Nightlife in Medellin

This Medellin nightlife article was originally written on December 24, 2014, but I update it regularly. The latest update was January 2019.

Table of contents

Monday Nightlife
Tuesday Nightlife
Wednesday Nightlife
Thursday Nightlife
Friday Nightlife
Saturday Nightlife
Sunday Nightlife

Restaurants
Cocktails
Dancing in Medellin
Strip Bars – if you’d like to get this list please email info@medellinbuzz.com
Sex Motels – if you’d like to get this list please email info@medellinbuzz.com


The Medellin nightlife I will be describing in this post is based on my experience for the past eight years.

First of all, I am a 38-year-old single male living in Medellin, Colombia. I have lived in seven different neighborhoods, and am familiar with all of Medellin.

The neighborhoods I have lived in (in order): Patio Bonito, San Diego, Calazans, El Centro, Floresta, El Salvador (part of El Centro), and now I am in El Poblado (barrio manila).

Nightlife in Medellin has expanded in the last few years and it is growing.

What was once a place for expat retirees is now a digital nomad hub and tourist destination. Therefore, more restaurants, bars, and dance clubs have popped up around the city.

In this post I’ll go through what my evenings look like every day. I own a business and work every day, so it’s not as wild as it was 8 years ago, when I arrived. No worries though. I’ll also give suggestions for those that don’t have to wake up at 6:00 am during the week.

Monday – Mellow

Monday night has always been a stay in night for me. However, when I was living in Floresta I would go to a rock bar called Minuto Urbano on Carrera 90 and San Juan in a neighborhood called Santa Monica.  I was seeing the waitress there, otherwise, I would have never heard of it, but if you do go I recommend going on a Friday or Saturday. They have live music sometimes and it is great. The music they play is Rock in English and Spanish.

When I was living in El Centro I would usually order from The Mexican House.  They have fantastic burritos, and they have this hot sauce that they make using passion fruit, which is spectacular.

Now that I am living in El Poblado I usually play basketball at 6:00 p.m. make dinner at home and go to bed early.

On the occasions that I do have a date on a Monday night, my favorite spot is El Acontista in El Centro. They usually have live blues or jazz on Mondays.

If you feel like drinking beer and laughing you may want to check out the Pub Quiz / Trivia Night at Barrio Central Cafe Bar.

If you’re looking to dance on Monday night in Medellin, check out DanceFree. The have salsa dancing every Monday night till 11:00 pm.

Tuesday – Pub Crawl, Pool & Salsa

When I first got to Medellin Tuesday nights were always salsa night at El Eslabon Prendido in El Centro. It’s a must see for newbies in Medellin.

Nowadays I hardly ever go to El Eslabon Prendido, I usually only go if I am showing the place to someone for the first time. It is too crowded and too small to dance in, too muggy, you will be soaked in sweat if you try to dance, the highlight for me has always been the live salsa. The musicians that play there are amazing. It is a must see in Medellin.

Nowadays, Tuesday nights are gym night. It’s funny but I’ve actually taken girls to the gym. I get 5 free passes a month, and since the gym is only 2 block from my house it’s cool to go back to my place, make food, drink wine, and watch a movie.

For those of you just getting to know the city, there’s a pretty great Pub Crawl that starts at Los Patios hostel in barrio Manila

Another thing I like to do is to go play pool at a pool hall near Parque Poblado called Jimar. They got a lot of pool tables and a ussball table, along with a few restaurants on the first floor.

Wednesday – Gringo Party & Swingers Club

If I were new to Medellin and wanted to party on Wednesday, I would check out one of the pub crawl at the Tiger Hostel.

My Wednesdays are usually mellow. Wednesdays are slow around the city. So for me, Wednesday night is basketball night in Medellin. I started a pickup basketball group on Faceboook called Medellin Basketball Association, which now has over 1,000 members. We play every Wednesday at 4pm.

When I do have a date on Wednesday night I like to take her to the movies. I usually go to the movie theater in Premium Plaza, called Royal Films. I like that movie theater because it is close to where I live, and it is 2 for 1 on Wednesdays, also there are a couple bars near the movie theater on the 3rd floor, so it’s cool to get a couple cocktails while waiting for the movie.

Staying in and watching basketball is also one of my favorite things in life. 

Andrew watching the Lakers at home

If you just want to chill out at a local pub with a variety of LOCAL beers you have to go to Metropol Beer Lab about a block from parque poblado. It’s a really cool little corner bar with pretty bartenders and cool owners.

Local soccer games are often played on Wednesday nights, so it’s a good opportunity to go catch Nacional or DIM play at the stadium.

UPDATE – On Wednesdays, it’s really fun to go to DanceFree. They do free Salsa and sometimes Bachata lessons. I’ve gone several times…and although the ratio of women to men is low sometimes, it’s still fun because I like to dance and I like to learn. This is a great place for salsa and bachata dancing in Medellin, here’s their website: http://www.dancefree.com.co/.

If you wanna get freaky on a Wednesday, and have a lucky lady and/or guy, there are a couple of swingers clubs in Barrio Colombia, Open Mind Swingers Club, and Sweet Dreams Swinger Bar. The most famous swinger’s club away from el poblado, near the stadium, Club Swinger la Piscina.

