You got your Colombia E-visa and now travelling to Medellin and do not know where to start to take the most liked Instagram photo? Do not worry, here I am going to tell you 12 Instagrammable places and things to do in Medellin to see and have pictures for your Instagram account. Or if you do not know anything about where is Medellin, what city is that, why to travel, and what to do in Medellin, what places to visit in Medellin, then let us start by answering where is Medellin.
Where is Medellin?
Medellin is the second biggest city in Colombia after its capital Bogota. There are many beautiful Instagrammable places and things to do in Medellin. Nevertheless, it is almost inevitable that the first image that comes to mind after hearing the word "Medellin" is Pablo Escobar. We cannot forget the years in which narco-terrorism operated freely at these streets. It was undoubtedly one of the darkest episodes in the recent history of Medellin. In recent years, a great effort has been made to recover the "livability" of the city, with an internationally applauded and awarded sustainable development plan. Today Medellin is a place with lots of cultural spaces, cool neighbourhoods, and a good number of attractions.
What to do in Medellin?
Despite its sufferings and crisis, now the city is full of entertainment, and you will find many things to do in Medellin so that even you will not ask about what to do in Medellin. The first thing that I recommend is to learn about the history of the city, especially the so-called "black times of Medellin." Then you should taste delicious dishes of Colombian cuisine and drink wine in one of the restaurants in the city's historic centre. When it comes to sightseeing, Medellin has a lot to offer you. Among the Instagrammable places to visit in Medellin, you can start by visiting the city's antique streets or walking on squares.
1. El Castillo Museum
El Castillo Museum hosts one of the largest collections of decorative arts in Colombia. It is one of the favourite places for people who love art, culture, and tradition. It operates in a Gothic-style building built in the 1930s. In 1942 philanthropist Diego Misas bought and expanded the property and enriched its heritage. After the death of Misas in 1971, his widow donated the palace to the city since it operates as a museum. Its spaces include the Louis XV Room, the Music Room, the Colonial Room, the Gobelins Room, and the rooms of its former owners. Its rooms and gardens evoke the excellent taste and refinement of bygone eras. Its collection includes works by great Colombian and European artists. This museum and its park are some of the best places to visit in Medellin.
2. Metropolitan Cathedral
The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Barrio Villanueva has been open since 1931. According to a design by the French architect Charles Carre, it is a neo-Romanesque-style brick building in which 1.12 million solid pieces were used. The cathedral consists of three naves and two twin towers of three bodies 66 meters high. The main facade faces the north side of Bolivar Park and contains the property's most Romanesque features. The baldachin and the main altar stand out, with a dome supported by four blue marble columns and Corinthian capitals. The main altar is a white Carrara marble table with a carving of The Last Supper. The choir stalls are magnificent black cedar cabinetwork made without nails or screws. The 22-ton organ was built in Germany, then transported from Hamburg in 1933 in 24 boxes that crossed the ocean, the Magdalena River, and the railway section to Medellin.
3. Palace of Culture
The Palace of Culture is the headquarters of the Institute of Culture and Heritage of the departmental government and various cultural organizations. It is located in the heart of the historic centre of Medellin, surrounded by emblematic buildings and tourist attractions such as the Museum of Antioquia, the Basilica of La Candelaria, the Church of Veracruz, and the Berrio Park. In the building, you will see different exhibitions, while in front of the building, you can take beautiful pictures for your Instagram account.
4. Gardeliana House Museum
Copyright: @huellaverdesenderismoyaMedellín was definitely marked by tango and its iconic singer, Carlos Gardel, since he died in a plane crash in the city in 1935. The museum is a symbol of the passion for tango in Medellin, the highest outside of Argentina. Some famous tango writers were in the museum, documenting or admiring the collection. The museum is on Avenida Carlos Gardel, called the Tangovia, in the popular Barrio Manrique. The Gardeliana House Museum brings together the most important exhibition in Colombia on this musical genre and its main performers; it contains authentic objects that belong to Gardel and other tango figures.
