From the colonial time, Mines emphasize in the country by their culture. plastic music, architecture, Literature and arts are some of the sectors cultivated successfully by the artists of the state. In the cities of the circuit of gold, where the mining music of century XVIII bloomed, the constructions of centuries XVII and XVIII conserve and express the art of baroque mineiro. Most famous of these cities, Ouro Preto was scene of the Inconfidência Mineira, first movement in favor of the independence of Brazil and, along with today Adamantine and the Sanctuary of the Good Jesus de Matosinhos, in Congonhas do Field, is recognized by UNESCO like Patrimonies of the Humanity.

The territories of Mines also offer waters to us of the São river Francisco, strategic hydric resource for the regional development.

Mines occupy 588,000 km2s of the Brazilian territory, extension superior to the one of countries like France (544,000 km2s) or of Japan (378,000 km2s). In spite of being the national producing major of coffee and milk, the farming sector represents only 14.1% of its GIP. The industrial sector, with an ample and variable park, responds at the moment of 26.3% of the production of the state, the mining and the metallurgy is between the main activities of the sector, next to the automobile one. 59.9% rest of the GIP are divided between financial services, commerce and establishments, among others.

Belo Horizonte, created to replace Ouro Preto like State Capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte is one of the few planned Brazilian cities. Located to an altitude of 858 M.s, its construction beginning in 1893 and four years later was inaugurated with the name of Cidade of Mines. When planning it, Aarão engineers Reis and Francisco Bicalho were inspired by the city-planning plan of Washington DC (EE.UU.).
Belo Horizonte is the fourth city of the country in population. Its metropolitan region is formed by 20 municipalities.

• Neoclassic and modern sets architectonic that are in the city, emphasizing the Set of Pampulha, soothes of first and revolutionary works of Oscar Niemeyer, the Brazilian architect more well-known. In its complex, protected by the historical patrimony, they are the Church of São Francisco de Assis, the Museu de Arte de Belo Horizonte, the Iate Clube, the House of Dance, the House of Juscelino Kubitschek, soothes of the Fundação Zoo, the monument to Iemanjá and the stages Mineirão and Mineirinho.
• Palace gives Liberdade, soothes of the government of the state. Constructed in neoclassic style, it is been from the influence exerted in the Brazilian architecture by a French mission that visited the country at the end of the past century.
• Museums of Historical Mineralogy and the Palace give Arts, located within the Municipal Park, with modern theaters, cinemas, stores of crafts and space for plastic exhibitions of arts.
• Park of Mangabeiras, located to few km of the city, in the Serra do Curra, this park provides a superb view of the capital, with an extension of 2.35 million of m2, which 900,000 m2 are of native vegetation, it is lived by more than 100 species of birds and 10 species different from mammals.

• Ouro Petro, designated Patrimony of the Humanity by UNESCO, the city of Ouro Preto (Black Gold) constitutes one of the most homogenous and complete sets of baroque art of the world, turns that it into one of the most beautiful cities of the world. Located to 93 km of Belo Horizonte, it was founded on 1698. In this area it was where they found gold black, covered of a famous palladium layer and by his special quality, as of that moment there was a great migratory flow until this earth coming from different states of Brazil and Portugal. The 20 of March of 1823, emperor Pedro I, homenajeando to this place, granted the title of Imperial city to the City of Ouro Preto. Capital of the province, during the Empire, with the Republic (1889) Ouro Preto became the State Capital of Minas Gerais. Then, the desire of change, stimulated by the new regime, caused that the miners constructed the city of Belo Horizonte to be soothes of the government of the State. Ouro Preto could thus be preserved like city monument, title that received from president Getúlio Vargas in 1933. In 1938, the city completely happened to be considered Patrimony Historical and Artistic National. 1980, one became the first Brazilian cultural good enrolled in the list of the Patrimony of the Humanity established by UNESCO.

