Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Macchu Picchu
Peru • 10 days, 9 nights
Peru: Machu Picchu & the Last Incan Bridges
from
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Saquon Barkley Plaque
Kirkkasik Bedesten inside
Kirkkasik Bedesten
Someshwar Temple
Someshwar Temple
Grilled cheese and tomato soup are soulmates.
The Palisades Restaurant
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The local catch is delicious fried as well.
Terry's of Charlevoix
Carlson’s Fishery is a Great Lakes institution.
Carlson’s Fishery
The Cathedral Café maintains the building’s original church exterior.
Cathedral Café
Exterior of the historic Dyffryn Arms pub.
Dyffryn Arms
Most of what’s on the menu here comes from Michigan.
The Glenwood
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Siegfried Tieber specializes in sleight-of-hand magic using small objects, as well as mentalism, which gives the illusion of reading minds.
Does a Magician Really Never Reveal Their Tricks? AO Wants to Know.
10 days ago
Decoy’s wines reflect the terroir of California.
How a Wooden Duck Migrated From the California Wetlands to a Wine Label
13 days ago
There’s more to the French capital than the Eiffel Tower.
Dear Atlas: What Are Some Non-Touristy Things to Do in Paris?
17 days ago
The plants around Liz Dauncey in this photo are not poisonous, but many common garden and houseplants are.
Are Some of Your Favorite Houseplants Poisonous? AO Wants to Know.
24 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Colombia Itagüi Pablo Escobar's Grave
AO Edited

Pablo Escobar's Grave

The (usually) serene burial place of the world's most notorious drug lord.

Itagüi, Colombia

Added By
Tony Dunnell
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Pablo Escobar’s grave.   Daniel Di Palma/cc by-sa 4.0
Pablo Escobar’s grave.   Daniel Di Palma/cc by-sa 4.0
Escobar family grave site.   Daniel Di Palma/cc by-sa 4.0
Church at Cemetario Jardines Montesacro.   Daniel Di Palma/cc by-sa 4.0
Cemetario Jardines Montesacro.   Daniel Di Palma/cc by-sa 4.0
Fall 2019   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
Fall 2019   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

The notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar died in a shootout with the Colombian National Police on December 2, 1993. He was buried in the peaceful Cemetario Jardines Montesacro in Itagüí, just south of Medellín, where Escobar grew up.

Escobar's headstone sits in a family gravesite within the cemetery, alongside those of his parents and other relatives. Sometimes adorned with freshly laid flowers, and occasionally attracting a family member, a friend or a curious tourist, the grave is a strangely serene resting place for a man whose actions caused so much terror and death, and whose cartel once supplied about 80 percent of the cocaine smuggled into the United States.

But the normally tranquil gravesite has not been free from its own controversies. In 2017, American rap artist Wiz Khalifa was performing in Medellín, and took the time to visit the grave. He posed for photos at the grave, apparently smoking marijuana, and posted them to his Instagram account. These were widely interpreted as Khalifa paying tribute to Escobar, and an outcry inevitably ensued. According to CNN at the time, Medellín's mayor, Federico Gutierrez, told local media, "That scoundrel, instead of bringing flowers to Pablo Escobar, he should have brought flowers to the victims of violence in this city."

A year later, in 2018, reports began to surface of a new “cocaine pilgrimage” trend, possibly inspired by the hit Netflix show Narcos. Tourists began posting photos and videos of themselves snorting lines of cocaine off Escobar's headstone, often accompanied by less than insightful comments. Needless to say, local authorities are very much against such behavior.

Related Tags

Graveyards Cemeteries Burial Places Drugs

Know Before You Go

You can get to Cementerio Jardines Montesacro by taking the Medellín Metro Line A south to Sabaneta Station in Itagüí. From there it's about a 10-minute walk to the cemetery, crossing the Autopista Sur road (Carrera 42). Just inside the entrance to the cemetery is a path that leads up some stairs to the church on the hill. Escobar’s grave is located just on the other side of the church - right next to the church, not in a grassy part of the cemetary.

Atlas Obscura Adventures

Colombia Discovery: Coffee, Art & Music

Explore Colombia's depth: art, history, culture & transformation.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Tony Dunnell

Edited By

linkogecko, Mitch Lang, ccesare

  • linkogecko
  • Mitch Lang
  • ccesare

Published

October 5, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://gobackpacking.com/pablo-escobars-grave/
  • https://medellinliving.com/pablo-escobars-grave/
  • https://medellinguru.com/pablo-escobars-grave/
  • https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/6120922/pablo-escobar-grave-tourists-pictures-cocaine-drug-lord-headstone/
  • https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5637411/British-tourist-snorts-cocaine-infamous-drug-baron-Pablo-Escobars-GRAVE-Colombia.html
Pablo Escobar's Grave
41-205 Cl. 26
Itagüi
Colombia
6.159269, -75.619859
Get Directions

Nearby Places

La Casa de las Piedritas

Envigado, Colombia

miles away

Virgen Rosa Mística (Virgin of the Mystic Rose)

Medellín, Colombia

miles away

Casa Museo Pablo Escobar

Medellín, Colombia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Colombia

Colombia

South America

Places 93
Stories 23

Nearby Places

La Casa de las Piedritas

Envigado, Colombia

miles away

Virgen Rosa Mística (Virgin of the Mystic Rose)

Medellín, Colombia

miles away

Casa Museo Pablo Escobar

Medellín, Colombia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Colombia

Colombia

South America

Places 93
Stories 23

Related Places

  • The Stecci Cemetery

    Novakovići, Montenegro

    Medieval Slavic Cemetery

    A scattered cemetery of medieval tombstones, each carved with indivdual patterns and scenes, overlooking a bright blue lake.

  • A wooden grave marker at Silver Islet Cemetery.

    Silver Islet, Ontario

    Silver Islet Cemetery

    Carved wooden graves mark the plots at this cemetery in an old mining town.

  • This cemetery stands in stark contrast to its American counterpart.

    La Cambe, France

    Le Cambe German War Cemetery

    This place bears witness to the loss of many lives during WWII, and stands in stark contrast to the American Cemetery.

  • Warblington Gravewatcher’s Hut

    Warblington, England

    Gravewatcher's Huts

    These unassuming buildings in the tranquil churchyard of rural Warblington are in fact grave watchers’ huts.

  • Three concrete slabs with small, destroyed remains of headstones sit behind a V-shaped tree opening.

    Taos, New Mexico

    The Three Brujas

    Three witches are said to be buried beneath these unmarked concrete graves.

  • Grave in An Bang Cemetery

    Vinh An, Vietnam

    An Bang Cemetery

    A cityscape of burial tombs that you can easily lose yourself in.

  • Yanakie Station Cemetery

    Yanakie, Australia

    Yanakie Station Cemetery

    Only five people are buried in this tiny cemetery in Wilsons Promontory National Park.

  • The grave site of President Chester A. Arthur

    Menands, New York

    Albany Rural Cemetery

    The final resting place of President Chester A. Arthur and hundreds of others from Revolutionary War soldiers to poets, politicians, and painters.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.