CorazónColombia

Day Trip · Medellín

Santa Fe de Antioquia & the Puente de Occidente

9 hoursMax 12EasyFamily friendly

The old colonial capital of Antioquia, whitewashed and hot at 550 metres, with cobbled streets, four colonial churches, and a 291-metre suspension bridge from 1895 that was among the first of its kind in the Americas.

What you do

  • The colonial centre, largely unchanged since the 1600s
  • The Puente de Occidente over the Cauca river
  • Tamarind sweets, which the town is genuinely famous for
  • Hot, dry, low-altitude relief from the valley

As a private booking

Private car, a longer lunch, and an afternoon by a pool before the drive back rather than a fixed departure time.

See VIP packages

When to do it

Very hot midday — we go early. 30 °C+ is normal.

Practical notes for Medellín

  • How we talk about the 1990s. Medellín was the most dangerous city on earth and is not any more. That transformation is the interesting story, and it belongs to the people who lived it. We do not run narco tours and we do not use that name to sell anything. Many Medellinenses find it genuinely offensive, and our guides will tell you why.
  • The airport is not in the city. MDE sits on a plateau 45–60 minutes away through a mountain tunnel. Budget the time, and expect a 20 °C temperature swing between the terminal and El Poblado.
All Medellín notes

You might also like

All experiences

Culture

Comuna 13 Graffitour, with guides from the barrio

The hillside barrio that went from the most feared address in Medellín to an open-air gallery, walked with someone who grew up in it. Outdoor escalators, murals with meanings, and the 2002 military operation told by the people it happened to.

4 hoursmax 12Moderate

From

$20–$45

per person

Check availability

Food & Drink

Comuna 13 Street Food & Street Art

The Graffitour route taken slowly and eaten through — mango biche with salt and lime, obleas, chorizo from the grill halfway up, and a cold Club Colombia at the top with the whole valley below you.

4.5 hoursmax 10Moderate

From

$30–$65

per person

Check availability

Culture

Museo de Antioquia & Plaza Botero

Twenty-three fat bronze Boteros standing in a public square, and upstairs the best collection of Colombian art outside Bogotá. The museum also holds the country’s most uncomfortable modern painting, and we will show you it.

2.5 hoursmax 12Easy

From

$8–$40

per person

Check availability