  During century XVIII, the abundance of gold, easily found at heart of the rivers and streams of the region, produced the embellishment of the city designed on hills of two colossal mountains. Great artists, like the Portuguese sculptor Francisco Xavier de Brito, participated in this intense activity. Aleijadinho is the greater Brazilian artist of the colonial period that bequeathed to the country a matchless inheritance by the genius of its dimensions. In Ouro Preto, where it was born and it died (1738-1814), it must to him the architectonic and artistic splendor of the Church of São Francisco de Assis. In century XVIII, the religious orders multiplied the constructions in Ouro Preto, and each tried to do of its richest and pretty church of the city. With gold of the city they hid, inside the churches, true treasures in altars decorated with statures sea breams. With “pedra-sabão�, local raw material, replaced the European marble and found original solutions for the decoration of each one of the churches. Behind the simple facades they raised twisted columns and they escupieron angels, mythological, holy beings and Biblical scenes.

  The churches of Our Lady of the Pillar and Our Lady of the Conception, exponents of the baroque one of the first stage (Portuguese national style), reveal the exuberance and abundance of the stature, between average dozen of temples that narrate the saga of the creativity of the miners. In spite of constituting magnificent examples, the churches are not the unique patrimony of Ouro Preto. Stone bridges, sources and big rambling houses comprise of the historical atmosphere of the city. The House of the Opera (1770) is the oldest theater in operation of America. The House of Stories (1784), notable example of the civil architecture of century XVIII, emphasizes among the ouropretanas houses. The Palace of the Governors (1740) and the City council and the Jail (1784), today Museu gives Inconfidência (Museum of the Disloyalty), demarcate the Tiradentes Place, center of the city. Aleijadinho and Tiradentes are two great personalities of Ouro Preto. The cultural tourism, on the other hand, is the socioeconomic answer to the arduous tasks of preservation of the old capital of Minas Gerais.

• Mariana, was the first city, capital, town and soothes of the bishopric of the state of Minas Gerais. Its origin went a small village to borders of the stream of the Carmo established in 1703 by desbravadores that looked for a run strategic place for the incipient one of gold in the zone. Great part of the historical and cultural patrimony is throughout the streets of the city, represented in beautiful large houses, places and churches. The house of the Baron do Pontal, is example of it, by its beautiful balconies carved in pedra-sabão (steatite). The Cathedral gives I know and the church of San Francisco de Asís counts on primorosas works of the typical colonial art of Minas Gerais.

• Conghonas do Field, the Sanctuary of the Good Jesus de Matosinhos began to be constructed in 1757, in the then Parish of Our Lady of the Conception of the Congonhas (congonhas = shrubs of mate), today Congonhas do Field, by the Portuguese Feliciano Mendes, in accordance with a promise that did when it was afflicted of a disease that took working in the mines. Inspired by the sanctuaries of the Good Jesus de Matosinhos, in the environs of the city of Oporto, and the Good Jesus de Braga, both in Portugal, it took more than 60 years to erect the architectonic set, counting on the participation of the most remarkable artists and creators of the region of gold who made contributions diverse, responsible for the singular configuration reached in their time and turned that it into one of most extraordinary Brazilian monuments. Cerqueira, one of the most important architects than worked in Minas Gerais in second half of the century XVIII, went the one who provided to the temple the innovating solutions to him that created school in the region: unique ship, without more back having lateral corridors and salient towers to the sides of the ship and a little the plane of the frontispiece. Aleijadinho is also the author of the images of the Passages of the Passion, realized between 1796 and 1799, that integrate the stations of the Way Crucis, arranged in the six small chapels that follow one another throughout the hill of the Hill of Maranhão marking the limits of the vestibule of the church. World-wide Patrimony by UNESCO in 1985 was declared.

