"Join this half-day tour to learn how Medellin's Comuna 13 went from being the city's most dangerous district to become a symbol of resilience and transformation."
Enjoy a memorable tour in a place that was once considered the most dangerous neighborhood of Colombia. Learn about its crude history and the road to recovery that has turned it into a lively neighborhood with beautiful street art and impressive urban innovation.
Your tour starts when our guide picks you up at your hotel to go on a taxi to the closest Metro station and head to San Javier station, the gate to Comuna 13. Boarding the Metrocable, an alternative form of public transportation for local residents, you will get to see San Javier from above. While floating up the hill and enjoying the view, you will learn about how much this project changed locals' lives.
Back at the main station, you’ll hop on a bus that takes you near the famous electric escalators that were built in 2011. They replaced 530 concrete steps and reduced the time for getting up the 384m (1,260ft.) immensely. Thanks to innovative changes like this, the complicated social dynamics gradually turned into a brighter panorama.
Through a local guide and the numerous graffiti art displayed at the comuna, you will get to know key aspects of the history and actuality of the place. At some point in the ascent, you will make a small detour and visit a small museum made by a local initiative that has pictures of the Comuna before and during Orion operation; A violent event that defined the course of this area.
Next, you will visit a small coffee shop right at the heart of the Comuna. It is an initiative of a group of local entrepreneurs who want to make visitors stay for a while, hang out, and have a nice time at their neighborhood. Here you will have some delicious Colombian coffee and rest while enjoying a great view of Medellín.
As you walk back down the electric escalators, you will head to the final destination, the library of San Javier, a place that brings families together to partake in literary, cultural and musical activities. After you can walk back to the metro station to return to your hotel, or our guide can help you sort out another transportation back.
Comfortable shoes and clothes
Sunscreen
We can arrange private transportation from and to your hotel for an additional cost. The local street artist doesn’t speak English, our guide will serve as a translator. If you have an academic trip or a larger group, please contact us! There are some interesting additions.
How this tour creates an impact
Once local residents took it in their hands to transform their neighborhood from one riddled with violence to thriving with art and culture through dance and music, the Comuna 13 became a site of living memory. A multitude of local projects has popped up to support youth and families to build a brighter future together. As travelers visit the neighborhood, they help keep the projects prosperous and make sure the memory of conflict and path to peace and reconciliation is never forgotten.
This tour is part of our HEART experiences.
Changes on the tour may occur due to external factors. These changes will be notified to you with anticipation.
Our tours with transport include the time of the journeys within the duration.
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