Many expats I have talked to over the past few years in Medellín aren’t aware that Medellín has bowling alleys. Medellín has four bowling alleys including the newest one that opened in late 2018. Over the past several years I have bowled at all four. And they each have their pluses and minuses.
Each of the bowling alleys in Medellín are the 10-pin variety, which are the most common found in the U.S. and Canada. U.S.-style bowling is known as Bolo Americano or boliche in Colombia. The clientele at the bowling alleys in Medellín in my experience is mainly Colombians, as I rarely have seen expats when I have bowled in the city.
In this article, we look at all four bowling alleys in Medellín, which are all family friendly. Also, the places to bowl in this article are ordered from the largest to the smallest. And the newest bowling alley in the Medellín metro area is Bolera Mayorca, which reportedly opened in August 2018.
Bowling at Boliche Acuario in Medellín
1. Boliche Acuario
The largest bowling alley in Medellín is Boliche Acuario (Bowling Aquarium), with 24 lanes. Boliche Acuario is over 30 years old, since it reportedly opened in 1981. It is located in the Carlos E. Restrepo barrio of Laureles-Estadio and is not very far from the Atanasio Giradot stadium.
Bowling at Boliche Acuario
In my experience, this place can get very busy and loud when it has tournaments. Also, there is a small upstairs area for spectators during tournaments. In addition, Boliche Acuario has billiards tables (without pockets) and a restaurant, bar and ice cream parlor. And it even has rooms for social events.
Billiards tables and bar at Boliche Acuario
The cost to bowl here is 46,000 pesos for six people for one hour, which includes bowling shoes. But they sometime run promotions that can be seen on their website. For example, Boliche Acuario has a promotion of a 20 percent discount on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
Address: Calle 51 #67B-60, second floor, Carlos E. Restrepo barrio
Website: http://bolicheacuario.co/
Phone: +57 4 230 4488
Hours: Monday to Thursday: 3:00 pm to 11:00 pm; Friday and Saturday: 3:00 pm to midnight; Sunday and Holidays 1:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Bowlinco Bolera Monterey bowling alley
2. Bowlinco Bolera
Bowlinco Bolera is the second largest bowling alley in Medellín with 18 lanes. This bowling alley is conveniently located in the Monterrey mall, which is located next to the Poblado metro station. In addition, Bowlinco Bolera has reportedly been in operation for over 20 years.
Pool tables at Bowlinco Bolera
In my experience, Bowlinco Bolera is very popular in the evenings and on the weekends. Also, they have some pool tables with pockets. In addition, there is a small restaurant/bar.
Bar/restaurant at Bowlinco Bolera
Bowlinco Bolera is open later than Monterrey mall. If the mall entrances are closed you may have to enter or leave through the parking lot. Also, there a special elevator in the mall to get to Bowlinco Bolera, which is located on the fifth floor.
At Bowlinco Bolera, it costs 13,000 pesos per person per bowling game. And bowling shoe rental costs 2,700 pesos per person.
Address: Carrera 48 # 10-45, El Poblado
Website: http://www.monterrey.com.co/home/bowlinco-bolera-monterey-s-as/
Phone: +57 4 268 5440
Hours: Monday to Thursday: 1:00 pm to 11:00 pm; Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Holidays: 1:00 pm to midnight.
One of four groups of four lanes at Bolera Mayorca
3. Bolera Mayorca
Bolera Mayorca is the newest bowling alley in the Medellín area, which reportedly opened in August 2018. And Bolera Mayorca has 16 lanes, which are located on two floors.
This bowling alley is conveniently located on the fifth floor of the older phase of the Mayorca Mega Plaza mall, which is located next to the Itagüí metro station.
The 16 lanes at Bolara Mayroca are divided four groups of four lanes. And each group has a different theme: London, Paris, New York and Hong Kong.
Also, Bolara Mayroca has automated scoring, which you won’t find at the first two bowling alleys in this article. And since this place to bowl is new, it has the newest bowling balls and shoes
Sports Wings at Bolera Mayorca
Bolera Mayorca also has an integrated Sports Wings, which provides food and drinks. Sports Wings is a chain of sports bars in Medellín that has some good wings and other good bar food. Also, there is a second Sports Wings in Mayorca mall in the new phase of the mall.
At Bolera Mayorca, it costs 76,000 pesos per hour per lane for up to 6 people playing. And shoe rental with socks costs 4,000 pesos per person.
