8 Day Tour to Medellin Colombia - July 19 - 26, 2025
Cost of the tour is $2,000 per person, all-inclusive, or $3,700 per couple, sharing a room. Sign up here
This 8 day tour of Medellin, Colombia and surrounding area is super popular. Known as the city of perpetual spring, the weather is very pleasant. We'll tour Medellin and the surrounding area to understand why it's become the second largest city in Colombia. We take a walking tour to get a glimpse at the Narco world of Pablo Escobar, but most Paisas (a nickname for those from Medellin) would like to forget this terrible time in the history of Medellin. Leaders have transformed this city, like Fernando Botero, a famous sculptor who donated a large number of giant bronze statues to the city but only if they were displayed outdoors for all to enjoy for free.
We'll be staying in Laurales, renowned for its diverse culinary scene, with numerous cafes, restaurants, and bars where you can savor both traditional Colombian dishes and international cuisine. The neighborhood is also home to several parks and green spaces, providing a peaceful retreat from the bustling city life. Its central location allows easy access to many of Medellin's top attractions, ensuring that our stay is both comfortable and convenient, while enabling us to visit many of the popular tourist areas in the region. We'll tour Poblado, a popular destination for expats looking for upscale living, dining and shopping. The New York Times put Poblado as one of the top 52 places in the world to visit. We visit El Castillo, a Medieval Gothic Castle built for Jose Tobon Uribe, Parque Arvi, a biosphere park, home to the smallest orchid in the world. We'll tour the botanical gardens, but there's plenty of flora a fauna throughout the city. Medellin is renowned for the parks, greenspace, rivers and waterfalls that traverse the city. There's an area in Poblado known as Provenza, cited as one of the nicest streets in the world, loaded with outdoor cafes, in a jungle like environment. Medellin is also loaded with rooftop bars and restaurants, with Envy Bar noted as the best in Provenza, located at the top of the Charles hotel.
We'll be taking the subway, cable cars and taxis, to get a locals view of this world-class city. Medellin is the only city in Colombia to have a mass public transport system, five main metro lines, 5 connecting gondolas, a rubber wheeled tram system and connecting bus routes. The gondolas provide access to the hills surrounding Medellin and allow access to many areas previously inaccessible to public transportation. We take the metro to Comuna 13. This area had the highest murder rate in Medellin in the 1990’s, as drug cartels and terrorists reigned under and after the death of Pablo Escobar. In October of 2002, the government raided the Comuna and many lost their lives in the conflict, but the area was rid of conflict. Around the same time, the metro arrived to Comuna 13 and the government built a series of escalators to access the hills above the city, making a 45 minute climb into a 6 minute easy ride. The neighborhood has now become a symbol of peace in Medellin, adorned by massive graffiti projects depicting the struggle and peaceful end. It is now a hip place to visit, with street art, performers, art galleries, shops, restaurants and views of the city below.
We also take a day trip to Guatape, visiting el Penol, a huge granite monolith that juts 656 feet into the air, with a chance to climb all 740 steps to the top. In 1956, Luis Eduardo Villegas López & 2 friends climbed the rock, and Lopez ultimately bought the rock from local farmers. He masterfully crafted stairs into a large crack in the rock, charging visitors to climb the 740 steps to the top. The views of the lake formed when the valley was flooded to create the largest hydro-electric plant in Colombia, are amazing. We visit the town of Guatape, noted for colorful and whimsical facades and take a boat ride on the lake.
We continue to tour around Medellin, visiting Laureles, Lleras and surrounding areas. We also visit El Centro, to visit El Hueco (the hole) a huge shopping area with city blocks of shops selling everything under the sun. El Hueco is worth a visit since I have never seen so many knock off US and world products that appear to be genuine but based on price, clearly are not. It's fascinating to see.
Medellin has some great restaurants and we’ll dine in style. We’ll also see some great street performers, visit some of the many outdoor parks in Medellin, which makes the city so live-able. We'll see all that this city has to offer, Medellin offers super affordable living in a emerging world class city, the 2nd largest in Colombia. 3 bedroom apartments in newer buildings loaded with amenities are priced below $200,000. The average per capita income in Colombia, at less than $8,000 annually, makes this city very affordable.
For more information on this tour and to sign up, visit
Our next Medellin, Colombia tour is scheduled for February 19 - 25, 2024, and open to men only. The cost of this tour is $1350 per person in a single room, complete with Jacuzzi, or $1,450 from February 18 - 25. The tour includes all entry fees, all transportation within Colombia, all lodging, some meals (there will be times you will want to eat on your own), all entrance and activity fees. There will be an optional language exchange meet up and salsa lesson, not included in the tour fee. Lodging choices may change based on availability. If you arrive early or want to stay later, you are on your own for those bookings but we can extend your visit in advance on either end. The tour does not include alcoholic beverages.
These tours are mostly about why Medellin has become so popular. We also visit some of the more popular areas of Poblado, Llera, and Laureles. I'll also present a bit of information about staying safe in Medellin and what not to do. We'll also look at the real estate market in and around Medellin and the options on living there, immigration, etc., just to provide an education about the market, the different classes of properties available, the potential effect of currency fluctuations on real estate, the opportunities and challenges in buying property in a foreign country, an overview of what to look out for and what realtors won't tell you there. Again, the tour is simply tourism but why not get an education in international real estate as a bonus, from someone who's lived abroad and owned rental properties in multiple countries. Many Americans are now choosing to own investment property or retire outside the US and Medellin is a new popular destination. This trip will give you a great overview of this great city, the second largest in Colombia. Note: The elevation of Medellin is roughly 6,000 feet so do be aware of the altitude. The bottom picture of Pablo behind bars is a photo slider, click the arrows to see more photos.
This Tour is likely to sell out...
