After recently doing a lot of town hopping – Salento, Jardín and Guatapé – it was time to return to a big city: Medellín.
Not so long ago, Medellín used to be considered the most dangerous city in the world and an absolute no go area for tourists and backpackers. In the past decade, Medellín has really undergone a giant transformation from the violent Pablo Escobar days to a much safer modern place. It felt unlike any Colombian city I’d visited.
Aside from my usual wandering around, the Real City walking tour and visiting Comuna 13 were the main things I got up to.
Real City Walking Tour
As a city, Medellín lacks a historic centre that its fellow cities, Cartagena and Bogota, have. Whilst it may lack in historic buildings and cobbled streets, it has a dark recent past that reinforced Colombia’s dangerous and violent drug fuelled reputation, and which made Medellín the most dangerous city in the world.
Real City’s walking tour is the walking tour to do in Medellín for the above reason. It takes you around the downtown area explaining Medellín’s violent history with Pablo Escobar at the helm and how and, in what ways, the city has undergone a massive transformation in the last decades.
Some examples of the transformation are:
- The metro which connects the city together. Medellin is the only Colombian city with one and locals are very proud of it. It’s the cleanest metro I’ve been on – no one eats or drinks! No litter at all!
- Outdoor escalators in Comuna 13. Once the city’s most dangerous neighbourhood, it’s now more connected to the rest of the city.
- Buildings that previously were places of crime have been repurposed and reopened as libraries, ministery of education…
I found it really interesting and well worth doing. A few other things that intrigued me:
- No one ever said Pablo Escobar’s name on the tour. He was referred to as ‘Voldemort’.
- The drug industry continues growing with international demand. The main difference is that there’s no one well known figure controlling it all as there was before.
- Colombian opinion of Pablo Escobar can be divided into three groups: those that like him, those that don’t and those that are indifferent. According to our guide, those that like him or are indifferent are bigger groups than you’d expect.
Tour: There are a limited number of places. You need to sign up online for a day and time slot. Sign up opens a day and a half in advance. It’s a free tour so based on tips at the end.
Comuna 13
In a dangerous city, Comuna 13 was the most dangerous neighbourhood, isolated from the rest of city on steep hills. These days it’s much more connected to the rest of Medellín with the outdoor escalators, turning an half an hour uphill climb to a five minute ride, and San Javier metro station. There’s plenty of street art, murals and dance performers around the immediate escalator area.
I caught the metro to San Javier station and joined a Comuna 13 tour. I was there at the weekend and there were so many people there! I parted from the tour halfway through to wander the main stretch myself and I felt safe doing so. That said, Comuna 13 isn’t suddenly squeaky clean, so do be aware of your surroundings and stick to the main tourist area around the escalators!
How to get to Medellín
You can reach Medellín from many places.
Note: Colombia is a big country so bus journeys will be long (from Bogota, Cali, Cartagena). Sometimes it’s worth checking out flights. For similar prices, you’ll have a much quicker journey!
By plane
Domestic flights with VivaAir and Wingo are cheap so flying from Cali, Cartagena and Bogota are options as is Santa Marta and Bucaramanga.
By bus
Colombia has a good bus network. Distances are long so be prepared for long journeys. In fact, night buses will often be the best choice time wise.
From the south
Salento
If you’re coming from Salento, you have two options: one direct and the other indirect.
The direct route from Salento to Medellín is with the bus company, Flota Occidental. They have a direct bus service that runs several times daily, costs 54,000COP and takes around 6/7hrs.
The indirect route for Salento to Medellín involves going via Armenia. Two bus companies run the route: Flota Occidental and Empresa Arauca. Empresa Arauca is a teensy bit cheaper (47,000COP vs 49,000COP – basically nothing!), but Flota Occidental have buses departing every hour (on the half hour) which is really handy! The journey takes around 7/8hrs and costs between 47,000-49,000COP depending on bus company.
Jardín
From Jardín there are multiple bus departures a day to Medellín’s Terminal Sur with the companies Rapida Ochoa and Transportes Suroeste Antioqueño.
The journey takes around 4hrs and costs 27,000COP (£7 approx). The minivans with Transportes Suroeste Antioqueño cost a teensy bit more, 30,000COP.
Bogota
From Bogota, the bus journey to Medellín is approximately 9hs. Expreso Brasilia are one of the companies that drive the route and their tickets cost 60,000COP (£15 approx). For nearly the same price, flying is also a possibility!
Cali
From Cali, a bus will take around 10hrs. Tickets with Bolivariano generally cost 43,000COP on their website. You may get cheaper at the bus terminal.
From the north
Bucaramanga
If you’ve been in San Gil and/or Barichara, you’ll first need to get a 3hr colectivo to Bucaramanga. TransSander drive the route; their vans leave every 20/30mins, cost 18,000COP (£4ish) and take 3hrs approx.
You’ll then need to take a bus to Medellín from Bucaramanga.
It’s around a 9-10hr journey, and could be longer – so a night bus may be your best bet. Two bus companies that drive the route are Copetran and Bolivariano and tickets seem to cost somewhere between 50,000-70,000COP (£10-15 approx).
Cartagena
From one city to another, the bus from Cartagena to Medellín is a long one. The journey in theory takes 10hrs, however I’ve heard people recently saying it’s more like 15/16hrs. If it’s that long, it’s worth looking into a flight which you can find for £20 sometimes.
Santa Marta
If you’re heading to Medellín from the northern coast (Palomino, Tayrona, Minca), you’ll likely be coming from Santa Marta. Some bus companies that drive the route are Expreso Brasilia, Copetran and Berlinas.
I took a night bus from Santa Marta with Berlinas which took 9hrs and cost 70,000COP (£17 approx).
Final thoughts
Medellín is an interesting city to visit. The walking tour and a visit to Comuna 13 are worth doing. The city is a very visual example of how Colombia’s working on turning its perceived dangerous image around.
It’s worth saying that I haven’t felt unsafe travelling through Colombia or no more so than any other South American country. The people are some of the friendliest I’ve met and I’ve felt very welcome!
I think I’ve said I’m not really a city person when I travel already in this blog, and for me a few days was a good amount of time. I liked it and if I was looking at a South American city to work in, I think I’d consider Medellín.
I’m now flying to Cartagena for my last stop in Colombia!