• Adamantine, land of Girl gives Whistles and of Juscelino Kubitschek, president of the country of 1956 to 1961, Adamantine one also conserves his small palaces and churches of the colonial time. The diamond has not been being of an abundant way since for three centuries, but still today there are finders that track the rivers, like the Jequitinhonha, in search of the precious stone. The Museu do Diamante, installed in a 1789 small palace, reunites a rich heap that counts the history of the mining in Brazil. Small palace of Girl gives Whistles, small palace that were inhabited by Girl gives Whistles, slave and mulata, and his enamored the powerful Joao Fernandes de Oliveira. The city is the tenth Brazilian patrimony declared by UNESCO like Patrimony of the Humanity.

• Araxá, famous locality by the therapeutic power of its waters, in addition in Araxá is a black mud, of volcanic origin, used to treat the reumatismo and the skin. The small city of Araxá also offers interesting tourist visits as Mata gives Cascatinha, the Museu Sacrum gives to Igreja de São Sebastião and the Museu Dona Beja.

• Poços de Calda, is possibly most famous of all the thermal stations, is 1184 M.s of altitude, on the crater of an extinguished volcano, offers sulfurous, ferruginous waters and radioactive, distributed in several sources of the city, some waters arrive at the surface to 45°C. The interest visits are the Nose do Christ Redeeming, with 1678 M.s of altitude and crossed by cableway. In the environs, are the cascades of Antas, 100 M.s of height, great beauty. The city is one of the main centers of crafts of crystal, brought to Brazil by Italian artists of the island of Murano (Venice).

• In the neighborhoods of Poços de Calda it is the city of Calda, famous by his wines and the Celebration of the Grape, that is celebrated every year in the second fortnight of January. He is in the Serra do Maranhão and is an ideal place for that wishes to rest, to admire beautiful landscapes or to practice eco-tourism or tourism of nature.

• São Lourenço is surrounded by the vegetation of the Serra gives Mantiqueira and offers several thermal sources.

• Cambuquira, very appreciated and frequented by its pure air, its climate, that always oscillate between the 10 and 26°C, and the waters whose “rareâ€? flavor was shortage by the fugitive slaves.
• Caxambu, also famous by its waters, we advised the visit to the Nose of Caxambu, to 1050 M.s of altitude has a viewpoint from which all the region is descried.

• Lambari, formerly call Virtuous Waters, forms a Water Park where are 4 very famous ferruginous and gaseous water sources by their effects for renal diseases, arteriosclerosis and arterial hypertension. In the neighborhood of Lambari beautiful cascades exist.

• Passa Quatro, also with extraordinary medicinal waters, is located to 911 M.s of altitude, surrounded by some by highest mountains of the state where the mountain climbing in Brazil practices.

•  The Grotto of Lapinha is located in the city of Lagoa Santa, has been formed does near 900 million years, were fossils, like the skull of the Homem de Lagoa Santa, esteem that has an antiquity of ten thousand years. With 511 M.s of extension and 40 M.s of depth, the grotto has 16 fantastic halls. In the Hall the Cathedral, images can be seen taking care of the imagination of the spectator.

• The Grotto of I schemed is in the city of Cordisburgo, to 130 km of Belo Horizonte. It has 650 M.s of extension. The stalactites form spectacular figures. The Gallery gives Fadas is of a special gentleness, with “shining crystalsâ€? forming strips, garlands and brightness. It is the major of the state, and in her also were human stones, bones and rest of prehistoric animal.

• The Grotto King do Mato is in the city of Sete Lagoas, to 62 km of Belo Horizonte. It has 998 M.s of extension, of which only 220 M.s are open to the public. It owns stalactites, stalagmites and cascades of stone with crystal brightness; still it is a grotto considered “aliveâ€? by the scientists, because it continues forming by the action of the water. In one of the halls, call is a suspended lake the Poço two Desejos, a spectacular place. The Salão gives Rarities must that name to that are there identical columns, parallel, formed by calcite crystals, with a diameter of 30 cms. and more than 20 M.s of height.