Movie Theaters: The Ultimate Guide to Movie Theaters in Medellín

Going to the movies is a popular thing to do for Colombians. And Medellín has many movie theaters in the city. A majority of the movies shown in Medellín and other cities in Colombia are in the Spanish language. But some movies are in English with Spanish subtitles.

In addition, sometimes new movies premier in Colombia before in the United States. So, it is possible to sometimes see a new movie in Colombia before it opens in the U.S. Also, movie ticket prices in Colombia tend to average less than half the movie ticket price in the U.S.

Several Medellin Guru readers asked questions about movie theaters in Medellín. So, we are providing this detailed guide.

Movie Theater Chains in Colombia

Colombia has six major movie theater chains:

1. Cine Colombia
2. Cineland
3. Cinemark
4. Cinemas Procinal
5. Cinépolis
6. Royal Films

These six chains have a total of over 170 movie theaters in Colombia. And in Medellín, these chains have a total of 20 movie theaters.

All of these chains have movie theaters in Medellín except for Cineland. Cineland only has 10 movie theaters located in Barranquilla, Cartagena, Funza, Neiva, Quíbdó, Riohacha, Santa Marta, Urabá and Valledupar.

Cine Colombia in Oviedo Mall in El Poblado, Medellín

1. Movie Theaters: Cine Colombia

Cine Colombia is the largest movie theater chain in Colombia with 43 movie theaters with over 290 screens. And these are located in 12 cities in Colombia.

In the Medellín metro area, Cine Colombia has six movie theaters located in the Los Molinos, Oviedo, Santafé, Unicentro, Viva Envigado and Vizcayz malls.

Cine Colombia also has movie theaters located in Armenia, Barranquilla, Bogotá, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena, Ibagué, Manizales, Montería, Pereira, Popayán and Villavicencio.

In addition, Cine Colombia has the Cineco frequent moviegoer card, which provides discounts for movies. The card costs 10,000 pesos. And for every 1,500 pesos in spending at Cine Colombia you receive one point. Points can be redeemed for movie tickets and food products. For example, for 100 points you can get one 2D general admission movie ticket.

Website: http://www.cinecolombia.com/

Cinemark in El Tesoro Mall

2. Movie Theaters: Cinemark

Cinemark is a chain of movie theaters in Colombia with a total of 35 movie theaters in Colombia with a total of 188 screens

The first location of Cinemark in Colombia opened in 1999 and is located in the El Tesoro mall. But this chain still only has one movie theater in Medellín.

Cinemark has movie theaters located in Armenia, Bogotá, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cúcata, Ibagué, Ipiales, Manizales, Medellín, Montería, Neiva, Palmira, Pasto, Pereira, Santa Marta, Soacha, Tunja, Valledupar and Villavicencio.

Also, you can get Cinemark Elite Gold card for 17,900 pesos that gives you discounts on Cinemark movie tickets and discounts on food.

Website: https://www.cinemark.com.co/

Cinemas Procinal in Puerta del Norte mall

3. Movie Theaters: Cinemas Procinal

Cinemas Procinal is a movie theater chain with 29 movie theaters in 12 cities and towns in Colombia. It has movie theaters in Apartadó, Barrancabermeja, Bello, Bogotá, Cartagena, La Ceja, Rionegro, Medellín, Sabaneta, Santa Marta, Sincelejo and Villavicencio.

In the Medellín metro area, Cinemas Procinal has eight movie theaters in Aventura, Aves Maria, Florida Parque, La Central, Las Américas, Mayorca, Monterrey and Puerta del Norte.

Also, Cinemas Procinal has a rechargeable frequent moviegoer card that you charge with pesos. With this card, you can buy movie tickets at discounted rates. And you can make movie ticket reservations online in advance. In addition, you receive discounts on food and beverages.

Website: http://www.procinal.com.co/

Cinépolis in the City Plaza mall in Envigado

4. Movie Theaters: Cinépolis

Cinépolis is the largest Mexican-based movie theater chain with over 400 movie theaters in Mexico. And it has 10 movie theaters in Colombia.

Cinépolis is reportedly the fourth largest movie theater chain in the world with over 650 movie theaters. These theaters are located in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, India, Panama, Peru, Spain, and the United States.

