Best Way to Travel from Bogotá to Medellín? – Buses and Flights Compared

Are you planning a trip to Colombia and interested in traveling from Bogotá to Medellín?

Medellín is one of Colombia’s most popular destinations. It has near perfect year round weather, lots of nice restaurants, a vibrant nightlife, and lots of nice things to do nearby.

Meanwhile, Bogotá as Colombia’s capital, has lots of great museums and some neat historic sites. It is underrated as a destination in my opinion.

Also, while there are a good number of international flights in and out of Medellín, there’s a chance you will need to route through Bogotá depending on where you are coming from. Bogotá also makes a great hub to visit other places in Colombia.

I might be biased and think Cartagena, where I lived for over a decade and made this website about, is the top destination in Colombia, but Medellín is probably a close second for many people, and Bogotá is absolutely worth including in a multi-city trip or backpacking trip through Colombia.

So, if you do want to visit both Bogotá and Medellín, read on to learn my tips for how to travel from Bogotá to Medellín, including why I tend to recommend flights to Medellín from Bogotá based on my experience, but also how to take a Bogotá to Medellín bus.

*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, and I may earn from purchases made after clicking those links. Disclosure Policy.

Bogotá to Medellín – Contents

• Overview and Quick Tips
• How Far is Medellín from Bogotá?
• Tips for Flights to Medellín from Bogotá
• Tips for Taking the Bus from Bogotá to Medellín
• Can You Drive from Bogotá to Medellín?

Quick Tips for Getting to Medellín from Bogotá

If you read some of my posts on getting to Cartagena from places in Colombia’s interior like Bogotá and Medellín, you’ll pick up that I mostly recommend flying.

That’s because the mountainous interior of Colombia makes traveling over land take much longer than meets the eye if you just look at the distance on a map.

That’s true of traveling from Bogotá to Medellín too, as these two cities look pretty close on the map, but will take pretty much a full day to travel between over land.

That’s a lot shorter than the 20+ hours reaching the coast will take though.

So, here, I think there’s a good case for taking flights to Medellín from Bogotá or taking a bus from Bogotá to Medellín.

It really comes down to personal preference, budget, and the time you have.

It’s a short flight, while the bus will take you the better part of the day. Even after factoring in checking in and time spent waiting in the airport, you gain roughly a half day by taking a Bogotá to Medellín flight. That’s significant but not a deal breaker unless you’re very short of time.

I would suggest, checking prices and schedules of flights from Bogotá to Medellín on a site like Expedia or CheapOair.

Then, compare those to the prices and schedules for buses from Bogotá to Medellín at sites like BusBud and Bookaway.

That should give you a pretty good idea of the cost-benefit of taking a Bogotá to Medellín flight vs a Bogotá to Medellín bus.

Personally, I’d probably lean towards taking a flight from Bogotá to Medellín, but I don’t think the time you’re giving up by busing is nearly as significant as busing to the coast.

A quick aside, if you would like to check out Colombia’s coffee region, for example the pretty town of Salento, I would do it between Bogotá and Medellín.

You can do it by flying from Bogotá to Armenia, Manizales, or Pereira, or busing to Salento or anywhere else you’d like in the region. Then you can head to Medellín, again by flying or busing.

If you wanted to rent a car and drive, you could take advantage of touring lots of small towns around this region too. Just keep in mind it’s a lot of mountain roads and generally Colombians drive quite aggressively.

On another quick aside, if you’d like some expert help planning a trip to see all Colombia has to offer, consider planning with my partner travel agency BnB Colombia Tours. Fill out the form here, and they will contact you to construct your dream trip using their reliable and bilingual guides. They can arrange everything you need, starting with transportation from the airport upon arrival in Colombia. They’ll even give you a discount for contacting them through my site!

If you’re more of a DIY planner, they do offer some great day tours you can book independently as well. Use the code ExploreColombia10 for a discount on any of those. Do note that they offer private transfers between lots of places in coffee region and in and around both Medellín and Bogotá too.

You can also check out the top Bogotá tours on GetYourGuide and Viator as well as the top tours in Medellín on GetYourGuide and Viator for more ideas.

Oh, and I have a guide to some things to do in Bogotá too!

I also have a guide to where to stay in Bogotá as well as picks for the top luxury hotels in Bogotá and top hotels near the Bogotá airport, which might be convenient if you do decide to take a Bogotá to Medellín flight!

If you have further questions about traveling from Bogotá to Medellín, read on. In the sections that follow, I’ll give a bit more details and tips for each of these ways to travel to Medellín from Bogotá.

How Far is Medellín from Bogotá?

The shortest route by road puts the Bogotá to Medellín distance at around 415 km, or about 260 miles.

By car, this route should take 8-9 hours with mostly favorable traffic conditions (which definitely is not always the case!)

