Every year around the end of July or beginning of August, Medellín’s Feria de Las Flores takes place. It’s a huge, city-wide festival that celebrates the inimitable Paisa culture, and features events all around the city. This year, alongside the usual parades, reggaeton superstar J Balvin will be performing alongside Zion y Lennox. Get yo’ bling ready.
The biggest of the events are the parades (particularly the Vintage Car Parade and the Parade of the Silleteros), which are attended by hoardes of locals and tourists. These are the essential two events, so if you’re just making a fleeting visit when you travel to Medellin be sure not to miss these events. Check out the full schedule here.
The Parade of the Silleteros is particularly special, since the idea of the parade is to celebrate the traditional culture of silleteros. In fact, the festival began in 1957 when 40 peasants from a neighbouring village performed a parade celebrating the silleteros that worked in the region. A silletero is a flower carrier but a very particular type of flower carrier. The silletero wouldn’t just transport flowers on their backs, but their families and their belongings too.
Colombia is one of the biggest flower producers in the world, and Colombian flowers are famous world-wide for their quality and beauty. The Medellín Flower Festival is a great week, and you can check out photos from our visit last year below:
Paul
