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TLDR? Medellin is located in Colombia, close to the equator, which gives it some of the best weather in South America
If you’re thinking of visiting Medellin, part of trip planning is figuring out where Medellin is located.
After all, it’s hard to get somewhere if you don’t know where you’re going!
In this guide, we’ll go over everything you need to know about where Medellin is located and how to get there. Let’s jump in!
Medellin is the second largest city in Colombia and is located in the west of the country. You’ll find it in the Central Mountain Range of Andes.
The city has a total area of 328 km² that is divided into 110 km² of urban land and 218 km² of rural land, and an extension of 1152 km².
Also, the Aburrá Valley, made up of Medellin and its surrounding municipalities, is between 1,300 and 2,800 meters above sea level.
Medellin is the capital of the Antioquia departamento, best translated as state. The state borders areas such as Monteria, Choco, Manizales, and other municipalities of Colombia.
One thing to note about Medellin is that it’s famous for having spring-like weather year round. Its average temperature is about 22ºC, without much variation. The coldest you’ll usually find the city is about 18ºC.
Because of this, it’s been dubbed “The City of Eternal Spring.”
The city’s latitude of 0º, and altitude of 1500m within almost 450 miles of the equator, allow it to be an equatorial site of the Northern Hemisphere.
As for rain, Medellin has moderate and occasional average annual tropical rainfall of 1656 mm. The southern part of the city gets the most rain.
Medellin’s location, then, means that the climate is temperate and humid, with gentle and constant winds thanks to the mountains.
December, January, June, and July are the hottest and driest months of the year. On these days, temperatures can rise up to 30ºC on occasion.
Medellin is actually the #3 place in the world to visit, according to Time Out magazine. But, that’s far from the only reason why you should visit!
Medellin also has, as mentioned earlier, some pretty fantastic weather. Even during the rainiest months, you won’t find the city cold or gloomy!
Many people also cite Medellin as having some of the friendliest people on earth. That makes it easy to meet someone and make new friends while you’re in the city. And of course, having friendly people around makes for a fantastic vacation!
Finally, things to do in Medellin abound! Whether it’s bouncing nightlife or nature walks that you’re after, you’ll have no problem coming up with an itinerary for your trip.
Now that you’ve got a better idea of where Medellin is located, let’s talk about how to get there from the US.
You can get flights from North America from several major cities. Let’s take a look.
Traveling to Medellin from New York is easy since there are regular routes. Most routes have one or two layovers, although you can find direct routes too.
In general, some airlines create alliances so that you can book a flight using multiple airlines.
For example, many flights leave New York and arrive in Miami via United Airlines. From there, passengers take a Copa Airlines flight to Panama, and then the final destination: Medellin.
The following New York airports all support flights to Medellin:
Pro tip: if you prefer flights with a single stopover or that fly direct, it’s best to look at local airlines such as Avianca or LATAM. Both these will take you straight to Colombia without the additional layovers in the US.
Miami is a little closer to Medellín and a bit smaller than New York. As a result, , it’s much easier to find direct flights from Miami or Fort Lauderdale airports on airlines such as:
Just keep in mind that while these airlines fly direct, you’re more likely to score a deal if you’re willing to squeeze in a layover. Most layovers stop in Bogotá when flying this route.
Houston is a slightly smaller US city, which can make it a bit trickier to find direct flights to Medellin.
However, you can find flights with stopovers on different airlines that depart from George Bush Airport (IAH). A couple airlines that offer flights from Houston to Medellin include:
The most common cities for layovers from Houston include:
Also, you can take flights from the William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) in Houston. American Airlines and LATAM fly to Medellin from this airport, both with layovers.
Chicago has two main airports. However, the busiest and most used by airlines is the Chicago O’hare International Airport.
From this air terminal, you can find flights with one or more layovers on airlines such as:
From there, you can take flights with layovers in North American cities or from Central or Latin America, such as:
For its part, there is also the least crowded airport in Chicago, Midway. However, only Delta Airlines and Aeromexico fly out of this airport to Medellin.
Getting a flight from Los Angeles to Medellin is pretty easy. All flights to Medellin go out of the LAX airport.
There are no direct flights to Medellin from this North American city. However, you can book your trip via a number of different airlines, including:
Most airlines have a layover in Panama, although some will also fly through Miami. You can also find numerous cheap flights with two or even three layovers.
Besides the US, Europe is one of the major sources of tourists visiting Medellin. Let’s take a look at how to get to Medellin from Europe.
London has 5 major airports, but the busiest are London Heathrow International Airport and London Gatwick Airport.
To get to Medellin, it’s important to consider that the flight involves more than 10 hours of travel, so the number of stops that you include is up to you. I’d recommend trying to find flights with limited layovers.
