Medellin has been a divided city with high rates of poverty and unrest. This was definitely true for those who lived in the underdeveloped barrios high up in the mountainsides overlooking the city. They faced isolation and lack of access to jobs, healthcare, education, and supplies.

That changed when the Medellin Metro Cable was opened in 2004. Suddenly, Medellin’s most impoverished people had a chance to escape their isolation on the steep hillsides and had access the city center where they could find jobs, schools, public libraries, shops, and markets.

Cable Cars of Medellin

For the people of Medellin, the new metro cable represented so much more than just a way to get around the city; it represented hope and change. In addition to the metro cable, the city also began developing new libraries, safe public parks and squares, and even a bike-share program. Gradually Medellin’s reputation shifted from being a city filled with violence and drugs to a city filled with innovation.

Destination, Parque Arvi

The Medellin metro cable is considered the “number one attraction” in the city, and it’s definitely worth a ride to the top to see Parque Arvi! This park was once the private holiday retreat of Medellin’s elite; however, since 2009 it has been an ecological preserve open to the public. The park is a pine and eucalyptus forest located in Medellin’s eastern mountains in the Santa Elena district. The crisp, cool air and relaxing ride in the metro cable make it an easy 20-minute ride from Acevedo Metro station.

Riding in the cable car and gazing down at Medellin’s poorest neighborhoods offers a stark contrast to the city center. While much of Medellin is modern, urban, and densely populated, the scenery begins to change as the cable car drifts upward. The streets become unpaved and winding; the buildings appear haphazardly thrown together; the sidewalks give way to greenery, farms, and finally thick foliage.

One moment we had a spectacular bird’s eye view of Colombia’s second largest city as our cable car crawled over the crest of a mountain ridge, and the next we were suddenly gliding over the top of a vast forest with no city in sight. Welcome to Parque Arvi.

Arrival at Parque Arvi

A visit to the park has two stages. The first stage is the ride from the metro to the top of the mountain and to the park entrance.

From the metro station, we rode the first cable car up the mountain through 3 stops to the hillside neighborhood of Santo Domingo. To get to the park, we boarded another cable car that took us to the entrance of the park.

This ride was amazing as we moved through urban, farmland and forest landscapes. The tour guides recommended riding the cable car even if we didn’t want to visit the park. It is a quiet and peaceful ride which provides a beautiful view.

The second stage is entering the park itself. There are 54 miles of trails to explore. The park covers nearly 40,000 acres with 4,000 acres of natural forest. Colombia has more than half of the world’s species of flowers. It also has the largest variety of orchids in the world, with more than 4,000 different species of which 1,543 are only found in Colombia.

We took a 2-hour guided tour which left from the park entrance. During our hike, our guide pointed out over 20 varieties of wild orchids, bromeliads, and ferns (some ferns were as large as trees). The orchids are of all shapes and sizes and are found near rivers, on the forest floor and flourishing on other plants and trees. The park does not offer English-language tours, but we were able to understand much of the guide’s Spanish.

Lunch at the Top

After our hike, we had a delicious lunch at Vegetariano Cable a Tierra. Paula has made the most magical space and serves a delicious meal. It was a highlight of our trip!

After we entered the open-air mountain-top restaurant we were greeted with hot tea by Paula, who was most hospitable. Although we are not vegetarians, we were very impressed with wonderful flavors and a very filling meal.

The chef-owner serves everything “con amor” on a set menu. We had squash soup, mango salad, tostones with guacamole and a vegetable Mac and cheese, with hot tea.

Paula was so sweet I had to hug her at the end of the meal. This meal was one of our favorite “menu del dia” in Medellin and even without seeing Parque Arvi would have been worth the long ride in the cable car!

We enjoyed our day exploring the Metro cable, the views, the Santo Domingo neighborhood, and the lovely, sun-dappled woodlands and greenery of Parque Arvi. We will probably make one or two return trips to the park because there is so much beautiful scenery to see. The park and lunch on the mountain are must-do activities during a visit to Medellin.