Things to Do in Carmen de Viboral (That Aren’t Just Ceramics)

TLDR? Museums, horseback riding, and fishing are some things you can do in Carmen de Viboral!

Carmen de Viboral is a town in Antioquia known for its many ceramic shops and workshops. These art pieces make this town a singular and colorful place to visit, but they aren’t the only thing you can enjoy in this city close to Medellin.

Many tourists come to this town to spend the weekend, relax, and do some fun activities. Luckily for you, I’ve been there and made this guide to tell you everything you can do in Carmen de Viboral!

Institute of Culture

The Institute of Culture is close to the Parque Principal of Carmen de Viboral. If you’re an art lover, this could be your new favorite place!

These are some of the rooms you’ll find in this Institute:

• School of art: this place’s purpose is to find local talents and train them with theoretical and practical content that allows them to grow as artists.
• Small cinema: this room will show you pictures and videos about the history of Carmen de Viboral.
• Reading room: a room to enjoy the study of arts, literature, and philosophy. The José Manuel Arango reading room also offers different training workshops if you’re interested in writing poems or literature. 
• Arqueologic room: you’ll see many pieces of the architectural heritage older than 3000 years of Carmen de Viboral, from stone tools to ceramic tableware. 
• Museum and exhibitions room: these rooms host many temporary exhibitions to promote local artists. Its content varies between painting, sculptures, drawing, and pictures. In the Museum of the Ceramic, you’ll see all the beautiful pieces of art made by people from Carmen de Viboral.

And the best part is that the entrance to the Cultural Institute is free!

Take a Walk to The Ceramic Street 

The Calle de la Cerámica is a route in Carmen de Viboral full of different ceramic pieces by local artists.

This street is the most scenic and colorful in town, with houses, doors, lights, and even trash bins decorated with ceramic mosaics and tiles!

Check out Paseo del Angel, another colorful street full of murals that’ll bring you to the representation of two angel wings made of colorful ceramic mosaic pieces. Stand in front of them and take pictures where you’re the angel!

This route starts from Carmen de Viboral’s central park and goes down to the principal road. 

Plaza and Church

If you have one day in Carmen de Viboral, you should also take some time to visit La Plaza and the Church. 

Carmen de Viboral’s downtown is small, so one day will be enough to walk all around. Walk through the plaza with the statue of Simon Bolivar and enjoy the colonial and colorful houses.

You’ll also find Church Nuestra Señora del Carmen close to the central park. The church’s windows have colorful and stunning mosaics.

If you get hungry during your visit, I recommend you go to Tipico El Carmen restaurant and try the delicious dishes from this Antioquian town. I suggest the Bandeja with Chicharron, a plate with rice, arepa, salad, avocado, and chicharron, with a side of soup. 

And if you have already tried Antioquian traditional food and want something different, try the Arepa La Quesudita. The dish consists of an arepa full of melted cheese that you can fill with your favorite protein and vegetables!

Horse Riding

In Carmen de Viboral, you’ll find many tours that offer horse riding through the beautiful landscapes around town.

You can choose if you prefer a romantic couple ride or riding with a group of people. In both ways, almost every tour includes:

• The riding along stunning landscapes
• A guide to explain your how-to, if it’s your first time, and tell you the route. 
• The lunch
• Water and Snacks 
• Pictures (taken with your phone)

If you’re looking for some places to plan your weekend, you can check this hotel’s plans and find the one that suits you most.

Fishing

Yes, in Carmen de Viboral, you can also practice fishing! 

There are few places to fish in the town, but I want to suggest Eco Hotel Naturnia. 

This place has a small lake where you can bring your fishing rod or ask them about the local experience, which consists of using a handmade bamboo rod.

You can even ask to cook your catch and have it for lunch!

In this hotel, you can also rent a kayak to paddle around the lake, and they also have a fun park with a swimming pool for kids.

This place is about 10 minutes from downtown, and if you don’t want to stay there at night, you can ask for the one-day plan without accommodations.

Carmen de Viboral is Not Just Ceramic!

This little Antioquian town of colorful streets and art on every corner has much more to offer! 

Don’t forget to take a good camera with you to take pictures of all the beautiful and colorful corners of this place close to Medellin, and enjoy Carmen de Viboral!

If you like this blog, you might like the Casacol Instagram page to keep up with all the new articles. Anything we need to update or correct? Care to contribute? Email us at blog@casacol.co.