In Colombia, this movie theater chain has movie theaters in Barrancabermeja, Bogotá (three), Chía (two), Cali (two) and Valledupar. In Medellín, Cinépolis only has one movie theater in the City Plaza mall in Envigado.

Website: http://www.cinepolis.com.co/

Royal Films in Premium Plaza Mall

5. Movie Theaters: Royal Films

Royal Films is reportedly the second largest movie theater chain in Colombia with 49 movie theaters with over 260 screens. And these are are located in over 30 cities and towns in Colombia.

Royal Films has movie theaters in Colombia located in Armenia, Barranquilla, Bogotá, Bucaramanga, Buenaventura, Buga1, Cali, Cartagena, Caucasia, Cucuta, Dosquebradas, Giradot, Ibaque, Itagüí, Madrid, Manganque, Medellín, Montería, Mosquera, Neiva, Pasto, Pereira, Pitalito, Popayán, Riohacha, Santo Tomas, Sincelejo, Tulua, Valledupar, Yopal and Yumbo.

In the Medellín metro area, Royal Films has four movie theaters located in Premium Plaza, LA 65, Bosque Plaza and Arrayanes Plaza in Itagüí.

In addition, Royal Films has a frequent moviegoer card, Cliente Royal, which is free. With the card you can buy tickets at discounted rates and receive a free movie ticket on your birthday.

Website: https://royal-films.com/

Movie Ticket Prices in Medellín

The average movie ticket price in the U.S. was $8.93 USD in 2017. In Colombia movie ticket prices currently average about less than half that price at about 11,500 pesos ($4 USD). Also, the average movie ticket price was 10,637 pesos in 2016 in Colombia according to Ministerio de Cultura.

Movie ticket prices in Medellín and other cities in Colombia depend on the neighborhood, the movie theater, the time of day and the day of week. And there normally are two different types of seats: general admission and higher priced preferential seating (higher up seats),

Generally, movies that start before 3 pm will be lower cost. Also, movies on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays tend to be higher cost. In addition, movies in 3D will be more expensive.

Also, Cine Colombia has half-price tickets on Tuesday and Wednesday. For example, at the Cine Colombia in the Los Molinos mall in Belén, the price for a 2D movie ticket is 9,500 pesos for general admission on Monday and Thursday before 3 pm. And a 2D movie is cheaper on Tuesday and Wednesday at 4,750 pesos. On Friday to Sunday after 3pm, the price for a 2D movie ticket increases to 13,000 pesos and after 6 pm to 14,000 pesos.

And at the Cine Colombia in Santafé mall in El Poblado, the price for a 2D movie ticket is 10,500 pesos for general admission on Monday and Thursday before 3 pm. And a 2D movie is half-price on Tuesday and Wednesday at 5,250 pesos. On Friday to Sunday after 3pm, the price for a 2D movie ticket at Santafé increases to 15,000 pesos and after 6 pm to 15,500 pesos.

This demonstrates that movie ticket prices are more expensive in the El Poblado neighborhood in Medellín and also that prices increase on the weekends.

Food and Drinks in Movie Theaters

Every movie theater in Medellín and other cities in Colombia will have concessions selling candy, drinks, hot dogs, popcorn and other snacks.

Movie theaters in Medellin and other cities in Colombia have policies where customers are not permitted to bring in food and drinks. This is due to the high margins for food and drinks with profits from concessions being as high as 85 percent.

Box Office Openings in Colombia

Colombia has a relatively small film industry so most of the box office openings each year in Colombia are foreign films. Each year there are well over 200 new movies shown in Colombia.

In Colombia, movies from the big movie studios from the U.S. are very popular. In 2016, Buenavista (Disney), represented in Colombia by Cinecolor Films, generated 24.2 percent of the box office revenue in Colombia with only 16 movies released. Second place was Warner Brothers with 21.3 percent of the box office followed by Fox with 17.4 percent.

So, three movie studios from the U.S. were responsible for 63 percent of the box office in Colombia in 2016. And Cine Colombia, which represents Fox, Warner Brothers and movies from independent studios in Colombia, generated 48.5 percent of the box office revenue in Colombia in 2016.

Cheaper Movie Theater Options in Medellín

Medellín also has a number of other movie theater options that are cheaper than the big chains or even free. These include:

6. Movie Theaters: Museum of Modern Art (MAMM)

The Museum of Modern Art (MAMM) movie theater, screens movies nearly every Thursday to Sunday at the standard time of 7 pm, often with additional show times at 5 or 9 pm. And typically, some of their movies are in English.

