Ouro Preto, just a few hours from Belo Horizonte, is one of the most amazing places I’ve visited in Brazil. It’s a colonial town with a gorgeous setting that was made very wealthy by the gold rush. Several colorful colonial buildings and stunning churches line the steep streets of this hilly UNESCO World Heritage town.
To see the rest of Belo Horizonte’s attractions, you need to head about 20 minutes north of the city center to the planned district of Pampulha. There’s public transportation, but we decided on a taxi ride to save time.
Iguazú National Park features the Argentinian side of Iguazu Falls. It’s just a short drive across the border from Foz do Iguaçu in Brazil. The falls are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Iguaçu National Park (Parque Nacional do Iguaçu), which contains the Brazilian side of Iguazu Falls, is the major draw to Foz do Iguaçu. This UNESCO World Heritage site is probably the most breathtaking natural wonder I have ever seen in my life. It puts Niagara Falls to shame!
On a small hill just outside of the historic town of Paraty sits Fort Perpetual Defender (Forte Defensor Perpétuo), the site of a 19th century fort. The road to the fort is a dirt path that’s a short, pleasant walk through a forest. The walk to the fort provides decent views of the UNESCO World Heritage city of Paraty.
While visiting the UNESCO World Heritage city of Paraty, the attraction is the old town itself. There are no must-sees and must-dos. Just walking up and down the cobblestone streets past colorful colonial buildings is enough to satisfy your senses. But watch your step! It’s easy to slip off the stones or get your feet caught between them.
A great day trip from Paraty took me to the nearby village of Trindade. The village itself has just one road going through town lined with restaurants and small pousadas, but the beaches around the town are incredible. Trindade is surrounded by national park land part of Serra da Bocaina, a UNESCO World Heritage site, making it a very undeveloped place.
All of the tour companies in Paraty will offer jeep trips to waterfalls located in Serra da Bocaina National Park (Parque Nacional da Serra da Bocaina), a UNESCO World Heritage site. I highly recommend it.
Paraty (pronounced para-CHEE) is an open-air museum of Portuguese colonialism in Brazil. Wandering the cobblestone streets, visiting the art galleries and shops, and eating at one of the many good restaurants in town is well worth a visit for a day.
The longest and best boat tour I took on Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was the full island tour (Volta à Ilha). It takes visitors around the entire island in a speedboat, beginning and ending at Vila do Abraão. In my opinion, this boat tour stopped at the most beautiful beaches on the island. It should cost about R$220 (as of June 2024).