Medellín's Exotic Fruit Tour Will Make You Rethink Everything You Know About Fruit
Colombia has over 438 edible fruits. Here's what happened when I tried 15 of them.
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If you think you know fruit, think again. I did an exotic fruits tour* in Medellín, Colombia, and it completely reframed what I thought I knew about food. I've traveled to nearly 60 countries, and this ranks as one of the coolest food experiences I've had anywhere in the world.
In all honesty, I am not the most adventurous eater. But there are moments when you just throw caution to the wind and go for it. This was one of them.
First, Some Numbers That Will Stop You in Your Tracks
Colombia is one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet, and its fruit diversity reflects that. The country is home to an estimated 1,000+ native fruit species in total, of which around 438 are considered edible. That number is always shifting as researchers discover new species or reclassify existing ones, so by the time you read this, it may have changed.
For context: most of us grew up eating maybe a dozen fruits on rotation. Colombia has nearly 450 edible ones.
The Tour: Plaza Minorista, Medellín
Our tour took place at Plaza Minorista, one of Medellín's largest and most vibrant local market spaces. It's worth visiting on its own just for the atmosphere (just be mindful of safety), but having a guide changes everything. We tried 15 different exotic fruits over the course of the tour, and I'd never heard of most of them before that day.
Have you ever heard of cherimoya? Zapote? Chontaduro? Algarroba? I hadn't!
Even the fruits I thought I knew turned out to be more complicated than expected. We tasted three different varieties of passion fruit, which sounds like a subtle distinction until you actually try them side by side. There are 60 known species of passion fruit in Colombia, with around 42 considered edible, each with its own flavor profile, texture, and use.
Some highlights from the tasting:
The sweetest ones were almost dessert-like and make you question why you've ever eaten candy.
The sour ones hit differently at altitude, bright and sharp.
One fruit looked like a spiked alien egg (the rambutan). The outside was weird. The inside was delicious.
Two are considered an aphrodisiac (borojó and chontaduro), and vendors at the market sell special sauces to mix with it that are apparently designed to assist with that reputation.
One is nicknamed the smelly feet fruit (algarroba). You have to crack it open with a hammer. It absolutely does smell like feet. It also somehow tasted good.
The Juice
We finished the tour with fresh borojó juice (without the special additives) made right there in the market. If you haven't had fresh Colombian fruit juice, oh my god. It's on another level entirely.
Why the Guide Made All the Difference
Huge credit to our guide David from Real City Tours*, who walked us through every single fruit: the name, the history, how locals actually eat it, what it's used for medicinally or culturally, and where it grows in Colombia. That context is what elevated the experience from a fun tasting into something that felt genuinely educational.
Without a guide, you could wander Plaza Minorista and buy each fruit on your own. With a tour, you leave with a completely different understanding of Colombian biodiversity, culture, and food traditions. The difference is significant.
Should You Do the Exotic Fruit Tour in Medellín?
If you're visiting Medellín, this is a an absolute must for your itinerary. It's fun, it's fascinating, it's a little weird, and it will permanently change how you think about fruit. Even if you're not an adventurous eater like me, the low-stakes nature of tasting small pieces of fruit in a market setting makes it easy to push your comfort zone without any real risk.
Some links on this page marked with * are affiliate links. I earn a small commission if you purchase at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I personally use. Thank you for supporting Traveling Berri!
