Planning a Trip to Medellin
I recently made my first trip to Medellin. I want to share some of the information and learning experiences I encountered. First if you are preparing your trip, I recommend you purchase Patrick Jonesie's "Gentleman's Guide to Medellin" it's cheap and it will save you hours of reading the forum (which you should do anyway).
The first item to tackle is making reservations to fly there. I flew from a non-major West coast city and made my own bargain by booking the main flight from a major hub and then booking a separate flight from my city to the hub. I saved almost $250 by doing it this way. Sometimes those anomalies exist and sometimes they don't. Your situation may or may not warrant looking at the possibility.
First screw up! I mapped all the banks in El Poblado around where I was staying. I was concerned about getting cash from ATMs (called cajeros). I didn't see any at the airport (but I know they are there because I saw several on my return flight visit). I hit a cambio and got an awful rate. I knew the cab ride was $75 mil so I exchanged $40 US. Here are the tips. If you are arriving during the day there is a bus that will take you to el centro for a few bucks (US) and from there you can take a cab anywhere and have a huge savings vs the $75 mil from the airport. Second, if you are arriving late or don't want to f' with the bus. The cabs will be happy to stop in El Poblado (or wherever) and let you hit a cajero and pull money. BTW there was no need to map out banks, on 43 A (the main drag which as it goes further South is called El Poblado Avenida) has 2 or 3 cajeros every block. Oh and after you put in your ATM card and pin #, it offers you the choice of continuing in English or Spanish. (I hit 6 different ones during my trip and they all offered that choice).
The Mansion? Or on your own. I did not choose to stay at the Mansion. For a first time visitor with limited (or non-existent) Spanish and wanting to have everything easily available and the camaraderie at hand, maybe that is a winning choice. Just know that the rack rate is at least double what you would find in other places (and I mean guest-friendly places) the only difference is you will need at least basic Spanish and you'll have to call your talent in on your own. To me, it was an easy choice. I'm working on my Spanish and considering Medellin as a retirement spot. I wanted the Spanish practice and I wanted to see how I would fare on my own.
A few tips. Make copies of your passport. Once you are in your room, put your passport and credit cards in the safe. You can go out with the copies of your passport and just enough cash (and a little extra) to handle what you expect you'll need. No reason to amplify any risks and certainly not on one of your first visits.
Traffic is crazy in Medellin. Take a cab DO NOT rent a vehicle. Cabs (once you're in Medellin) are dirt cheap. (So are buses) OH. Do NOT slam the doors the cab drivers will run you over. Just push the door to a closed position.
I also suggest you walk around and get to know the layout. I enjoyed it and El Poblado is like any modern US city. Very modern. Parque Lleras is over hyped. I saw too many men wearing shorts (clearly Gringos, since Colombians don't wear shorts unless they are at the beach). Lleras seems like the ex-pat hangout. I was looking for more authentic experiences and avoided the place.
They have a very efficient metro (but it's always going to require some serious walking, so be prepared) and the Metro-Cable gondala cars that go up the sides of the mountains are amazing! Make sure you have the time to do this and if you need to hire a guide, it's still worth it. (Spanish comes in handy here. I was absolutely unable to communicate at a sufficient level but sure as hell, I got off at the right stop and the Policeman sent me in the right direction and I made it work, which means you can too).
I also did a 4 hour walking tour of el centro (called "Real City Tours" which is donation only and very interesting and worthwhile).
OK you're probably not coming to Medellin to checkout the history and retirement potential so let's talk about the real reason you're going there.
I booked my dates through FaceBook (and two others through Tinder). FaceBook is most relevant because of the large number of pointers and suggestions here on the board. You will need to have some basic level of Spanish. I know you're really smart and can manage google-translate but it takes too long and your girls will lose interest quickly if the conversation has too many delays. Oh and Google Translate and other apps are too word for word specific and don't really do a good job of translating the essence of what you are trying to say or understand. Basic Spanish will reward your effort more than you can believe possible.
