in fact, being the town a main passage way to campos and macaé, fishing became the main economy of the area until the mid nineteenth century - the development of the area and the construction of the amaral peixoto highway officially made rio das ostras an important touristic destination, leading to the town's emancipation from the nearby municipality of casimiro de abreu.

since its political emancipation in april 1992, rio das ostras has grown about 10% a year, the most out of any municipality in its state - in the last few years rio das ostras has received r$ 1 billion in investments for infrastructure, to benefit the residents as well as the visitors.

yet, to protect the town from the impact of industrialization, the city keeps business activity separate from the residential and touristic zones - this is done to protect the population's quality of life, and to safeguard the visitors' enjoyment of the beautiful landscapes while maintaining a separate viable and modern infrastructure for the business community.