Medellin Nightlife

Thursday – Ladies Night & Open Bar

Thursday rivals Saturdays.

When I used to live in Floresta, I would start my night off by going to the Wandering Paisa Hostel for their language exchange at 8:00 p.m. then I’d head over to Son Havana for live salsa and dancing at around 10:30 p.m.

Here in Poblado the best place to go used to be Babylon Nigh Club. This used to be an epic spot for women on Thursday night. Every Thursday night they have ladies night, where the first 200 girls are let in for free, and it is open-bar so they drink for free too. Even today there is usually a line of women going around the block at about 10:00 pm.

 

The problem is that they were featured on The Lonely Planet and that fucked everything up. Now at 11:00 p.m. you will find a giant line of guys out front, and most of them backpackers. “Ain’t nobody got time for that.”

Ain't Nobody Got Time For That

The best ladies night/open bar club in town is at Bendito Seas. The cover is around $35,000 for guys and that includes all the Ron Medellin and Aguardiente you can drink. You’ll usually find it packed with young women, who will line up starting at 9:00 pm or 9:30 pm. The first 100 ladies get in free, so there’s always a big line for women.

The doors open at 10:00 pm, so make sure to get there before 10:00 pm (there’s a separate line for guys.) I suggest you get there early in order to secure a table. You will not get free bottle service if you don’t have a table. Also, positioning is key, you want to be in the middle of all the women.

Pro insight: Payday here is on the 1st and the 15th, so any Thursday that falls on, or right after those dates is usually great. Furthermore, Thursdays in December and July are awesome because university students are on vacation in those months.

So if I am in the mood to go clubbing on Thursdays I go to different, less touristy clubs.

I will highlight a little secret one, La Garganta on La 33 in Laureles.

If you wanna get a little freaky on a Thursday night you may want to check out The Secret Garden Erotic Pub. It’s a regular SEXY bar on the first floor, and a swinger’s club on the second floor.

Friday Medellin Nightlife

Medellin nightlife on Fridays is usually active and full of possibilities. When I was living in El Centro I would take dates and/or friends to El Pequeño Teatro located right there on Cordoba street and La Playa.

This is one of the best little playhouses in El Centro, though you’ll find others that are great, I especially like this one. Entrance is free, you are asked to give a donation, and they have a little bar inside serving beer, wine, and snacks, so it is a good idea to get there early.

Before watching a play I usually go for pizza at La Grande Pizza right next door to El Pequeño Teatro. Their pizza is mediocre, but their calzones are great!

When I lived in Floresta I would take special ladies to Alberto Lechona on la 80 before going out dancing. Alberto Lechona is somewhat of a hidden gem. It is known to be one of the best places for lechona in Medellin. Lechona is basically stuffed roasted pig, traditionally served in December, but Alberto Lechona has it year round, and it is good.

After eating some lechona I would go to la 70 near the stadium and pick one of the clubs at random. La 70 has many nightclubs starting by the stadium and ending all the way down by the university, UPB. The newer hipper clubs are by the university. Also, there are other great food joints there, Opera Pizza being one of them.

Not so well known salsa place: El Suave on Colombia street. You will probably never see any foreigners at El Suave, which is great!

Party Buss Medellin Nightlife 2016

Saturday Nightlife in Medellin

Saturday Medellin nightlife is awesome, especially if they fall on a quincena (payday – the first or 15th of every month).

For a single guy in the city, you can pretty much choose any neighborhood and go to the bars and/or clubs and have a great time.

Manrique is one of my favorite spots to party. The main street for all of the nightclubs is Carrera 45. If you ask any cab driver to take you to la 45 in Manrique on a Saturday night he will know exactly where it is. Once you are there you can just jump around from club to club exploring. My friends and I usually go early, find the nearest liquor store, buy a bottle of tequila, post up somewhere and drink, then head to the clubs.

Medellin nightlife party

Disclaimer: I do NOT recommend you go to Manrique, or any of the places listed here alone. It’s usually best to go out with friends.

Envigado is also a fun Saturday night spot to party at. The section with the best clubs in Envigado is called La Bota. It is near the Envigado main square, so again, my friends and I like to hang out at the park, drink a bottle, maybe have one of those famous enpanadas envigadenas, then head into a place.

La 33 in Laureles is also great. There are many places along la 33 to party at. We usually go to Bling Bling or Emporium. I could not find websites nor facebook pages for those two, but they are the most notable on la 33.

nightlife medellin

Medellin nightlife isn’t like L.A. but it sure has it’s moments.

Barrio Colombia is pretty cool. There is really no street life at Barrio Colombia, you mainly have to choose a disco and go in and make due. All clubs in Barrio Colombia have a cover charge.

My favorite places to go to in Barrio Colombia are two local beer breweries that have bars in them. 3 Cordilleras is big and will have live music every now and them so check them out on social media. Cerveceria Libre is a smaller brewery, but they have a great IPA on tap. 

