Feria de las Flores: Medellín’s Flower Festival

Every August the city celebrates its flower-growing heritage with parades, music and the famous silleteros.

The Feria de las Flores is Medellín’s biggest annual celebration. It began in 1957 and runs for about ten days in early August. The festival honors the flower growers of Santa Elena, the rural district in the mountains east of the city.

The silleteros

The heart of the festival is the Desfile de Silleteros. Generations ago, farmers from Santa Elena carried flowers down the mountain to market on wooden frames strapped to their backs, called silletas. Today hundreds of silleteros parade through the city carrying elaborate floral arrangements that can weigh well over 50 kilograms. The tradition is recognized as part of Colombia’s cultural heritage.

What else happens

• A classic and antique car parade.
• Horse parades and live music, from vallenato to salsa.
• Concerts, markets and flower exhibitions around the city.
• Visits to the farms of Santa Elena, where some families open their homes to visitors.

Planning tips

Hotels fill up and prices rise during the feria, so book early. Grandstand seats for the silleteros parade sell out; check the official schedule from the Alcaldía de Medellín once it is published each year.

Quick facts

• When: Early August, about 10 days
• First held: 1957
• Highlight: Desfile de Silleteros