I flew from Brussels to Medellin with Avianca, via Madrid and Bogotá. The airfare was:
Ticket: 509 EUR
Airport Taxes: 80,97 EUR
Ticket service charge: 10 EUR
Total: 599,97 EUR
I only had 50 minutes to transfer to the Medellin flight in Bogotá. After zipping through immigration, I was ushered onto the plane. But my luggage didn’t make it, so I had to wait for an hour before the next flight arrived.
Medellin Airport
Money
There is no ATM in the arrivals halls, but you can find one in the departure hall up the stairs.
Airport Transfer
The fares to different parts of town are displayed on a map in the arrivals hall. El Poblado is part of the Medellin zone; the fare is 50k COP. The machine printed my ticket. Once I’d decided where I wanted to go, I showed it to the taxi driver and settled down for the long, but scenic ride into town.
To the airport, I was coming from Frank Casio’s house in Envigado and paid 52k COP.
Customs
Your luggage is unlikely to get searched coming into the country. Leaving Colombia is a different matter! Apart from multiple scans, my hand luggage was manually searched no less than 3 times (once in Medellin; twice in Bogotá).
My hand luggage is full of electronics and generated little attention from customs officers. Unlike in Europe, they’re not searching for explosives. They’re looking for Colombia’s #1 export product. La coca!
Passengers carrying coffee or any other powdery substance in which coca could easily be hidden, can expect their luggage to be scrutinized. Even sealed bags will be cut open. If you want to bring back Colombian coffee, don’t buy it at the airport and make sure it’s in your checked in luggage.
Accommodation
The Apartment Medellin
General
Web Site
- http://www.theapartmentmedellin.com/
The manager is Australian Andrew Campion. He handles reservation requests and replies promptly to e-mails. Carlos, his Colombian assistant, speaks good English. He can be contacted “any time if there’s anything you need”.
Since I made my reservations at the last minute, I had few options. Moving house no less than 4 times was a nuisance, but couldn’t be helped.
Payment
A 20% deposit is required to secure a reservation. PayPal is the most convenient payment option.
When you check in, you will receive an envelope detailing the balance to be paid in USD or COP (exchange rates from xe.com). If you choose to pay in cash, Carlos will come by to collect the money. Paying the balance through PayPal incurs a 3,5% processing fee. Paying by credit card is not possible.
A 300 USD security deposit is also required. It is refunded the same way it was paid (usually through PayPal).
Communication
All apartments are equipped with a desktop PC with Internet connection. You can also connect your laptop to the router.
Each apartment comes with a rental phone. That saves you from visiting a phone operator’s office and filling in a ton of forms. For Europeans, only quad-band phones support the GSM-850 frequency used in Colombia. With a compatible phone, you also have the option of transferring the SIM card to your phone.
All apartments also have a landline. Calls to local numbers (landline only) are free of charge.
Cleaning & Laundry
A weekly cleaning is included. Additional maid services cost 20k COP (45 min) or 40k COP (2 hours).
All apartments have at least one change of bed linen and towels. Since the apartments are equipped with a washing machine, you can do your own laundry to get rid of any “love stains” on the sheets.
Ask Carlos or the maid to provide instructions. Guest Policy
You can have as many “guests” as you like. I even had an orgy in one of the apartments!
No ID checks. No hassles whatsoever. Staying in an apartment means freedom!
Smoking Policy
All the apartments are non-smoking!
But they hide that fact at the bottom of their FAQ page, which I’d never read. It is clearly stated in the welcome letter accompanying your bill, though. I happily puffed away in every one of the apartments I stayed in. So did almost every chica who visited me.
40 USD was deducted from my security deposit because: “We needed to do an extra cleaning in 402 ($20) and buy some additional cleaning products ($20) to remove the smell of cigarettes.”
Special Offers
Make sure to check out the special offers:
http://www.theapartmentmedellin.com/DiscountsandDeals.html
I took advantage of “The $1 Dollar A Day Deal” for every apartment I stayed in.
Apartment 1005
Arriving in Medellin without a reservation for my 1st night, I bunked down in this apartment. It was fully furnished, but didn’t have electricity yet. I paid 80k COP directly to the owner, who was staying in his other apartment across the street (402).
http://www.theapartmentmedellin.com/Apartment1005.html
When my reservation for another apartment (501 – no longer listed) was canceled, Apt 1005 was once again my only option. The apartment had electricity by then, but the gas wasn’t connected yet, which meant there was no hot water. The common areas looked uninviting as well. The walls of the elevator were still covered with cardboard! At least, the apartment was a bargain at half price (40 USD/night).
Apartment 402
I spent most of my time in this cozy 1 bedroom apartment.
http://www.theapartmentmedellin.com/Apartment402.html
For my first stay (5 days), I paid 70 USD/night. Once again benefitting from the 1$/day discount, I paid 66 USD/night my final 9 days in Medellin.