A few airlines with just a single layover include:
If you’re okay with flights that have multiple layovers, you’ve got a bit more choice. A couple routes you can take include:
For these stops in different parts of the world, remember to consider the requirements of each airport or country, such as applying for a transit visa.
Rome is served by Fiumicino and Ciampino airports.Flights to Medellin usually depart from the Fiumicino terminal, which is a bit bigger and further from the city.
There are no direct flights from Rome and that it’s not very common to find single-stop flights, either. The most common layovers are Madrid, London, Bogota, Panama, or Amsterdam.
Most flight routes from Rome to Medellin involve multiple airlines. A couple of the common strategic alliances you might find include:
You can also fly with a single airline like Iberia, covering all stopovers and routes with the same company.
Paris is one of the most important cities in Europe, and has lots of flights to other Eureopean cities. However, as Medellin is not the main city of Colombia, there are still no direct flights from the French capital.
Most flights from Paris involve a layover in Panamá or Mexico City.
A couple of the airlines you can fly with include:
Like flights from other European cities, you’ll often find you take more than one airline to get to Medellin.
Here is some very good news: Madrid has direct flights to Medellin!
Madrid Barajas Airport is one of the privileged air terminals to send and receive direct flights from the capital of Antioquia.
Spanish airlines such as Iberia and Air Europa take you to Medellin at pretty low prices. Both these airlines offer direct flights.
Likewise, there are flights with one stopover that are usually made in Bogota if you take them with Colombian or Latin American airlines such as Avianca and LATAM.
Alternatively, you can always take flights with multiple layovers, such as:
We’ve drifted a bit again! If you’re flying to Medellin from Berlin, you’re once again going to need to deal with layovers.
Avianca and United Airlines offer flights with a single layover in New York. Alternatively, Aeromexico and United Airlines have flights that offer layovers in Mexico City or Panamá.
A couple of other airline alliances you can take advantage of include:
Some of the key layovers these flights make are:
Perhaps you’ll take advantage of the layover to explore another Colombian city!
Central America and the Caribbean are other areas where you’ll frequently find visitors departing to head to Medellin.
Let’s go over how to get to Medellin from Central America.
Central America and Latin America are neighbors, so it’s much easier to find direct flights from Mexico City to Medellin.
Find direct flights to this destination from:
If you decide to travel with a layover, Copa Airlines, Avianca, and American Airlines, offer very comfortable routes with stopovers in Panama, Bogota, and Miami.
Pro tip: Viva Air is a cheap airline, and flies direct! It’s sort of like the Colombian Spirit, however, so be prepared for extra fees.
Copa Airlines is a Panamanian company that serves to connect Central America with Latin America and North America through its classic stops in Panama.
So it’s an excellent option when traveling to Medellin. With Copa, you can take a direct flight of no more than two hours to the capital of Antioquia from Ciudad de Panama!
Avianca also offers flights to Medellin from Panama City, but these flights involve a layover in Bogotá.
San Jose to Medellin is not usually a very common journey, not even as a stopover.
But, if you do want to travel to Medellin from San Jose, your best bet is to fly to Panamá first. Then, you can transfer to a flight that heads to Mdellin.
Copa Airlines, Avianca, and Aeromexico are airlines that offer layovers in Panama City.
LATAM also has a route that, although it can be a bit confusing because it takes a long time, can be useful for any passenger. With this route, you fly San Jose – Lima – Bogota – Medellin. That’s a lot of layovers!
Copa Airlines connects Guatemala City to Medellin. However, there’s no direct route.
Besides Copa, you can also consider booking with Avianca, which makes a stopover in Bogota. Or, try Aeromexico, which makes a stopover in Mexico City or American Airlines, which goes to Miami before returning to Medellin.
Tthere is no direct flight from San Salvador to Medellin. But, both Copa and Avianca offer routes with layovers.
With Copa, you make a stop in Panama. With Avianca, you can stop in Bogota, Mexico City, Guayaquil, and San Jose, among others.
You can also take flights from partner airlines like Avianca and United Airlines, taking two-stop routes like San Salvador – Houston – Mexico City – Medellin.
Now that you know how to get to Medellin and where it’s located, it’s time to start trip planning! Luckily for you, we’ve got tons of guides to help you out.
Here are just a couple that you might find handy for your trip planning:
Of course, we’ve got tons more like it on the blog. Be sure to check out our other posts to find all the tips and tricks you need for planning the perfect vacation!
Medellin is an unmissable city if you’re thinking of traveling to Colombia or Latin America. That’s true whether it’s for a short or long-term stay!
Better yet, it’s central location means that there are flights to the city from a number of different destinations. Whether you’re coming form the US, Europe, or Central America, you’ll have no problem finding a flight.
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