Botanical Garden, Metrocable and Arví Park Tour, Medellín

From $88 USD per person

Most visitors spend their time in Medellín understanding what the city recovered from. This day is about what it built instead. The Jardín Botánico is fourteen hectares of biodiversity research in the middle of the city’s most active neighbourhood, with more than a thousand plant species and one of the most significant orchid collections in South America. Then the Metrocable climbs out of the valley entirely and into cloud forest, and Arví Park takes over.

How the day works

• Your guide and driver collect you from your hotel and take you to the Universidad de Antioquia area, one of the busiest parts of the city, with Parque de los Deseos, Parque Explora and the Ruta N innovation district all within walking distance.
• You spend around two hours in the Jardín Botánico among orchids, palms, bromeliads and tropical trees, with your guide covering both the collection and why the city chose to protect this land in the middle of its own grid.
• You board the Metrocable at Acevedo and ride Line K above the comunas, then transfer to Line L, which leaves the city behind and climbs into the mountains. About thirty minutes each way.
• You walk Arví Park’s trails for around two hours: indigenous paths through dense Andean cloud forest, creeks, and viewpoints with no city in sight. Your guide covers the park’s role as the watershed that supplies Medellín.
• You take the Metrocable back down and your driver returns you to your hotel. Eight to ten hours in total.

What’s included

• Private English-speaking guide
• Private hotel pickup and drop-off in Medellín
• Botanical Garden entry
• Metrocable tickets, Line K and the Line L Arví cable car
• Arví Park entrance
• All-risk insurance

Not included

• Meals and drinks
• Personal purchases and souvenirs
• Gratuities, appreciated but never expected

Good to know

• The Botanical Garden closes on Mondays and on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. If your date falls on one of those, your guide offers an alternative to suit you.
• Arví Park also closes on Mondays. If your tour falls on a Monday we contact you to move it or refund it in full.
• Light cotton clothing, comfortable trainers, sunglasses and a cap, plus a light jacket for the altitude at Arví.
• Medellín averages 23°C to 30°C but the weather shifts. A compact rain layer is useful in the afternoon.
• The Arví trails are moderate walking on uneven natural ground. Closed shoes only, no sandals.
• The Metrocable queues at weekends and on public holidays. Your guide manages the timing but leave some flexibility in the day.

Frequently asked questions

How is this different from the Arví Park tour?

The Arví Park tour is six hours focused on the forest trails and water streams. This one adds the Botanical Garden and the full Metrocable route, and runs eight to ten hours.

Is the Metrocable part of the tour or just transport?

Both. It is how you get to Arví and it is one of the best elevated views of Medellín available to anyone, which is why it gets its own hour in the day.

What happens if I book a Monday?

Both the garden and the park are closed on Mondays, so we contact you to move the date or refund it in full.

Are meals included?

No. There are places to eat near the Botanical Garden and at Arví station, and your guide will point you at the good ones.

How much walking is there?

A fair amount across the day: the garden is flat and easy, and Arví is around two hours on uneven forest paths.