lives of Mineiros past and present. There are interpretive cards in English adjacent to each exhibit.

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  5. Museu Giramundo

    The Museu Giramundo has a fanciful display of 400 marionettes, from performances by the internationally acclaimed, Belo-based Teatro Giramundo.

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  7. Museu Histórico Abílio Barreto

    The Just south of Savassi, this free museum features a renovated colonial farmhouse, the solitary remnant of Curral del Rey, the rural village destroyed in the 1890s to make room for Belo. There are some fascinating historical photos and other bric-a-brac.

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  8. Pampulha District

    Fans of modernist architect Oscar Niemeyer won't want to miss his creations dotted around a huge artificial lake in the Pampulha district. Juscelino Kubitschek, mayor of Belo at the time, commissioned the recent architectural school graduate in the early 1940s. Niemeyer's Igreja de São Francisco de Assis is an architectural delight, with some beautiful Portinari paintings inside.

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  9. Parque Municipal

    One of Belo's most appealing spots is Parque Municipal, an enormous sea of tropical greenery with artificial lakes and winding pathways, just 10 minutes southeast of the bus station along Av Afonso Pena. It's especially fun on Sunday, when everyone's out strolling and socializing.

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  10. Parque Nacional Serra do Cipó

    Parque Nacional Serra do Cipó - forming the heart of Unesco's brand new Serra do Espinhaço Biosphere Reserve - is Belo Horizonte's backyard wilderness area. Its vast mountain and river landscapes lie just 100km from the city center, offering excellent hiking opportunities.

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