Tiradentes
Colonial Gold Rush Town In Minas Gerais At The Foot Of The Serra De SãO José, Protected As National Heritage · Tiradentes, Minas Gerais
Tiradentes is a small colonial town in the south of Minas Gerais, built during the eighteenth-century gold rush at the foot of the Serra de São José, and it is one of the best-preserved and most charming towns in Brazil. Its cobbled streets of whitewashed houses climb to the Matriz de Santo Antônio, a baroque church with an interior thick with gold leaf and a façade attributed to Aleijadinho. The town takes its name from the dentist and revolutionary Tiradentes, leader of the failed 1789 independence plot, who was born nearby. Today it is known above all for food: the town is packed with restaurants serving refined versions of Minas cooking, and hosts a well-known gastronomy festival and a film festival each year. A steam train, the Maria Fumaça, runs the old line to São João del-Rei. Tiradentes is a favourite weekend escape for people from Belo Horizonte, Rio and São Paulo, which makes it busy and pricey at weekends and serene during the week.
Centro Histórico, Tiradentes, MG, Tiradentes, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Tiradentes is a town and its streets are always open, but its sights keep short daytime hours. The churches and small museums open from morning to late afternoon, often close for lunch, and many are shut on Mondays, which catches out visitors who arrive on a long weekend and plan the churches for the last day. The Matriz de Santo Antônio charges a small entry and can close for weddings and services. The Maria Fumaça steam train runs on a fixed timetable, mainly Friday to Sunday and on holidays, with few or no departures midweek, and it is suspended at times for maintenance - confirm before planning a day around it. The January film festival and the annual gastronomy festival fill every pousada. Good restaurants close between lunch and dinner and need bookings at weekends.