Top 20 Things to do in Medellin – Metrocable

Riding Medellin’s Metrocable has become one of the most popular things to do in Medellin. The Metrocable is a gondola type system originally designed to reach some of most under developed areas of Medellin. It is considered to be the first Cable Propelled Transit system in South America. Construction costs were estimated at $26 million USD.

 

 

The Metrocable Journey

Start your journey by taking the Metro train to the Acevedo Station. There you can exit and board the Metrocable at no extra cost. The first part of the ride is on Line K which first opened in 2004. It is 1.8 km long and contains the following four stations: Acevedo, Andalucia, Popular, and Santo Domingo. This offers beautiful views of the city but also some poverty-stricken neighborhoods below. While at Santo Domingo you have the option of visiting the Biblioteca Espana.

Biblioteca Espana

Biblioteca Espana is part of a government campaign to build a number of schools, hospitals, libraries and cultural venues. The plan is to spread education, health and to improve the quality of life of thousands of Medellin inhabitants. It was completed in 2007 at a total cost of about $4 million, and was designed by Colombian architect Giancarlo Mazzanti. (including the surrounding park named Parque Biblioteca Espana.) Juan Carlos I, King of Spain and his wife Queen Sofia of Greece, came to Medellin, to inaugurate the library.

Parque Arvi

If you want really enjoy the next part of the journey, I would allow almost a full day. Line L extends from Santo Domingo station to Parque arvi, and was inaugurated on 2009. This line is considered a tourist attraction and transport, unlike the others that are mostly used as public commuting service. The ride from Santo Domingo to Parque Arvi is very different. First you are riding over hillsides and forests instead of homes and barrios. It is a longer ride taking about 15 to 20 minutes to arrive at the next station at Parque Arvi and the views are spectacular. There is a very nice greeting area at the Parque Arvi station. There are guides with a large map to assist you for the day ahead.

The park is divided into 5 Cores managed by different environmental entities, that allow visitors have a number of entertainment activities as hiking, picnic, camping, canoing, canopying and trekking, everything related to the preservation of the park natural resources.