ITINERARY
- Meet your driver at our office (calle 8 #43a-89 Medellín) at 7 AM or come by your own means
- Drive 2 hours to Pailania and meet your bilingual guide (Or meet us there at 9 AM if you come on your own )
- Enjoy breakfast overlooking the mountains that create the the Rio Verde watershed
- Switch vehicles for a 4×4 and drive to El Retiro
- Enjoy magical ambiance of the Rio Melcocho
- Have lunch by the riverside, prepared by your guide
- Swim in natural pools and relax on secluded beaches
- 4×4 Ride back to Pailania
- Return to Medellin via our private transport or choose to hope on a bus
Meet your driver at 7 am in our office in Medellin and take a scenic drive though the plateau of Rio Negro, before descending into the Samana Watershed. After about 2 hours of traveling, and right before turning off the main highway to head into the jungle, we will make a breakfast stop at “El Palacio de los Frijoles”. Enjoy a gourmet traditional meal and jump into your 4×4 ; here your adventure begins.
First, drive alongside the Rio Santo Domingo. After 20 minutes, the pavement stops. Enter a maze of jungle covered mountains via a small dirt road. Make a quick stop to chat with local cacao and coffee farmers before finishing the drive in “El Retiro”, a lovely hamlet nested at the end of the valley.
From there your guide will lead you on a trail to the hidden pools of the Melcocho River. You will not believe how pleasant the temperature of the water is! The river bed is wrapped by untouched rain forest, and vines that drop into the water from the canopy. The ambiance is truly magical, and all you have to do is enjoy!
Your guide will prepare a delicious meal, and will describe to you the countless, birds, fish, animals and plant of your surroundings.
Swim, explore the canyon and relax on the beaches.
At the end of the day, as the sun goes down, we will make our way back to the car and enjoy the stunning views over the mountains as we return toward Medellin. Arrive around 7PM
Extend your stay in the area of San Francisco by spending the night in a nice country house with beautiful views of the mountains!
On the following day join a rafting trip, go for a jungle hike or visit a cocoa farm in the area.
- After breakfast, meet your professional driver at 8 a.m. in our Medellin office calle 8 #43A – 89, el Poblado, Medellin
- Drive 1.5 hours on the Medellin-Bogota Highway, to Cocorna
- Join a bilingual guide to take a tandem paragliding flight
- Drive 20min to reach our rafting base
- Enjoy lunch by the river
- Raft over 15 kilometers of class 3-4 river
- Drive back to Medellin
Meet your driver at 8 am at our office in Medellin. Drive 1.5 hours to the town of Cocorna
Meet your experienced bilingual paraglider pilot. Do a methodical assessment of the weather conditions with your pilot to ensure a safe and enjoyable flight. Once weather conditions are optimal, you will take a short walk to the take-off ramp, located on a sloping hill. Your instructor will ensure the tandem paragliding equipment is properly set up, including helmet and harness. Leg, shoulder and waist straps are connected with safety attachments. A tandem paraglide is built for a single pilot and a passenger and allows a person with no previous experience to fly with an instructor, who controls the paraglide.
Follow instructions for how to run on take-off site, sit comfortably in your harness, and position yourself for landing. An assistant will help you and your tandem pilot take-off and then you will enjoy a 20 minute flight upon the Samana Valley and its waterfalls.
Get back in the van and drive 20 minutes to the Calderas river. Enjoy lunch by the riverside before listening to a safety talk from your bilingual rafting guide. Begin an adventurous descent on thrilling class 3/4 intermediate whitewater, flowing in a pristine valley. Look for wildlife and enjoy the opportunities to swim in the calmer sections.
The last part of the river is the most exciting, with drops up to 1.5 meters and fun waves to hit! Let our expert guides navigate you safely through the rapids before reaching the take out, where the local “tienda” awaits, packed with cold drinks!
Our vans and professional drivers will take you back to Medellin (2 hour drive). Enjoy the stunning landscapes as you drive through the remote valley.
CHECKLIST
- Breakfast (not included if meeting in Pailainia)
- Private luxury van (Optional, please contact us for details – prices indicated are for a meeting point in Pailania)
- 4×4 adventure
- Professional bilingual guide
- Exchange with local, cultural experiences
- River-side lunch
- Drinks and snacks
- Insurance
- Good closed-toe shoes for river
- Board shorts or lightweight long pants
- Lightweight long sleeve shirt or t-shirt
- Sunhat, sunscreen, sunglasses
- Refillable water bottle
- 1 set dry shoes (to change into after trip)
- 1 set dry clothes (to change into after trip)
- Passport
Please note : prices shown are based on meeting in Pailaina*, Private transport from Medellin is extra, please contact us for more information.
* How to get to Pailaina ? Pailainia is located 5 kilometers before the town of San Francisco, in Eastern Antioquia. To get there, take a bus from the north bus terminal (Terminal del Norte, Caribe metro station), headed to San Francisco, booth # 15 Flota Granada.
A 100% deposit must be made before the trip. For last-minute payments and reservation requests, contact Expedition Colombia. All payments must be made through our booking platform or via a deposit in our Bancolombia bank account.
All our prices above do not include IVA.
- Foreigners are exempt from IVA.
- Colombian residents, citizens, and foreigners living in Colombia for more than 6 months will be charged of the IVA.
- For companies or agencies, the full IVA will be charged.
