Having watched a few episodes of Narcos I was quite excited to venture off to Medellín, home of the infamous Pablo Escobar. Ten years later, Medellín has become one of the safest cities in Colombia with smiling and friendly locals at every turn. The city itself doesn’t really want to be known as Pablo town, but the pure history of this era is quite fascinating. If you have a chance to visit this beautiful place do so before the crowds of tourist find this hidden gem! Check here for your visa requirements.
Getting to Medellín
As with many South American destinations, Medellín is easy to get to from South Florida with direct flights from Miami or Fort Lauderdale airport. For this journey we opted for a direct flight on Avianca, a Colombian airline with reasonable pricing, great service and on time departures! Avoid Easter and Christmas holidays, these are times when many locals take vacation and venture out to other cities. If you travel outside of summer months you can usually get off peak pricing, use Google Flights to track your flight dates to get the best deal.
Weather in Medellín
Medellín sits between 3,200 – 6,500 feet above sea level making the average temperatures of 70°F. The good news is that you won’t have to be bundled up all day as the temperature rises around mid-day. Be sure to pack a scarf, a light jacket and a mix of spring time clothing. I know 70°F isn’t very cold at all but I’m allergic to any bit of cool temperature! The dry season in Medellín runs from December to March with a mini dry season from July to September. We visited at the beginning of September and caught a few early morning showers on our way to Guatapé but were graced with beautiful sunshine for the rest of the day! You really never know with the ever changing forecasts (they are hardly accurate!) but avoiding the heavy rainy season is probably your best bet.
Getting around
During our four day stay we hired a personal driver off a recommendation from a friend, probably the best decision we made! Our driver Reynaldo was warm, friendly and knowledgeable whose hospitality really made this trip memorable. He drove us to Guatapé, took us on city tours and dropped us to the airport. Having Reynaldo with us really gave insight into the history of Medellín and allowed us to sit back and relax while he brought us to all the main sites. You can reach Reynaldo on WhatsApp at +573148663820, or by email reinaldoguarin29@gmail.com. He speaks both English and Spanish a plus in Medellín as many people do not speak English.
We also used Uber and local taxis to get to bars and restaurants. Uber is slightly cheaper than traditional taxis but isn’t always available particularly at night.
Currency
COP 1000 = US$.35
Colombia is another inexpensive South American destination with accommodations and meals being reasonably priced. Carry a bit of local currency with you for souvenirs and other small items, use your credit card to pay for most items to avoid carrying around too much cash.
Where to stay
Staying loyal to the SPG brand, we stayed at the Four Points Sheraton just outside the city. The friendliness of the staff at this hotel was 5 star to say the least, particularly the incredibly helpful front desk agents. I got sick on the first night and needed some medication, the agents quickly called the pharmacy at 2am and hand delivered the medication to my room! Talk about exceptional service. The front desk also helped us book every tour, assisted us with translations and flagged down taxis for us each time. The hotel was also conveniently located next to a large mall and supermarket to grab anything you may need.
Our travel partners Roger and Denise opted to stay at an Air Bnb in a nearby swanky apartment building called Soul. Located in an upscale neighborhood, this Air Bnb was near all the local hot spots, restaurants and minutes away from the city.
Places to eat
One of the popular areas to eat and drink in the city is Poblado, known as the wealthiest neighborhood in the city. Lined with cute little wine shops and great eats I recommend just talking a quick walk up and down the streets, you are sure to find something really yummy! The Florez Food Garden was the first restaurant we visited with quirky decor, great healthy options at affordable prices. Get a seat on the upstairs patio for a nice street view! We also stopped for lunch at Natto, another cute restaurant with amazing food, decor and service. Some other places you can check out in the city are La Alambique and Mondongos.
Things to Do
Replica of El Peñol
About an hour outside the city on the way to Guatapé you will find the Replica of El Peñol, designed to give tourist insight into the original town flooded in the 1970s to create the Peñol-Guatapé reservoir. If you look closely during low tide you can actually see the tops of buildings submerged in water from the old city. Boat tours are available in the area if you have some time to go out onto the lake. You’ll find a small church, a few colorful buildings, and a quick restroom spot, be sure to have change to pay for the restroom.