If I had it to do over again (and I'm working on my next visit as we read / write) I would visit a number of the better casas on Avenida 33 in Laureles. (Unless I can get one of the masters to accompany me on a casa hunt in el centro). Laureles is safe, more expensive with lots of great beauties (or so I hear). So that is my plan for the next visit.
You should be able to pull great girls from Facebook but you'll have to work it. I mean let them know in advance you're visiting. (Don't expect long conversations, they don't want to waste their time until you're in the city). Once here, post some Medellin pictures on your FB homepage to let your "friends" know you've arrived and start to work. You'll pay more for a FaceBook prepago than you would in a casa but you should be able to pre-arrange your needs and her needs (something I didn't always do on my first trip and while it generally worked exactly as I hoped, there were a few disappointments). P4P is legal in Colombia (over the age of 18 and don't you even begin to think that 18 is a guideline and not a rule. You seriously do not want to find your ass in a Colombian prison, hoping that Donald Trump will pull you out. Because he won't). So since P4P is legal girls are not paranoid about clarifying what they want out of the visit and what you want out of the visit. This is a serious adjustment vs. The US where you both would be dealing with illegalities.
I recommend staying away from 'drugs' but I'm not a user so you are on your own in that department. If you would like to make sure you're 'up to the occasion' you might bring your needs with you. ED drugs in El Poblado are not as inexpensive even in the generic as I thought. Probably should have tried to price them in Envigado or other spots. Others may have good ideas where to find the bargains but all the "Drogerias" I tried in El Poblado were way too expensive for my tastes. (Luckily that was just a fact-finding excursion, since I brought my own stash).
I also suggest you bring your own condoms of choice. Why? Some girls won't bring them and will not go without, which will cause a problem. Besides some of the Colombian brands are too small and might make things uncomfortable. It's cheap, bring your own.
OK synopsis of my trip. I saw a bunch of FaceBook girls. Most asked what I was going to spend. I universally gave this answer:
$150 mil + taxis. Una Vez - 1-2 horas $150 mil - 1 time - 1-2 hours.
$200 mil + taxis. Dos Veces - 2-3 horas $200 mil - 2 times - 2-3 hours.
$300 mil + taxis - ? Veces - 6-8 horas $300 mil - ? Times - 6-8 hours.
Debes traer tu cedula. You must bring your ID.
Mi hotel es conservativa, por favor, te pones la ropa conservativa. My hotel is conservative, please wear conservative clothes.
I met very little resistance to this. One girl insisted she wanted $200 mil for 1 time 1-2 hours but she agreed to cover her own transportation. She had a very good rep so I did it but it wasn't one of my best sessions either.
OH, not a single girl asked to be paid up front. I would absolutely have sent them home (with taxi money) if they had insisted on this. This has been discussed in the forum and it's a clear absolute. You lose all control when you pay up front. Clearly you don't want to do this and sending a girl home is a preferable option even if it doesn't seem like it at the time. Luckily I never, once faced this issue.
I made my first trip 2 1/2 weeks, because air-fare is expensive. But I had a cold and was pretty much staying in my room the first 2-3 days. I think 10 days to 2 weeks is a satisfactory time range for a visit. If you reach your fill of sport-fucking the trip could drag. But if you like visiting museums and historical spots you certainly have enough to fill as much time as you would like.
If you visit a nice restaurant be warned that they might very well add "Propina" (which is 'standard gratuity' A lot of the places will ask you if that is OK? You might not understand the question in rapid-fire Spanish. Just look at the bill closely. If you see a line item "Propina" just know that you've already paid part (or all) of the tip and not to pay twice. My experience with the nicer restaurants (nicer meaning = more expensive) was that they added a 10% propina. Colombian tipping is different. 10% is generous / more than sufficient. You won't need or want to add anything to that. BTW Cab rides will not expect a tip at all, they will be delighted if you just round up the fare to the nearest Mil. (Cab fare = 8,650 and you pay them 9,000 (9 mil) They will be very happy.
Don't be too afraid to make mistakes, it's inevitable. You can't help but have a great time. So, relax and enjoy! And most important of all, take notes every night and write up a trip-report when you're finished.