5. Basilica of Our Lady of Candelaria
This church, built-in 1776 in a neoclassical colonial style, was the diocesan seat of Medellin between 1868 and 1931. Among its artistic jewels are the organ and the tabernacle and exhibitor. The main altar of the basilica is majestic, built as a two-level portico supported on both sides by pairs of columns, with the image of the Virgin in the background. The Basilica of Our Lady of Candelaria is located in front of Parque Berrio, where the metro station of the same name is located. The front of the church is an ideal Instagrammable place to take your most liked Instagram photo.
6. Piedras Blancas Ecological Park
This park is 45 km northeast of Medellin. It is located within the Arví Regional Ecotourism Park, the largest national natural space organized for ecotourism. Piedras Blancas is an 18-hectare forest reserve and ecological park. It has forests, a reservoir, viewpoints, a self-sustaining farm, a picnic area, hiking trails, a hotel, and a camping area with the rental of tents.
7. Park of the Bare Feet
Among the tourist sites of Medellin, there is no other one more playful than this park that invites you to take off your shoes to feel the contact of the sand, water, and grass. It is a relaxing oasis in the middle of the second largest metropolitan area in Colombia. In the park, you can stroll through the forest of lovers, the Zen garden and lawns, get underwater fountains and play in a sandbox as babies.
8. El Tesoro Shopping Park
It is one of the most beautiful shopping centres in Medellin and a place for shopping and recreational activities. It has more than 250 stores and electronics, clothing, footwear, and accessories stores. The shopping centre also has the El Tesoro Events Center, architecturally designed and technologically equipped as a versatile space for a wide variety of activities.
9. Metrocable
Metrocable is the best viewpoint to admire the landscapes of Medellin. It is a cable car type transport system, which currently has five lines in operation. In Medellin, Metrocable serves the purpose of mobilizing passengers quickly and serving as a tourist tool on the move, to admire the landscape from above, and to take the most liked Instagram photo.
10. Desires Park
In the park, you will be able to interact playfully and in a relaxed way with elements that allow you to understand astronomy concepts and their relationship in water, energy, time, and communications. Among the main attractions are Mundo de Los Vientos, the Heliostat, the Celeste Sphere, and the replica of an observatory of the Chibcha people. You will also see the Solar Clock, Voices at a distance, Eclipse, and Sunshine. It is one of the tourist places in Medellin where locals and visitors converge and enjoy other entertainment activities.
11. Botanical Garden
The Botanical Garden of Medellin is a 13.2-hectare space located on Calle street, which receives more than two million visitors a year. The garden has been open since 1972 in honour of the naturalist and educator Joaquin Antonio Uribe. Apart from the live samples that form a beautiful plant space, it has a Herbarium that preserves dry collections and the Andres Posada Arango Library, which has documentary collections. The living collections make the botanical garden a unique place for its diversity of flora. Its spaces include a tropical forest, palm garden, desert garden, medicinal garden, lagoon, azalea patio, vertical garden, and the Orchid Garden, with orchids, bromeliads, and ferns.
12. Bolivar Park
It is a two-block park, located in Barrio Villanueva, in the downtown area of Medellin and named in honour of Simon Bolivar. The equestrian statue of the liberator was placed in 1936, the work of the Italian sculptors Giovanni Anderlini and Eugenio Maccagnani. Due to its cultural and historical symbolism, it is one of the iconic places in Medellin, which is flanked by the Metropolitan Cathedral to the north side and the Lido Theater to the southeast. The city officials had opened the park on October 12, 1892, the anniversary of the 400th anniversary of the Discovery of America. In this event, the Departmental Band played, beginning the tradition of the Sunday retreat, currently performed by the Symphonic Band of the University of Antioquia. The park has groves of native species, water fountains, sculptures, and benches. It is one of the Instagrammable places in Medellin to spend a relaxing time while taking pictures.
