For Canadians in Atlantic Canada
Skip winter from Atlantic Canada
This page has 1 city on Skip Winter: Halifax. Each one runs the same daylight and temperature comparison against Medellín using its own weather station. This page covers the Canadian logistics — health insurance, getting there without a US airport, and what your dollar buys.
MSI and time outside Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia's Medical Services Insurance (MSI) requires you to be physically present in the province for at least 183 days in any 12-month period. A December-to-February winter stay (about 90 days) fits comfortably inside that limit.
MSI coverage outside Canada is extremely limited; travel insurance is essential for any stay in Colombia. The other Atlantic provinces (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador) have similar 183-day presence rules, though Newfoundland allows up to 240 days away — check your own province's current page before relying on any of these numbers.
Source: Provincial health plan pages. Rules change; verify before your trip.
Getting to Medellín without a US connection
A lot of Canadians want to avoid transiting through a US airport. The two cleanest routings are Copa Airlines via Panama City (PTY) and Air Canada or Avianca via Bogotá (BOG). Both connect through countries where Canadians don't need a visa to transit, and both arrive in Medellín (MDE) the same day.
From most Canadian airports these are one-stop or two-stop itineraries; price a Tuesday or Wednesday departure in early December. Miami and Fort Lauderdale remain common alternatives if you don't mind clearing US customs.
The loonie in Colombia
Colombia runs on pesos (COP). The exchange rate moves, but as a rough shape: one Canadian dollar has typically bought between 2,800 and 3,500 COP in recent years. A furnished one-bedroom in Laureles that rents for 3,000,000 COP/month is roughly C$900–1,100 depending on the rate. Groceries, local restaurants and transit are priced for Colombian incomes, which means cheap by Canadian standards.
For moving money, Wise (affiliate link — we earn a small fee, it costs you nothing extra) gives you the mid-market rate with a small transparent fee. It beats a Canadian bank wire on spread every time. For day-to-day spending, a no-foreign-fee Visa or Mastercard is the simplest option; choose "charge in COP" when the terminal asks.
Travel insurance from Colombia
Your provincial health plan covers almost nothing outside Canada — a few hundred dollars at most toward a hospital bill that could be thousands. You need travel insurance for any winter stay in Colombia.
Some Canadian credit cards include travel medical insurance (check the number of covered days — many cap at 15 or 30). For a 90-day stay, you'll likely need a standalone policy from a Canadian insurer. The good news: Colombia-based private healthcare is a fraction of US prices, which means the premiums for a Colombia-only policy tend to be lower than a snowbird policy covering the United States.
Free, and timed to your weather
The Winter Countdown
A short email series that starts when your city's first hard cold snap is due. Pick your city below and we'll send the right one.
Ask someone who's done it
Message Andy on WhatsApp
I came to Medellín for the winter before I lived here. Tell me the basics below and hit send — it opens WhatsApp with the message already written.
Nothing is stored on this site — the message goes straight from your phone to mine.
Rather talk it through with a person?
If you're 55-plus, planning with a partner, or just want someone on the phone — that's our sister site, run by the same American in Medellín.