New Zealand felt the full force of the Lord of the Rings movies. London’s Kings Cross station, particularly Platform 9 3/4, was under a powerful Harry Potter spell for much of the 21st century. Iceland and Northern Ireland are still obsessed with Game of Thrones. It’s no secret that movies can generate tsunamis of tourism. But nothing compares to what happened in Medellín, Colombia’s city of eternal spring.
New Zealand felt the full force of the Lord of the Rings movies. London’s Kings Cross station, particularly Platform 9 3/4, was under a powerful Harry Potter spell for much of the 21st century. Iceland and Northern Ireland are still obsessed with Game of Thrones. It’s no secret that movies can generate tsunamis of tourism. But nothing compares to what happened in Medellín, Colombia’s city of eternal spring.
Since 2018, the hit Netflix series Narcos has helped shape Medellín, as its protagonist, ruthless drug lord Pablo Escobar, has done over the years, especially the neighborhoods where Escobar and other drug lords operated. Comuna 13 would not have become Medellín’s biggest tourist attraction without curious tourists eager to see Escobar’s hometown and territory, so well recreated in the show.
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Since 2018, the hit Netflix series Narcos has helped shape Medellín, as its protagonist, ruthless drug lord Pablo Escobar, has done over the years, especially the neighborhoods where Escobar and other drug lords operated. Comuna 13 would not have become Medellín’s biggest tourist attraction without curious tourists eager to see Escobar’s hometown and territory, so well recreated in the show.
The city has a vibrant nightlife, a great party atmosphere, great hiking, adventure sports like paragliding and mountain biking, plenty of football, and enough dancing to make your legs jelly, including salsa, bachata and zouk. Medellín is also the birthplace of Colombia’s most famous painter and sculptor, Fernando Botero (1932-2023). He is known for his distinctive style of depicting all humans as exaggerated, inflated, plus-sized versions of their actual selves. Among Botero’s most important paintings are his hilarious version of the Mona Lisa from 1978 and his two paintings, The Death of Pablo Escobar, from 1999.
When I first visited Colombia in 2016, Narcos had only one season released. I wasn’t able to make it to Medellín that year, and while locals in Bogotá and other travelers were talking about its amazing weather, culture, and nature, no one was talking about Comuna 13.
The third and final season of Narcos aired in 2017, causing a surge in interest in Medellín. The following year, people began arriving in Medellín in search of Escobar’s turf. And they made a beeline for Comuna 13. Word spread among travelers, and Comuna 13 began to grow as a tourist attraction.
Comuna 13 residents saw an opportunity and seized it. Overcoming a small obstacle – COVID-19 – Comuna 13 is now completely transformed. Some of the best graffiti in the city is located here, and the best graffiti artists live and work here. Residents have renovated the interiors of their homes, turning them into homestays, cafes, bars, shops, restaurants and studios. Many of the locals who grew up in the 1990s and early 2000s and witnessed and suffered the violence firsthand have become guides, leading walking tour groups through their neighborhoods.
On the Comuna 13 walking tour I took this January, one such local guided us around, listing the dangers and adventures of the city.
The tour started in front of the graffiti, right below Comuna 13. Loud music was blaring from one of the houses. Along the way we met a graffiti artist who let us paint on his wall. The tour ended three hours later at the top of the hill where our guide started last year, at a bar and cafe with 360-degree views.
“That’s where they dumped the bodies. They used to play football there, and there were bodies piled up along the touchline,” our guide said, pointing to the basketball court/football field below. He’d never forgotten.
For digital nomads and remote workers, medellin is the perfect city: cheap food and drinks, good coffee, relatively low rent, and people always having a good time. It’s also currently safe. That’s why medellin, the second largest city in colombia after the capital bogota, is currently one of the most popular cities for digital nomads and long-term travelers looking to live the good life for a few months without breaking the bank.
An ideal location for a weekend away in nature, with ample options for dance retreats as well as revelers only adds to the list of pros of this resort. The cute little town of Jardin is just a three-hour bus ride away, where you can enjoy walks in the middle of the tropical forest. If you’re looking for something more active, hop on a bus to lakeside Guatapé. In about two hours, you can climb the 740 steps to the top of El Peñon rock for amazing views.
There’s plenty to do in the city too: weekends during football season are fun and if there’s one thing you can do in Medellín it’s to watch a football match in the stadium of one of the two local teams, Atlético Nacional or Deportivo Independiente Medellín.
And then there’s salsa: the party starts on Thursday night and continues through the weekend, with salsa clubs and bars galore.
Medellín was comfortable and pleasant. It felt like home in many ways, with autorickshaws, Bajaj, Hiro, TVS and Royal Enfield motorbikes roaming the streets, fruit and vegetable vendors ringing bells and playing pre-recorded messages over cheap speakers advertising their mobile carts. Medellín made me feel alive.
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How to get there
There are no direct flights from India to Medellin. You can either take a long-haul direct flight to New York and then a short-haul direct flight to Medellin, or fly halfway to Madrid and then direct to Medellin. Air India and United offer direct flights to New York from New Delhi and Mumbai. Emirates, Qatar and Etihad have convenient flights to Madrid. Avianca offers direct flights to Medellin from both New York and Madrid.
Where to stay
Medellin Marriott Hotel in El Poblado, steps from all the popular attractions, restaurants, bars and nightlife.
what will you do
Stroll or hike through Albi Park. Explore the Laurel district and stop into one of the many cafes and co-working spaces, such as Pergamino. Enjoy a delicious Colombian coffee. Go salsa dancing. Take a day trip to Guatapé. Visit a coffee plantation. Watch a football game at the stadium. Hop on a party bus after dark.
Shrenik Avrani is a writer, editor, and co-author of the functional fitness book, The Shivfit Way.
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