Also, on Saturdays there is a 2 pm show when tickets are two for the price of one (8,000 pesos).

Getting ready for screening of an international film at Casa Museo Otraparte

7. Movie Theaters: Casa Museo Otraparte

Casa Museo Otraparte is a small house in Envigado converted into a museum and dedicated to the life and works of Colombian philosopher and writer Fernando González. Also, this museum is considered a hidden gem with its old villa, beautiful gardens and a popular café.

In addition, this museum has a small and intimate movie space with free movie showings very Wednesday at 7 pm and Sunday at 3 pm. You can see Museo Otraparte’s scheduled movies here.

8. Movie Theaters: Colombo Americano School

Colombo Americano school downtown has two theaters and shows English language and European films. And tickets are only 8,000 pesos or 7,000 pesos for older than 55 years old or 6,500 pesos for students.

9. Movie Theaters: The Medellín Universities

In addition, two universities in Medellín show movies. Universidad EAFIT has free movies every Monday at 6 pm when classes are in session.

Also, Universidad de Antioquia shows movies for free. On Fridays when classes are in session, there will normally be one or more movies shown on campus, which can be seen on the Universidad de Antioquia website.

10. Movie Theaters: Parque de los Deseos

For an outdoor movie experience, you can head to Parque de los Deseos, which has free movies at 7 pm normally on weekend days. Also, you can see the movie schedule at Parque de los Deseos here.

Kid Friendly Things to Do in Medellín and Nearby

Going to movie theaters is a kid-friendly thing to do in Medellín. On the Medellin Guru website we have looked at 17 different things to do in Medellín and nearby that are kid-friendly:

1. Parque Explora – Medellín’s Interactive museum and aquarium.
2. Hacienda Napoles – Escobar’s former estate located about 4 hours from Medellín that has been transformed into a family-friendly theme park with a waterpark and zoo.
3. Medellín’s Christmas lights – the world-class Christmas lights in Medellín are very popular with families.
4. Parque Norte – Medellín’s amusement park.
5. Guatapé – a very popular pueblo near Medellín known for its huge rock and lake.
6. Barbosa, Antioquia – a pueblo located less than an hour from Medellín. It’s a great getaway from Medellín with streams, waterfalls, hiking, a waterpark and many other things to do.
7. Piedras Blancas – an ecological park in Santa Elena near Medellín with a lake, insect museum, hotel and more.
8. Zoológico Santa Fe – Medellín’s zoo.
9. Parque Arví – a very large ecological nature reserve, which is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Medellín.
10. Rio Claro Nature Reserve – the perfect place to unplug from hectic daily life and enjoy a picturesque crystal-clear river, canyon and tropical rainforest.
11. Museo del Agua – Medellín’s popular water museum.
12. Jardín Botánico – Medellín’s botanical gardens are popular with families.
13. Bowling in Medellín – there are four bowling alleys in Medellín.
14. Movie Theaters in Medellín – we provide a guide to the movie theaters in Medellín where ticket prices are less than half the U.S. price.
15. Museo El Castillo – Medellín’s Gothic-style castle that is a museum.
16. Planetario de Medellín – Medellín’s planetarium.
17. Parques Del Río (River Parks) – is an important project of urban transformation in Medellín and the first phase of this park is open.

The Cine Colombia in Unicentro – located on the top floor

The Bottom Line: Movie Theaters in Medellín

Going to the movies is popular in Medellín. And you will frequently see families going to the movies with their kids.

Also, a majority of the movie theaters are found in the shopping malls in Medellín. And you can save money by going to movies during the week compared to going on the weekends. In addition, there are some venues listed above where movies are free or lower cost.

All the movie theater chains have movie schedules listed on their websites where you can also see the movie languages. If looking for English-language movies, Cine Colombia in the Oviedo and Santafé malls in El Poblado tend to have more English-language movies with Spanish subtitles than the other movie theaters in Medellín.

For new movies, we recommend buying tickets in advance, as the lines to buy tickets can get long. Also, if you go to movies frequently we recommend getting one of the movie cards as you can save money on tickets, food and drinks.

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Editors note: updated on October 6, 2018 to add the Cine Colombia at the new Viva Envigado mall.