Goiás, often called the City of Goiás, is the former capital of Goiás state and one of central Brazil's best preserved colonial towns. It began as Vila Boa during the eighteenth-century gold rush, when bandeirantes pushed into the interior and built churches, administrative houses, and narrow streets along the Red River.
The historic centre is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is smaller and quieter than Goiânia, the planned capital that replaced it in the 1930s, but that is exactly the appeal. The old town still feels like a place shaped by gold, Catholic processions, red-tiled roofs, and the hot, dry edge of the cerrado.
Most visits are simple: walk the historic centre, stop at the Bandeiras Museum, visit the Cora Coralina House, and sit out the fiercest afternoon heat somewhere shaded. Goiás works as a long day trip from Goiânia, but an overnight stay gives the town its best hours.