A bus from Bogotá to Medellín should take around 9-10 hours.

Meanwhile, a Bogotá to Medellín flight takes right at an hour.

Tips for Finding Flights to Medellín from Bogotá

The main reason to take a Bogotá to Medellín flight is that difference in time.

While not nearly as massive as the difference between flying and busing between the interior and coast, you’re still gaining a half or more day’s worth of time to enjoy yourself, even after factoring in time in the airport.

So, I’d recommend flying for those that have shorter times for their trip.

On top of being faster, it’s probably more comfortable and convenient for most travelers too.

Finally, it might not be all that much more expensive than taking the bus.

I took a quick look while putting this article together. I found one way flights form Bogotá to Medellín for $46 USD. I found buses listed for $26 USD online.

So, we are talking about a difference as low as $20 USD. Even on a tight budget, that’s not a huge difference.

While I do recommend checking out sites like Expedia and CheapOair to check for the cheapest flights, also be sure to check the websites of airlines themselves. In particular, I recommend checking out Avianca and LATAM. Both frequently run flash sales.

For example, I found that $46 dollar price on Avianca while they were running a sale.

Budget carrier Wingo is another option worth checking.

Just be sure to read the small print on what you’re allowed to take on these flights, as often the cheapest prices for Bogotá to Medellín flights don’t include checked bags or full sized carryons.

Still, there’s a good chance you can just opt to fly from Bogotá to Medellín for a fairly nominal difference in cost compared to taking a bus.

I’m personally probably going to choose a flight most times if the difference is that small.

As I mentioned in the overview section, if you want to do the coffee region between Bogotá and Medellín, you could fly into Pereira, Manizales, or Armenia. I would check for the best flight prices and schedule. Be sure to check the onward flights to Medellín too.

Finally, the Wikipedia pages of the Medellín airport and Bogotá airport might be helpful for you if you do decide to do a Bogotá to Medellín flight.

Tips for Taking a Bus from Bogotá to Medellín

Now, unlike traveling between the interior and the coast, I would actually consider taking a bus from Bogotá to Medellín even if my first choice would probably be flying in most situations.

I’m not sure I think saving only around 20 bucks is worth it, but there are a couple scenarios where I actually think I might even prefer taking a Bogotá to Medellín bus.

The first is if I did want to do the coffee region.

While flying to the region and then to Medellín is an option, the neatest parts of the coffee region are in the smaller towns, so you’ll be doing busing around the region anyways.

If it works out favorably cost and time wise, I would definitely consider busing to the coffee region if I’m choosing to route through there while taking buses from Bogotá to Medellín.

The second scenario is if I’m traveling directly to Medellín from Bogotá by bus and can take a night bus.

The 8-10 hour trip works out well for getting a night of sleep and getting a full day upon arrival in Medellín. Also, this way, you’re not just saving the relatively nominal difference in cost between a flight and a bus but also saving a night of accomodation.

Doing this does depend on personal comfort traveling by bus at night as well as if you can actually sleep well on a bus. You should at least have some options for buses with more comfortable seats (I would recommend bringing along a sweater or hoodie as sometimes the A/C can be chilly).

It can be a good way to save a more significant chunk of pesos and not really sacrifice time you can enjoy.

You can check costs, schedules, and even book buses from Bogotá to Medellín online at BusBud and Bookaway.

If you definitely want to do something like a night bus or depart at a specific time, I’d recommend booking online at one of those sites. You will normally get a lot more options and likely slightly cheaper prices at the terminal though if you’re more flexible.

Do keep in mind, you’ll want to get buses from Bogotá to Medellín from the main Salitre Terminal.

Can I Dive from Bogotá to Medellín?

Yes, you can drive from Bogotá to Medellín.

However, I generally don’t recommend it unless you have experience driving in Colombia and are ok with both winding mountain roads and aggressive drivers.

I also would probably only recommend this to those who are planning to make several stops along the way, like perhaps touring several towns in the coffee region.

Otherwise, I’d probably stick to flying or taking a bus.

If you do want to rent a car to drive, you can check prices at RentalCars.com.

Ready to plan your trip from Bogotá to Medellín?

Now you have the lowdown on the different ways to travel from Bogotá to Medellín. I hope you found this guide useful, and, more importantly, you have a safe trip and enjoy both cities and any stops you make between, before, and/or after!

Do check out the links below as well as all the other content on the site for other destinations in Colombia, including Cartagena!

Cheers and Happy Exploring!

Did you like this post?

During your time in Bogotá, you might be interested in tacking on a visit to the neat colonial town of Villa de Leyva. The gorgeous Lake Guatavita is also well worth a day trip too, and the Monserrate Chapel is a must see in Bogotá. If you plan to travel onwards to Cartagena from Medellín by bus, consider a stop in the San Bernardo Islands or Rincón del Mar to break up the long journey.