I will have one day in Belo Horizonte to do touristy stuff while I'm there on business. Any suggestions? Leaving next week!

Thanks!

Go to Ouro Preto for a day if you can.

Pampulha on the outskirts of the city is a really interesting place to visit. We took a bus and it was roughly 20 minutes to get there.

It's designed by Oscar Niemeyer around an artificial lake. There's a Ball Room, an art gallery that used to be a casino, as well as a Church and two stadia.

You can do both in a 8-9 hour day. I was in Belo several times but not lately so I do not know what it would cost to hire a taxi driver with A/C to make the trip easier and done in 6 hours. It would be great to find one who speaks some English but if you go through the hotel it often is 3 times what you might otherwise pay. Beware of street sellers trying to sell you cut stones often rolled in white paper. You have no idea of quality, whether they have been irridated to enhance color and are anywhere near the carat size they say they are. Best place to buy is at H. Stern's store. Their prices were a good deal lower in Brazil than in their US stores.

Ouro Preto would be my choice or one day. Pampulha is a nice park, but just that... a city park. Nothing compared to Ouro Preto: this was the capital of Brazil during colonial times, it is rich in history, architecture, churches, etc... It is a photographer's delight. Definitely, Ouro Preto. You don't need a car, you will probably be better off by taking a bus at the Belo Horizonte's Bus Station. Obviously, if you prefer to splurge and enjoy the comfort of a car, ....

Sorry, but Pampulha is a lot more than a park! The Niemeyer buildings are really worth seeing and the Museum has very good exhibitions. It's often posed as the practice run for the design of Brasilia.

I am not saying it isn`t worth visiting.

If however I were to choose between Pampulha (with Niemeyer, the Mineirao, the lake, the little church, and everything else in it) and Ouro Preto, I wouldn`t blink an eye in my choice.

Any of the other historical cities around Belo Horizonte, such as Congonhas, Sao Joao del Rey, Sabara and Mariana will outrank Pampulha by far and large.

The historical cities around Belo Horizonte are internationally ranked as tourist destination centres where as Pampulha, as I said before, is essentially just a city park.