Regardless, I have been to pretty much all of the clubs there and I can say that I would much rather go to Parque Lleras on a Saturday night. Due to the fact that most girls come in large groups with guys, so if you are not going to a birthday party or with a large group then it is not so fun.

Poblado is the place where you will find the most people and by people, I mean single girls.

Parque Poblado is a nice place to start. There are a few bars near the park were you can meet up with friends and meet new people. 

Parque Lleras on a Saturday night is like a giant catwalk. You will see the most beautiful women you have ever seen strutting around, dressed to impress and looking to dance. There are many places for cocktails and dancing around Parque Lleras.

Bendito Seas Medellin Nightlife

Drinking at the park is a good place to start, but you can easily spend too much time there gawking at the beauties and that is not cool. I start the night at a cocktail place or a place were I can order a bottle and have drinks, then go dance somewhere.

My favorite places near parque lleras are Perro Negro with its Reggaeton and dirty booty grinding all night, Midnight (hip hop!), Vintrash with its 4 levels of music, and Mad Radio.

El Pub de Octavia is another favorite. This place is smaller and gets cramped, but the music is good and there are always ladies to dance with. The music there is also crossover but they throw in more rock and reggae.

When we are feeling like chasing some high-income level tail we head over to Rio Sur. Bar/Club hopping there can be expensive, but always fun.

There are too many places in Parque Lleras to mention them all here. Many times my friends and I walk around until we see a spot that we want to go into. It is always a fun time in Parque Lleras, Saturday nights in Lleras rock!

Hanging out at Parque Lleras

Some friends hanging out in Parque Lleras.

Sunday – Snooze

I never go out on Sunday night. I run a business, so Sunday nights are really mellow. I usually invite a friend over, cook and/or watch a movie or basketball. Most Sundays I use to write blog posts.

Socially Awkward?

The dynamics in social settings here in Colombia have proven to be different from in the US. Typically, people go out in groups here.

As a bachelor in Medellin I love to go out with friends and meet women. This is not hard at all. The best nights to meet women in Medellin are always Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

I tend to go out in la Zona Rosa because this is where women typically go out in groups, without guys. They feel safer in those areas so logically there will be more single girls out.

Even if there are guys in the group it is not uncommon for my friends and I to mingle with the girls and even say “what’s up?” to the guys. Colombians are generally friendly and guys do not mean mug as much as in Southern California. On the contrary, if you are a foreigner, many times locals will invite you over to the table for drinks and a great time.

Invite you over to the table, yes the table, Colombian’s love tables, they sit around drinking aguardiente until they get buzzed enough to stand up and dance. Once they are tipsy they’ll dance all night, it’s awesome.

I’m not very shy, and I’m pretty generous, so when someone treats me to a drink I always return the favor and this typically wins over any table.

Restaurants for Dinner in Medellin

Colombians don’t really eat dinner when at home. There’s no real supper, I mean, the main plates in Colombian cuisine are for breakfast and lunch. When I got to Medellin 6 years ago, many of the places Paisas would go to for dinner would be fast food joints. Straight up hamburger, hot dogs, and pizza. Thankfully Medellin has grown, and we now have some awesome restaurants to go to for dinner.

These are restaurants to take a date you want to impress.

Places for Cocktails in Medellin

My drink is vodka tonic or gin and tonic. Not very hard to fuck that up right? Wrong! Colombian’s love sugar, so if you order a vodka or gin and tonic make sure to tell them not to use the sweet tonic water (they typically used the sweetened Schweppes or Canada Dry. To make things easier I just tell the bartender to give me a double shot of vodka or gin and a bottle of Bretaña (soda water) and lime. Regardless, I’ve made a list of some of my favorite cocktail bars in Medellin.

Places for Dancing in Medellin

Medellin nightlife is mostly about drinking and dancing. Whether it’s Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, Vallenato or Reggaeton, music is key. Talking at these places is hard because the music is usually very loud, so just grab a drink and grab a girl, dance and have a great time. These are some of my favorite spots in Medellin.

Conclusion

In the end, the Medellin nightlife is pretty diverse. Pretty much all major neighborhoods have nightlife. I’ve been to many other places I did not mention for example Madera, Bello, Robledo, Copacabana, and Itagui. I do not frequent those places, so I do not feel experienced enough to write about them.

If you have any good nightlife suggestions or questions feel free to write them down in the comments.

Make Comments and Suggestions Below

I love to get insight from readers, feel free to leave comments and/or questions below.

Andrew Macia - Medellin

About the writer – Andrew Macia

Hello, my name is Andrew Macia and the Medellin Buzz is my blog.  I moved to Medellin in 2010 and fell in love with the city. I taught advanced level English for four years and then started a digital marketing company.

I love Colombia, and Medellin is my home. I like to write and I want to give back to the community. This is the best way I know how. I hope you enjoy my blog!

Andrew Macia - Medellin Graffiti

About the Medellin Buzz

I started the Medellin Buzz as a resource for my English as a foreign language students. A site where they could read about their city in English, that wasn’t boring. It slowly turned into a personal blog and hub for information for people discovering Medellin. I check comments frequently, so feel free to leave your comment and/or questions below.