Guatapé
We started our trip at 7:30am from Medellín to beat any traffic on the two hour drive over to Guatapé. Once arriving we took some time to relax, sip on some amazing Colombian coffee and enjoy a local breakfast overlooking Laguna Guatapé.
This small town is known as one of the most colorful cities in South America, spend a few hours exploring the picture perfect streets and the beautiful Zocalos, you won’t be disappointed! This is also another great spot to purchase souvenirs and unique items as memories from your journey here.
El Peñol “The Rock”
Believed to be the result of a volcanic eruption, Peñon de Guatepe stands over 7,000 feet above sea level. Getting to the top will take you about 20 minutes walking up 650 steps with a few rest stops along the way. Good news, there’s plenty of yummy ice cream, fresh fruit and amazing 360 views at the top! Entrance is COP 18,000 (US$6).
Tequendama Falls
Waterfalls are one of nature’s beauties that I try to explore in each country I visit. Salto Del Tequendamila is a unique free waterfall that our guide Ray recommended we stop at on our way back from Guatapé. Spray yourself down with bug spray before exiting the car, the mosquitos are definitely swarming all over this place! However, this waterfall is a beautiful site to see. You can also visit the hotel/museum nearby for COP 8000 to get a quick history of the area. 
Metrocable
In most cities cable cars are a tourist attraction, here in Medellín it is public transportation providing service to residents living in the mountain foothills that do not have easy access to typical bus routes. As a one of a kind mass transit system the Metrocable has a fixed service schedule and carries about 30,000 people daily. The full ride will take you less than 45 minutes giving you incredible views of the city. You can also use this to get to Parque Arvi by taking Line K to Santo Domingo and transferring to Line L. Learn more about this eco-tourism tour here.
Communa 13
Once deemed one of the most dangerous places in the city, Communa 13 has turned into a vibrant community full of beautifully painted murals, think Wywood walls in Miami on top a beautiful mountainside! You can book a tour through the walls with a team of local guides but due to our tight schedule we decided to walk around on our own.
At the top of the murals you can feast on an authentic snow cone, listen to local tunes and watch street performers. We were lucky enough to meet one of the artist, Chota 13 who founded this amazing new area of the city. Contact him to get your very own unique mural painted to bring home. 
Fly Colombia city tour
Book early! This tour generally fills up very quickly, we were lucky to get a last minute opening with Fly Colombia on our last day. Arrive 30 minutes early to go through security and be sure to have your passport with you. Once going through security, we walked over to the office where we had a short safety review with a few snacks.
The helicopter tour lasted about 15 min giving you an amazing bird’s eye view of the city. The price for this tour was a bit steep at US$80 each and not something I would consider a must do but if you want some aerial views this is the place to do it!
The Monaco building
Throughout our city tour Ray was able to show us bits and pieces of Pablo Escobar’s life one of them being The Monaco building, his family residence. Unfortunately you can only peak through the gates of this impressive property from the outside, no one has been allowed inside for many years with the government seeking to demolish it as soon as possible. Get here quick before this piece of history is removed.
Parque Lleras
Located in the popular tourist area of Medellín Parque Lleras is the night life district of the town with numerous restaurants, clubs and bars. It is known to be an area where the young and wealthy locals hang out, take a drink at a roadside bar and just people watch. If you’d like to visit a club, don’t forget to bring your ID as they will check this at the door, 18 and over only!
Things I missed
If you are an avid Pablo enthusiast your itinerary can easily get booked with all things Narcos. Unfortunately due to our short trip (4 days) we weren’t able to see everything, but here’s an additional list of items you can choose to add to your to do list!
- Paintballing at Escobar’s Mansion in Guatapé
- The Kings Ranch (one of Pablo’s former residences)
- Pablo Escobar Museum in Medellín, owned and operated by his brother
- Pablo’s Gravesite
- Rooftop where Pablo got shot
- Botero Statue Park
- Tango Tour
See more of our Journey!
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