The apartment is close to Parque Lleras and very well located. The closest ATM & grocery shop are on Carrera 36. Turn right on Calle 11B and turn right again on Carrera 36B (where the Park 10 Hotel is). Arrived on Carrera 36, turn right and you’ll spot the bank & shop on your left.
The closest supermarket is Pomona. Turn left on Calle 11B and walk downhill all the way to the end, then turn left. There’s another ATM just before Pomona Supermarket. Depending on the weight of your shopping, the uphill walk back may be strenuous.
Driving to the apartment is a little tricky. As Carrera 36B is a one way street, you’ll have to make a detour to make it to Calle 11B, although some taxi drivers simply ignored the sign. Telling the taxi to drive to Pomona Supermarket on Calle 10A makes entering Calle 11B more straightforward.
Apartment 701
This magnificent apartment was the scene for my 1st orgy and cost me 106 USD/day for 4 days.
http://www.theapartmentmedellin.com/Apartment701.html
The building is located atop a hill next to Tesoro Mall, and provides a splendid vista of Medellin. Tesoro Mall will satisfy all your needs (ATMs, restaurants, shopping, Pomona Supermarket in the basement). The steep final part of the walk back may kill you, though!
Burglary
I have accounts, with details of every peso I spend. My accounts are updated at least once a day, after every chica leaves and after every major transaction. After Carlos picked up the balance for Apt 701, the figures were correct. I went to El Tesoro to eat and shop for groceries. As I got money from an ATM, I updated my accounts again as soon as I got home. 200 EUR and 200k COP were missing.
The burglar didn’t take all the money. I had more EUR and more COP. He probably figured I wouldn’t notice the theft.
You might say I was careless - my luggage was left wide open. I simply didn't figure I'd get robbed in such a fancy apartment building.
When I reported the burglary to Andrew Campion, he replied:
I'm very shocked to hear about that and I'm sorry this has happened. It appears that someone has a key to the apartment as it would be impossible to break in. We will be changing the lock today so thank you for letting us know so we can prevent this happening again.
Please accept my sincerest apologies for this incident.
My Place
Frank Casio’s My Place is a 3 bedroom apartment located on the quiet part of the Mayorista strip. The common area has photogenic red, green & blue sofas. The bedrooms are small, but adequate.
For 25 USD/day or 150 USD/week, My Place is a great deal for the budget monger. For the dedicated Mayorista monger, My Place presents an even better bargain. You save 12k COP/pop on the ST room. A steady diet of 4 chicas/day will cover the price of your room at My Place!
Hell, the convenience of having your own fuck pad right on the strip is already worth the cost, even if you choose to spend the night in more upscale accommodation. Apart from being an all-round great guy, Frank Casio is a real connoisseur of the Medellin scene. He went out of his way to help me, even though I wasn’t staying at My Place. Frank Casio is a class act!
Food
La Rueca
My favorite restaurant was La Rueca, on Calle 10A. Mains are around 20k COP. They serve big portions of good quality meat. And you can smoke on the terrace. My kinda place!
Like most restaurants, they add a 10% “propina volontaria” to your bill. They’re closed on Sundays and Monday evenings.
QBano
When La Ruaca was closed, I usually settled for a sandwich and fries at QBano.
Pomona Supermarket
Being a night owl, I generally had my first meal of the day early evening. By the time I got peckish again, all restaurants were closed. After going hungry a few times, I started stocking my fridge with ready-made sandwiches from Pomona Supermarket. The chicas liked them too... provided I warmed them up.
BTW, the locals told me Pomona Supermarkets were expensive. Exito is cheaper.
Transportation
Taxis
Medellin is a big city, and the mongering options are spread out all over town, so you’ll need taxis all the time. The city is littered with taxis. They all have meters. They all use the meter.
The fare starts at 1900 COP. The minimum fare is 3600 COP. Sample fares are:
- El Poblado – Centro : 7k COP
- El Poblado – Mayorista: 7k COP
- Centro – Mayorista: 12k COP
Apart from flagging down a taxi in the street, you can also call for one. If you call them from a land line, they can derive your address from your phone number, so there’s no need to give any directions. One of the many numbers you can call is: 444.44.44.
Metro
I only used the metro once. There’s only 1 station in El Poblado and it was a long walk from my apartment. The fare is 1500 COP.
ATM Machines
There are plenty of ATM machines, which accept both debit and credit cards. Bancolombia will give you 400k COP per pull.
Climate
Medellin is known as the City of Eternal Spring. As it’s close to the equator, year-round temperatures vary little. Because of its altitude (1500m), it has a temperate climate.
After October, May is the 2nd wettest month of the year. During May, it rained almost every night I was in town, which was bloody annoying.
Nighttime temperatures were in the high teens, but felt colder because of the incessant rains. Pack & dress appropriately! Safety
A lot has been written about safety in Medellin. I generally consider crowded areas to be safe, and never felt ill at ease in Medellin. Of course, shit happens!
Loso