Belo Horizonte to Passos Road Trip: Route, Stops & Drive Time

By admin, 13 October, 2026

By road, Belo Horizonte and Passos are about 217 miles (349 km) apart, or roughly 4 h 46 min of driving.

U.S. State Department travel advisory: Brazil — Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution
  • Level 4: Do Not Travel in Brazil: informal housing developments (favelas, vilas, comunidades or conglomerados).

Full advisory: Brazil. Advisory issued: Brazil August 31, 2026; checked October 10, 2026.

On the roads, the State Department says:

  • Brazil: “Road maintenance is inadequate in many areas.”
Serra do Rola-Moça State ParkFrancisco Firmo de Mattos Filho Cultural CenterCasa de CacosVale VerdeMuseu Municipal Francisco Manoel FrancoHoly Spirit Cathedral, DivinópolisCachoeira da CapivaraBelo HorizontePassos
Route from Belo Horizonte to Passos with the 7 stops listed below (blue dots).
Distance by road217 mi (349 km)
Driving time, no stops4 h 46 min
Main roads, in orderBR-381 → BR-262 → MG-050
States on the routeMinas Gerais
Fuel estimate (car at 25 mpg)about 8.7 gal; actual use varies by vehicle and traffic
Stops listed below7

On the road from Belo Horizonte to Passos

MG-050 (184 mi) and BR-262 (14 mi) carry about 91% of the 217 miles. Of the 7 stops listed below, 1 are within a mile of the road.

Road-by-road breakdown: Belo Horizonte to Passos

RoadRoute miles (from–to)Length, miState
local roads0–77Minas Gerais
BR-3817–169Minas Gerais
BR-26216–3014Minas Gerais
MG-05030–214184Minas Gerais
local roads214–2173Minas Gerais

Stops between Belo Horizonte and Passos

  • Right off the route (under 1 mile): Museu Municipal Francisco Manoel Franco (mile 48)
  • Nature and outdoors: Serra do Rola-Moça State Park (mile 8), Cachoeira da Capivara (mile 190)
  • Museums and history: Francisco Firmo de Mattos Filho Cultural Center (mile 12), Casa de Cacos (mile 12), Museu Municipal Francisco Manoel Franco (mile 48), Holy Spirit Cathedral, Divinópolis (mile 71)

Serra do Rola-Moça State Park

Mile 8 · State park · 6 mi from the route · side trip; actual detour depends on access roads

On the edge of metropolitan Belo Horizonte, Serra do Rola-Moça State Park protects rugged ridges of the Espinhaço range where cerrado savanna meets Atlantic Forest.

Francisco Firmo de Mattos Filho Cultural Center

Mile 12 · Museum · 3 mi from the route · side trip; actual detour depends on access roads

The Centro Cultural Francisco Firmo de Mattos Filho is a public museum set in three historic buildings in Contagem, remnants of the town's original Portuguese Crown tax post.

Casa de Cacos

Mile 12 · Museum · 2 mi from the route · side trip; actual detour depends on access roads

Casa de Cacos in Contagem is a museum and an example of fantastic architecture, built and decorated entirely by geologist Carlos Luís de Almeida and considered the only one of its kind in Brazil.

Vale Verde

Mile 25 · Distillery · 2 mi from the route

Vale Verde Parque Ecológico sits in the municipality of Betim, Minas Gerais, on a farm with a still where Cachaça Vale Verde is produced.

Museu Municipal Francisco Manoel Franco

Mile 48 · Museum · 0.5 mi from the route

In Itaúna, Minas Gerais, this municipal museum occupies the old railway station, which served trains from its opening in 1917 until passenger service through the town ended in 1986.

Holy Spirit Cathedral, Divinópolis

Mile 71 · Cathedral · 2 mi from the route

The Holy Spirit Cathedral in Divinópolis, Minas Gerais, is the Roman Catholic church that serves as seat of the Diocese of Divinópolis.

Cachoeira da Capivara

Mile 190 · Waterfall · 1 mi from the route

In Capitólio, the Ribeirão da Capivara spills over this waterfall on its way into Furnas Lake. A trail of about 900 meters leads to the falls, which drop into a pool roughly 16 meters deep.

More drives to Passos

From Belo Horizonte to other places in Brazil

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to drive from Belo Horizonte to Passos?

About 4 h 46 min of driving without stops, over 217 miles.

How far is Passos from Belo Horizonte by car?

About 217 miles (349 km) on the Wayro route. Other map services may show a few miles more or less, depending on where they start and end in each city.

Is it safe to drive from Belo Horizonte to Passos?

The U.S. State Department rates Brazil Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution. Read the full advisory before you go.

Which highways go from Belo Horizonte to Passos?

In order: BR-381, BR-262 and MG-050. The road-by-road table above shows the route miles for each one.

What are good stops between Belo Horizonte and Passos?

Closest to the road: Vale Verde (distillery, mile 25, 2 mi from the route); Museu Municipal Francisco Manoel Franco (museum, mile 48, 0.5 mi from the route); Cachoeira da Capivara (waterfall, mile 190, 1 mi from the route). All stops are described above.

How we put this guide together

Wayro calculates the route from OpenStreetMap road data; mile numbers are positions along this route, not highway markers, and "from the route" distances are straight-line, so the real detour depends on access roads. Stops are chosen from parks, natural sites, museums, historic sites and attractions close to the route: at least one strong stop for each stretch of the drive, then the best-known places nearest the road, up to nine in all. Places that are closed, private or not open to visitors are removed. Place descriptions are written by the Wayro team from official park, museum, tourism and government websites and other published sources. Safety levels and entry rules were checked against the U.S. Department of State on October 10, 2026. Conditions change, so check the linked sources before you travel.

Route data © OpenStreetMap contributors.