First and foremost.. Medellin, Colombia is one of the most beautiful countries that I have been blessed to travel. Medellin is located in a valley that is surrounded by grassy, rolling mountains. There are at least 5 million people in this city; which makes some areas hard to navigate.
Oh, Medellin
Was exactly what I thought it would be.. Colombia is real good on the parties, nightlife scene, epic adventures and down to earth – nicest people you will ever met. Colombia has been thru the ringer.. with the bombings, Cocaine capital of the world and so on. When you walk thru Medellin, you can still see the ruins from the after math; but you can also see the beauty of infrastructure and construction build.
Are you new to Medellin?
Find out for yourself on how you might like Medellin; there are plenty of things to do (art galleries, restaurants, night clubs, exploring the mountain, tourist attractions, entrepreneurship, coworking etc). Take time to use resources like TripAdvisor, Google and search results to find similiar interests that you might have in common with others.
Use my guide as a resource on where to stay & how to get around.
Look at this expert traffic squeeze
Where to stay in Medellin
I am currently residing in El Poblado; which is a more tourist / international area. I rented my room using AirBnb; I find that renting this way is more of the type of living that I enjoy. I am a very private person when it comes to my personal life; I don’t want to share my room – have friends over, basically just want my “zen” – my space. Somewhere that I can come home to work or relax but not think too much. I accomplished a great hostess; and fantastic view / set up.
There are many options for a hostel, hotel or shared space living. I met a few new friends that stay at Tigers Paw Hostel, CampBamboo(?) Hostel and a few other hotels that are walking distance from the tourist area.
Navigate these selections based on reviews & pricing options. There are some rooms that you share with a few other beds; but others are private:
There are many hostels that are daily rates but try to work with the front office if you decided to stay longer; there may be a better rate for long term travelers.
How To Get Around Medellin
I truly wish that I could get a custom motor bike in Medellin, Colombia. I have a really cool scooter in Bali that is accommodated so I can ride it. It was be 100x faster to get around with a motor bike. But for now, I am using taxi and uber. Uber rides are literally $1-3 each session; when the surge isn’t high or when it’s not raining.
It is more cost efficient to hire a driver; I found a really good one – Mateo – he is from Colombia. I provide him $30,000 peso per hour to show me around Medellin.
He is a real good driver – and knows the mountain like the back of his hand.
Metro
This above ground transit that will take you across the city. I stopped in a few places along the way to get familiar with the culture (Santa Domingo, Buenos Aires and other hidden gems. The Metro costs about $4,600 for a round trip ticket – I recommend buying at the first stop because it gets more expensive as you ride it. They charge a tourist price too; so try to blend it.
Metro Cable
Probably my favorite transit in Medellin — hangs high above the sky in these small, white carts.
Check out more blog posts on traveling to Medellin — I’ve posted a ton of real good content on YOuTube lately as well; from music festivals to art galleries to getting into trouble 😉 Meh..it happens to the best of us.
