The Feria de las Flores 2026 ran from Friday 31 July to Sunday 9 August, ending with the 69th Desfile de Silleteros on the final Sunday. At Colombia Desk, we plan group and family trips to Medellín, and for Feria week we book the base and the parade-day plan before anything else.
Medellín holds the Feria every year around the first week of August. The 2027 dates had not been announced in any source we could confirm as of October 2026. Hold flexible flights for late July and early August until the city publishes them.
August is also one of Medellín’s two driest months, with about 53 mm of rain in the 1991 to 2020 normals. So Feria week usually falls in dry weather.
Feria de las Flores 2026 Dates and Parades
The Feria de las Flores 2026 ran for ten days, from Friday 31 July to Sunday 9 August, according to Canal Trece. The parades are the fixed points of the festival, and every other plan fits around them.
| Date (2026) | Event | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Sat 1 Aug | Desfile Chivas y Flores (decorated chiva buses) | Daytime |
| Sun 2 Aug | Avenida Primavera | Daytime |
| Fri 7 Aug | Desfile de Autos Clásicos y Antiguos | 9:45 am to 5 pm |
| Sat 8 Aug | Children’s cabalgata on hobby horses | Daytime |
| Sun 9 Aug | 69th Desfile de Silleteros | 2 pm to 7 pm |
The official program sits on the Alcaldía de Medellín’s Feria page, which publishes the routes and any changes. Plan your trip around the final weekend if you can only come for part of the Feria, because the Silleteros parade closes the Feria and is its main event.
When the 2027 Feria Will Be
The Feria has been held in August since 1968, per Wikipedia, and the 2026 edition ran from 31 July to 9 August. No 2027 dates had been announced in any source we could confirm as of October 2026. We would hold refundable rooms covering late July and the first ten days of August 2027, then firm up once the Alcaldía publishes the program.
The Events Worth Planning Around
The Desfile de Silleteros is the event to build a Feria trip around. Silleteros are flower farmers who carry huge flower arrangements on wooden frames on their backs. The tradition began with farmers carrying flowers down from Santa Elena to the city.
The first Feria de las Flores was held on 1 May 1957, on the initiative of Arturo Uribe Arango. Only 40 farmers from Santa Elena joined that first parade, according to Wikipedia. In 2026 the parade reached its 69th edition.
The other events, in the order we would rank them:
- Desfile de Autos Clásicos y Antiguos. A Friday parade of vintage cars, the best pick for anyone who likes cars or wants to avoid the Sunday crowds.
- Desfile Chivas y Flores. Decorated chiva buses, the old wooden country buses, on the first Saturday.
- The children’s hobby-horse parade. The best event for families, covered in our Medellín with kids guide.
- A trip up to Santa Elena. Many people go to the corregimiento before the Feria to see silletas being made, per Wikipedia.
What Happened to the Horse Cabalgata
The large horse parade, or cabalgata, is no longer part of the Feria. It was suspended after a 2013 Concejo de Medellín agreement, per La FM (sources disagree on whether it was Acuerdo 104 or Acuerdo 217).
By 2017 a Feria Equina at Plaza Mayor had replaced it, and the mayor said the cabalgata was a thing of the past, per Telemedellín. The official 2026 program had no cabalgata or horse event. Older travel guides that still promise one are out of date.
Where to Stay for the Feria de las Flores
The best base for the Feria is El Poblado or Laureles, within walking distance of a metro station. Parades close main roads, so taxis detour around them, and the metro is the reliable way to reach the parade areas and get back.
- El Poblado has the most hotels and short-stay apartments, plus the Provenza and Manila nightlife.
- Laureles is quieter, with the La 70 nightlife strip and good access to the stadium area.
- Envigado is calmer still, but farther from the northern events.
Book as soon as you have dates, because demand peaks around the Silleteros weekend.
Check that any short-stay apartment shows a Registro Nacional de Turismo (RNT) number, which Ley 2068 de 2020 requires for rentals under 30 days. An unregistered unit can be suspended by the city mid-stay. Our where to stay in Medellín guide compares the areas street by street.
Getting Around During the Feria
A single trip on Metro de Medellín costs 4,400 Colombian pesos (COP) without a card, or COP 3,820 on a personalised Cívica card, at 2026 fares. A personalised Cívica is issued with a passport at customer service points such as Niquía, Acevedo, San Javier, Itagüí and San Antonio. Those points open Monday to Friday from 9:30 am to 6:30 pm.
For a ten-day Feria trip with two metro rides a day, that is 20 rides. A Cívica saves COP 580 a ride, or COP 11,600 per person over the trip before the card’s own cost, which we could not confirm. It also saves queueing for tickets on parade days.
Feria Nightlife and Its Rules
Medellín extends bar and club hours during the Feria, but not everywhere. Decreto 1495 of 30 July 2026 added one hour of opening in Las Palmas, Manila, Provenza, La 70 and other areas, and two hours for “Convive La Noche” venues. Parque Lleras was left out, per El Colombiano.
That decree expired with the 2026 Feria. A similar decree may come in 2027, so check the zones on the Alcaldía’s Feria page. If 2027 follows the 2026 pattern, favour Provenza, Manila or La 70 over Lleras. The safety rules for nights out are in our guide to whether Medellín is safe.
Planning a Group Trip for the Feria
A group trip for the Feria needs three bookings in order: the base near the metro, the parade-day plan, and dinners for the two big nights. A late booking leaves fewer apartments near the metro, and a base far from it means hours in traffic on parade days.
Our group trip concierge books the villa or apartments and a driver for the days the metro does not cover. We add a Santa Elena visit to see the silletas made and a viewing plan for the Silleteros parade. We stay reachable for the whole week.
Who Should Skip Feria Week
The Feria is a poor fit for travellers who want a quiet Medellín. Prices and crowds peak, roads close, and a base near Provenza is loud late into the night. Come in late August or September instead, when the city is calmer.
The Feria also disappoints anyone expecting the old horse parade. We would change our advice on timing if the Alcaldía moved the 2027 Feria away from early August. Until then, book a refundable base for your Feria de las Flores trip near a metro station in El Poblado or Laureles, for the first ten days of August.