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Arrival
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The nearer of Belo Horizonte's two
airports
is Pampulha (tel 031/3490-2001), 9km from the centre and connected by bus #1202. All short-haul flights and an increasing number of flights from further afield arrive here. The much newer Aeroporto Tancredo Neves (tel 031/3689-2700), usually refered to as Confins, the name of the nearby town, was designed to take most air traffic away from Pampulha, but its distance from the city (well over 30km, and connected by a bad road) has made it unpopular with passengers and airlines alike. Confins is linked to the centre by
airport buses
that leave you either at the RodoviA?ria (the
A?nibus convencional;
$1) or at the tourist centre, Terminal TurAstico JK, west along Avenida Amazonas (the faster, air-conditioned
A?nibus executivo;
$5). Both buses have rather erratic timetables (every 20min at best, every 2hr at worst) and take about an hour; if you're departing by plane, phone in advance to check departure times (
convencional
tel 031/3271-1335;
executivo
tel 031/3271-4522).
Taxis
to the city centre cost around $10 from Pampulha or $25 from Confins; there are desks in the arrivals areas from where you can purchase vouchers at rates fixed according to your destination.
The
RodoviA?ria
is on PraA§a Rio Branco, an easy walk from the commercial centre of the city, and offers direct bus services to most significant destinations in the country. The information desk (tel 031/3201-8933) can provide details of times and fares. Nearby is the Edwardian
train station
(tel 031/3273-5488) on PraA§a da EstaA§A?o (also called PraA§a Rui Barbosa), a significant sight in its own right. Apart from the local metrA? commuter service, only one line out of Belo Horizonte has survived the post-privatization cuts of the 1990s, namely the daily connection with VitA?ria on the coast, now owned by the giant industrial combine Companhia do Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD). It's an interminably slow but fascinating ride through the industrial heartland of eastern Minas (via Governador Valadares), taking about fourteen hours, much of it following the valley of the Rio Doce (see listings for information on departures from Belo Horizonte and buying tickets). Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Brazil,
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