The village of São Gonçalo do Rio Preto was built around its chapel up until the moment that the local parish was established, according to its royal charter that dates from 1820. Situated in the Alto do Jequitinhonha region at a distance of 56 kilometers from the city of Diamantina, this small municipality is surrounded by beautiful landscapes.

He who visits São Gonçalo do Rio Preto will find conditions that are ideal for ecotourism. The municipality harbors the Parque Estadual do Rio Preto (Rio Preto State Park), which is the town’s main tourist attraction. The park’s infrastructure is excellent, and it contains many waterfalls, hiking trails and even cave inscriptions, in addition to a biodiversity, which is ecologically significant, that has unique specimens of totally preserved flora and fauna.

The Praia do Lapeiro (Lapeiro Beach) is another big attraction. It’s situated a kilometer from the center of the town and has facilities that permit visitors to play beach soccer, beach volleyball and peteca (a typical Brazilian sport of indigenous origins), in addition to bars and a restaurant.