A journey packed with incredible sights. A real adventure which will be hugely rewarding. Because of the limited choice of accommodation there is only one version of this itinerary.
Here’s your Ethiopia itinerary:
| 1 | ✈To Addis Ababa (Book >) ✈Addis to Lalibela flight (Book >) |
Dep: 20:15 | 🏨 In flight! | ||
| 2 | Dep: 08:10 | Arr: 06:50 Arr: 09:10 |
🏨Harbe Hotel (Book >) | All hotels > | |
| Flights to Lalibela depart on Monday and Friday only, plan your Ethiopia itinerary accordingly. | |||||
| 3 | Your hotel is close to all the sights, including the 11 rock-hewn churches in town. Any additional time should be spent visiting Yemrehanna Kristos and/or one of the nearby monasteries. Save yourself hassle by arranging a tour ahead of your visit. | At an altitude of 2,600m be prepared for cold and breathlessness, and bring a good water bottle. | |||
| 4 | ✈Lalibela to Axum flight (Book >) | Dep: 10:45 | Arr: 11:25 | 🏨Sabean International Hotel (Book >) | All hotels > |
| Must-sees include the Ruins of Aksum and the Northern Stelae Field. | Guides can be arranged at the tourist info. | ||||
| 5 | 🚌Axum to Shire bus | Dep: Any time before 6pm | Arr: Any time | 🏨Gebar Shire Hotel (Book >) | All hotels > |
| There’s not much to see in Shire so spend more time soaking up Axum’s sights. | Minibuses depart for Shire through the day until 6pm. | ||||
| 6 | 🚌Shire to Debark bus | Dep: 05:30-06:00 | Arr: c.10hrs later | 🏨Limalimo Lodge (Book >) | |
| After a long journey enjoy the luxuries of the lodge and the incredible view. | This is a rough road, take travel sickness pills if you need! | ||||
| 7 | Every visitor to the Simien Mountains park has to pay for a park scout, make the most of them and embark on a full-day hike. | Extend your trip a few days by embarking on a 4-5 day hike. | |||
| 8 | 🚌Debark to Gondar bus | Dep: Any time | Arr: Any time | 🏨Mayleko Lodge (Book >) | All hotels > |
| Fit another trek in before journeying to Gondar | Limalimo Lodge can arange a shuttle to Gondar. | ||||
| 9 | Spend the day exploring the Royal Enclosure (Fasil Ghebbi). Don’t-miss sights include Fasiladas’ Palace, Palace of Iyasu I and Debre Berhan Selassie Church. | When ordering wat (curry) be sure to ask for the more tasty kai wat – alicha wat can be very bland! | |||
| 10 | 🚌Gondar to Bahar Dar bus | Dep: Every hr on the hr in the AM | Arr: 3-4hrs later | 🏨Delano Hotel (Book >) | All hotels > |
| Take a relaxing cruise on the lake to one of the island monasteries. | Boats on Lake Tana have fixed rates – be wary of hustlers. | ||||
| 11 | ✈Bahar Dar to Addis Ababa flight (Book >) | Dep: Afternoon | Arr: Afternoon | 🏨Caravan Hotel (Book >) | All hotels > |
| Before leaving Bahar Dar visit the nearby Blue Nile Falls and enjoy a self-guided walk, starting at the Portuguese Bridge (you’ll need to pay a boatman to cross back over the river). | You can pay a guide for the falls walk, but the route is fairly easy to follow by yourself. | ||||
| 12 | ✈Addis Ababa to home (Book >) | Dep: 14:25 | Arr: 16:20 | Connect this Ethiopia itinerary with the Kenya or Tanzania itinerary | |
| Visit the Lucy replica in the National Museum and the excellent Red Terror Martyrs Memorial Museum. | |||||
A Plan To Go 