New Vila Galé Collection hotel in Ouro Preto

Vila Galé’s first hotel in Minas Gerais will be in Ouro Preto

The announcement was made on Thursday evening (18th) at Dom Bosco School, where the Vila Galé Collection Ouro Preto will be located. The investment is R$ 80 million.

Vila Galé Hotels and the Government of Minas Gerais officially announced the opening of a hotel in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, on Thursday 18th May. The group’s first unit in the State of Minas Gerais will be located in the former Dom Bosco School, in the district of Cachoeira do Campo, the most populous in the municipality. The investment will amount to R$ 80 million, generating 120 permanent direct jobs and 600 indirect jobs.

The official ceremony was attended by the Vila Galé group’s founder and CEO, Jorge Rebelo de Almeida, the Government of Minas Gerais, the Salesian representatives, Deivisson Costa and Father Moacir Scari, the Mayor of Ouro Preto, Ângelo Oswaldo, among other important guests.

“We are very happy to have our first hotel in this State so rich in culture and history. We will do what gives me the most pleasure: the conversion of historical heritage, it will be a countryside resort with a great gastronomic and entertainment offer, especially for families with children”, says Jorge Rebelo de Almeida.

The new hotel is integrated in a massive 195-hectare area where experimental areas of vineyards and olive groves, ecological trails with waterfalls, among others, will be built

The Dom Bosco School is a historical building listed by the State Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage of Minas Gerais. The building will be restored and will be part of the Collection line, composed by boutique hotels, which emphasize exclusivity, culture, and art.

For the Secretary of State for Culture and Tourism of Minas Gerais, Leônidas Oliveira, the arrival of Vila Galé in Ouro Preto will benefit not only the city’s residents, but the entire population of Minas Gerais. “A venture of this scale, with Portugal’s second largest hotel chain, will further project Minas Gerais in the country and internationally. The arrival of Vila Galé is extremely important for the state because it tends to boost its creative economy and the entire tourism network that it supports, generating jobs and income throughout the territory”, says Leônidas.

Structure

The unit will have 182 rooms in the first stage and 46 more in the second stage, two restaurants, two bars, seven convention rooms, an auditorium, chapel, library, game room, Satsanga Spa with heated indoor pool, and NEP Kids Club with a water park, among other attractions.

Vila Galé hotels are themed and linked to culture and art. This particular unit will house a Dom Bosco School Memorial and a Military Police Memorial, which were previously set in this building.

The restoration and expansion work should start in the last quarter of this year. The opening is scheduled for 30th December 2024.

Heritage Preservation

The bridge between the Salesians and Vila Galé was planned by Invest Minas because, on the one hand, the Dom Bosco School was an unused heritage site with the potential to become a tourist attraction. On the other hand, Vila Galé has extensive expertise in the tourism sector. Of the chain’s 41 hotels, eight are in historic buildings that have been restored: Vila Galé Collection Braga, Vila Galé Collection Palácio dos Arcos, Vila Galé Collection Elvas, Vila Galé Collection Alter Real, Vila Galé Albacora, Vila Galé Rio de Janeiro, Vila Galé Collection S. Miguel, Vila Galé Collection Tomar.

This number should reach 10 hotels with the Vila Galé Collection Sunset Cumbuco, which is scheduled to open at the end of 2024, and the Vila Galé Collection Ouro Preto.