Pool tables at Bolera Mayorca
In addition, Bolera Mayorca has some pool tables with pockets available and table rental is 15,000 pesos per hour.
Address: Calle 51 Sur # 48 – 57, Sabaneta
Website: http://www.boleramayorca.com/
Hours: Monday to Thursday, Sunday and holidays: 11:00 am to 10:00 pm; Friday, Saturday, and Sundays before holidays: 11:00 am to midnight.
Bolera Suramericana
4. Bolera Suramericana
Bolera Suramericana is the smallest bowling alley in Medellín with 16 lanes and not much more. It’s owned by the city of Medellín and is part of the Instituto de Deportes y Recreación de Medellín (INDER). In addition, it is located in Belén and is part of the Andrés Escobar Saldarriaga sports complex.
It’s located about one block from the Fatima Metroplús station, so it’s easy to get to from the Medellín metro, as the Metroplús bus line connects at the Industriales metro station
Bolera Suramericana reportedly opened in 2008. Furthermore, it has automated scoring, which you won’t find at the the first two bowling alleys in this article.
Cafeteria/coffee shop at Bolera Suramericana
Bolera Suramericana has a small cafeteria/coffee shop with drinks and some snacks. But a downside is that it doesn’t serve alcohol. And no smoking is permitted. In addition, there is a small pro shop that sells bowling balls and bowling shoes.
The pro shop at Bolera Suramericana
Bolera Suramericana wants you to have reservations that can be made up to 15 days in advance for one or two-hour reservations. In addition, all players must register on the INDER website and reservations can be done on this site.
After registering, bowling players are supposed to pay in advance. Payment can be made to the INDER Bancolombia account # 93322253921 in the name of INDER Medellín. Finally, at Bolera Suramericana, it costs only 9,680 pesos per person per hour to play. And this price includes bowling shoes.
So, Bolera Suramericana is the cheapest place to bowl in the city. The low price is due to being city-owned and subsidized. It also has relatively new equipment. The first two bowling alleys in this article tend to have older equipment such as bowling balls and bowling shoes.
Address: Carrera 66B # 30A-245, Belén
Phone: +57 4 316 1639
Hours: Monday to Thursday: 11:00 am to 9:00 pm; Friday and Saturday: 11:00 am to 10:00 pm; Sunday 11:00 am to 3:00 pm; Holidays: closed.
Kid Friendly Things to Do in Medellín and Nearby
Bowling is one of the kid-friendly things 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:
- Parque Explora – Medellín’s Interactive museum and aquarium.
- 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.
- Medellín’s Christmas lights – the world-class Christmas lights in Medellín are very popular with families.
- Parque Norte – Medellín’s amusement park.
- Guatapé – a very popular pueblo near Medellín known for its huge rock and lake.
- 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.
- Piedras Blancas – an ecological park in Santa Elena near Medellín with a lake, insect museum, hotel and more.
- Zoológico Santa Fe – Medellín’s zoo.
- Parque Arví – a very large ecological nature reserve, which is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Medellín.
- Rio Claro Nature Reserve – the perfect place to unplug from hectic daily life and enjoy a picturesque crystal-clear river, canyon and tropical rainforest.
- Museo del Agua – Medellín’s popular water museum.
- Jardín Botánico – Medellín’s botanical gardens are popular with families.
- Bowling in Medellín – there are four bowling alleys in Medellín.
- 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.
- Museo El Castillo – Medellín’s Gothic-style castle that is a museum.
- Planetario de Medellín – Medellín’s planetarium.
- Parques Del Río (River Parks) – is an important project of urban transformation in Medellín and the first phase of this park is open.
Bowling at Bolera Suramericana
The Bottom Line: Bowling in Medellín
Bowling is something you can do on a rainy day and there are now four places to bowl in Medellín.
In addition, I recommend making reservations, particularly in the evenings or on the weekends. It seems like all four places to bowl listed above are popular and can get busy.
I asked at all four of these places about other places to bowl in the city. And the staff weren’t aware of any other places beyond these four places in the city. If anyone happens to know of additional bowling alleys in the city, please let us know in the comments below, and we’ll update the article.
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Editors note: this article originally published on August 28, 2017 was updated on December 17, 2018 to add Bolera Mayorca, which is the newest bowling alley in the Medellín metro area.
Editors note: updated on July 15, 2019 with the current fees for bowling at all the bowling alleys in Medellín.