My Day Exploring Guatapé and El Peñón — and the Helicopter Ride I Didn’t Plan
Before arriving in Guatapé, I had to decide whether it was worth staying overnight or simply visiting on a day trip from Medellín. I walk through that decision in Why I Chose an Overnight Stay Near Guatapé Instead of a Day Trip from Medellín. Once that choice was made, it was time to see whether slowing down was actually worth it.
When I started planning my Colombia itinerary, one destination immediately stood out: El Peñón de Guatapé.
I’d first seen it years earlier on The Amazing Race. I don’t remember much about the challenge itself—I just remember contestants climbing hundreds of stairs to the top of an enormous rock overlooking one of the most unusual landscapes I’d ever seen.
Once I realized it was an easy trip from Medellín, I knew I wanted to experience it for myself.
After deciding to spend two nights near Guatapé rather than rushing through a day trip from Medellín, all that was left was figuring out how to spend my full day exploring the area.
Standing above the Guatapé reservoir made it easy to understand why climbing La Piedra del Peñol is one of Colombia’s most iconic experiences. The panoramic views alone are worth every step to the top.
Why El Peñón Had Been on My Bucket List
I love The Amazing Race. It’s probably the closest thing to reality television that I actually watch.
More than the competition, I love the destinations. The show has introduced me to places all over the world that I might never have discovered otherwise, and El Peñón de Guatapé became one of those places.
For anyone unfamiliar with the show, teams race around the world completing challenges in different countries. My family loves watching because every once in a while we’ll recognize somewhere we’ve actually visited ourselves.
So naturally, when I started researching Medellín, visiting El Peñón was near the top of my list.
The night before, I checked the weather forecast and noticed scattered afternoon storms.
Since I was staying at Cannúa, I already had a private driver arranged for the day because of the hotel’s location outside town. When he picked me up that morning, he suggested visiting Guatapé first before heading to El Peñón.
I asked if we could reverse the order instead.
The forecast made me nervous, and I wanted the best chance of clear views from the top of the rock.
Thankfully, he agreed.
Looking back, that small decision probably saved the day.
The narrow staircase carved through La Piedra del Peñol leads to one of Colombia’s most spectacular viewpoints, making every one of the 700-plus steps worthwhile.
Climbing El Peñón
Arriving at El Peñón is honestly a little less picturesque than the photos online might suggest.
There’s a large parking lot filled with tour buses, souvenir stands, snack vendors, and hundreds of visitors preparing for the climb.
Of course, nobody is really there for the parking lot.
They’re there for the rock.
Also known as La Piedra del Peñol, the climb consists of roughly 740 steps carved into a narrow staircase running up the side of the granite monolith.
It’s definitely a workout.
Thankfully there are plenty of places to stop along the way, and I took advantage of more than a few “photo breaks” to catch my breath.
The climb is absolutely worth it.
At the top, the view completely changes your perspective.
The Guatapé Reservoir stretches endlessly into the distance, its winding fingers of water wrapping around green hills and countless tiny islands. From above, it almost looks artificial—as if someone carefully designed the landscape rather than nature creating it.
The summit is much larger than I expected.
There’s a café, souvenir shops, multiple viewing platforms, and plenty of places to simply stand and admire the scenery.
I spent quite a while walking around before I noticed something else.
Dark clouds were beginning to move in.
The storm I’d seen in the forecast was getting closer.
And then another thought that had quietly been sitting in the back of my mind all morning returned.
Should I do the helicopter ride?
My first helicopter flight gave me one last look at La Piedra del Peñol and the Guatapé reservoir, proving that some experiences are worth saying yes to on the spot.
Was the Helicopter Ride Worth It?
Back at the base of El Peñón, several companies offer short helicopter flights over the reservoir.
I’d noticed them while climbing the stairs, but hadn’t seriously considered booking one.
Standing at the top changed my mind.
The landscape looked so incredible from above that I couldn’t stop wondering what it would look like from even higher.
So I texted my driver.
“I think I want to do the helicopter ride. Can you look into it for me?”
Thankfully, he said yes.
After climbing back down, we drove about five to ten minutes to the nearby helipad.
There were two different flight options available. From what I remember, the shorter flight cost somewhere around $90–100 and lasted roughly six minutes, while longer flights were considerably more expensive.
Six minutes didn’t sound like very long.
Then I thought to myself:
When else am I going to do this?
I’d never been in a helicopter before.
Why not?
One of the funniest moments happened completely by accident.
Since I was traveling solo and everyone else boarding the helicopter was paired up, nobody had specifically booked the co-pilot seat.
The staff looked at me and simply said,
“You can sit up front.”
So without planning it at all, I ended up riding in the co-pilot seat during my very first helicopter flight.
It was incredible.
Even with light drizzle beginning to fall, we circled El Peñón several times, giving everyone panoramic views of the reservoir below. Seeing the landscape from the air somehow made its scale feel even more surreal than it had from the summit.
The flight itself was over almost as quickly as it began.
Even so, it became one of my favorite experiences from my entire Colombia trip.
While most visitors come for La Piedra del Peñol, Guatapé itself deserves time to explore, with colorful streets, unique zócalos, and one of the most inviting town centers in Colombia.
Exploring Guatapé
After the helicopter ride, we continued into Guatapé itself.
Entering town feels a little chaotic at first since nearly all traffic funnels through one main entrance, but once you step into the historic center, everything slows down.
Guatapé is exactly as colorful as you’ve probably seen in photos.
Brightly painted buildings line the streets, decorative zócalos wrap around the lower walls of homes, banners hang overhead, and cafés spill out onto the sidewalks.
It’s lively without ever feeling overwhelming.
Unfortunately, by the time I reached the central plaza, the weather finally caught up with me.
The rain started coming down steadily, and my priority quickly shifted from sightseeing to finding somewhere dry for lunch.
Honestly, by that point I was also beginning to feel tired after the morning’s climb and helicopter flight, so I chose a restaurant somewhat at random.
The meal was perfectly good, although not especially memorable.
After lunch I continued exploring for a while, but the rain definitely shortened the amount of time I spent wandering the town.
Before heading back, I also stopped at Réplica del Viejo Peñol, a recreated version of the original town that was flooded decades ago when the reservoir was created.
It’s a relatively quick visit, but it provides some helpful historical context while offering another beautiful view across the water.
The peaceful reservoir views and a stop in El Peñol rounded out the day, reminding me that this region offers far more than just a climb up La Piedra del Peñol.
Final Thoughts
By the end of the afternoon, I was glad I had given this part of my Colombia itinerary an entire day instead of trying to squeeze everything into a tighter schedule.
Hiring a private driver wasn’t originally part of the plan, but staying outside Guatapé made it the most practical option. It also gave me the flexibility to adjust the order of the day around the weather and add an experience I probably would have skipped if I’d been watching the clock on a group tour.
Would I recommend an El Peñón de Guatapé day trip from Medellín?
Absolutely.
The climb alone is worth the visit, and Guatapé is one of the most colorful towns I visited anywhere in South America.
But if your itinerary allows it, I’d still recommend slowing things down with an overnight stay nearby. It gave me the freedom to experience the area at my own pace—and to say “why not?” when a helicopter happened to be waiting at the bottom of the rock.
Next Up: Cartagena Felt Like the Perfect Ending to South America
After the mountains surrounding Guatapé, I returned to Medellín to catch my flight north to Cartagena, where Colombia introduced me to an entirely different atmosphere along the Caribbean coast.