Tour operator
Real City Tours
A Medellín family-run tour company whose tip-based Free Walking Tour of the city centre has run twice daily since 2013, alongside food, fruit and neighbourhood tours.
Parque Arví Guided Hikes and Bike Tours
Guided walks, bike rides, birdwatching and night tours in Parque Arví, run by the non-profit Corporación Parque Arví above Medellín and reached by Metrocable.
At a glance
- Type
- Guided nature hikes and cycling tours
- Area
- Santa Elena, Medellín, Colombia
- Official site
- parquearvi.org
Good to know
- Guided and self-guided trails
- 8 km hike
- Birdwatching
- Bike tours
- Night tours
- Silletero farm visits
- Discount for foreign visitors
Why we recommend it
The guided activities in Parque Arví are run by the Corporación Parque Arví, a non-profit created in 2007 to manage the forest park above Medellín, protect its environmental, social and cultural heritage and develop a rural community tourism strategy. Joining one of its tours is the best way to understand a park that stretches over thousands of hectares and holds pre-Hispanic paths, wetlands and orchid-rich forest.
The programme is broad. There are guided and self-guided walks, an 8 km hike, birdwatching outings, bike tours under the Arví en Bici and Ciclada en Arví names, a night experience called Arví Nocturno, a route to the Chorro Clarín waterfall and visits to the silletero flower farms of Santa Elena, the families whose flower arrangements star in the Feria de las Flores. Trails in the park include the Sendero de Anturios, Orquídeas y Bromelias, with 19 bromeliad species and more than 140 orchid species, the Sendero Ancestral, the Camino de la Cuesta and the Bosque del Silencio, and the park also has archaeological ruins and the Laguna de Guarne wetland. The corporation also runs gardening workshops, picnic plans and volunteering.
Hiking and the Arví en Bici rides operate from Wednesday to Monday, between 10:00 and 16:30, and family activities and workshops at the Aula CrearVivo run from Friday to Sunday. The park and its cable car close on Tuesdays for maintenance. Foreign visitors receive a 50 per cent discount on guided and self-guided hikes, making them good value, and residents of lower-income areas of Medellín pay a reduced rate on weekdays.
The meeting point is the park's main visitor centre, the Centro Ambiental y Cultural Ignacio Vélez Escobar, near the arrival plaza of the Arví cable car in the Piedras Blancas area of Santa Elena. To get there, ride the Metrocable to Santo Domingo Savio and change to Line L, a 15-minute journey over the forest to El Tambo.
The tours suit walkers, birdwatchers, families and cyclists. Book through the park's website or WhatsApp line, +57 310 599 7211, or call +57 604 444 2979; enquiries can also be sent to [email protected]. Allow at least half a day, including the cable-car journey, and combine your tour with lunch at Mercado Arví, the food and craft market by the cable-car station.
Parque Arví Guided Hikes and Bike Tours FAQs
Who runs the tours?
The Corporación Parque Arví, a non-profit created in 2007 to manage the park.
What tours are available?
Guided and self-guided walks, an 8 km hike, birdwatching, bike tours, night tours, a route to the Chorro Clarín waterfall and visits to silletero flower farms.
When do hikes and bike tours run?
Wednesday to Monday, between 10:00 and 16:30; the park closes on Tuesdays.
Is there a discount for foreigners?
Yes. Foreign visitors receive 50 per cent off guided and self-guided hikes.
Where do tours start?
At the Centro Ambiental y Cultural Ignacio Vélez Escobar, near the Arví cable-car arrival plaza.
How do I get there?
Take the Metrocable to Santo Domingo Savio, then Line L to El Tambo, a 15-minute ride.
Are there family activities?
Yes. The Aula CrearVivo runs activities and workshops from Friday to Sunday.
How do I book?
Through the park's website, by WhatsApp on +57 310 599 7211, by phone on +57 604 444 2979 or by email at [email protected].