Ethiopia holidays, tailor made
| country: | Ethiopia |
| departures: | This trip can be tailor made at a time to suit you and can be adapted to suit your interests, budget and requirements as necessary. Minimum 2 people |
| price: | From £1316 (14 days) excluding flights. Price based on two people sharing |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
If you want an exotic vacation idea then one destination that will surprise and amaze you is Ethiopia; a land of unsurpassed natural beauty, people, culture and history.
The trip features Ethiopian diverse historical attractions that date back to ancient medieval and Mediterranean civilizations. It also offers an amazing natural scenery; endemic wildlife to be found only in Ethiopia; and exciting trekking opportunities at the Simien Mountain National Park.
We are distinguished by our efficient and cost effective packages all designed to provide you the ultimate service that will turn your dream vacation into a reality.
The trip features Ethiopian diverse historical attractions that date back to ancient medieval and Mediterranean civilizations. It also offers an amazing natural scenery; endemic wildlife to be found only in Ethiopia; and exciting trekking opportunities at the Simien Mountain National Park.
We are distinguished by our efficient and cost effective packages all designed to provide you the ultimate service that will turn your dream vacation into a reality.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Arrival at Addis Ababa and city tour. At Addis, the different historical monuments, museums and mausoleums; churches; Merkato (the largest open air market); first palace of Haile Selassie I inside Addis Ababa University; the Selassie Cathedral which places the Emperor’s body; buried in the year 2000 the national museum etc will be your interest showing you Ethiopian lifestyles. |
| Day 2: | Fly to Bahirdar. Bahirdar is as pleasant as you'll find for relaxing and viewing the lake, and the weather is probably the best in Ethiopia. In the morning, you will drive to and marvel the spectacular Blue Nile falls feeling the water showers like rain and listening to its tremendous roar. Mango Park is the best place to view pelicans and enjoy sitting by the shores of the Lake. A boat trip to Zege, the main tourist attraction in the region, and to the monasteries merit a good half day. Ura-Kidane Mihret is the largest and most impressive monastery on the peninsula, while nearby Azwa Maryam is situated near one of the prettiest and most secluded inlets in the area. You will enjoy great calmness if you stop in at the museums at Azwa, Ura or Mehal Zege; you get an impression of just how far back Christianity goes in this region. |
| Day 3: | Drive to Gonder. The Ethiopian medieval capital boasts with its large royal enclosure containing grand castles, palaces, houses and outbuildings. You will visit King Fasiladas's palace, the oldest and perhaps most Impressive of the castles. Beside the castle are various ruined buildings including the remains of a bathing pool, a chancellery and a library of Fasiladas's son Yohannes I. You will visit Debre Birhan-Selassie, one of the country's most famous churches that lie 2km to the north east of Gonder. |
| Day 4: | Drive to Simien Mountains. Sankaber campsite is located approximately 38km North East of Debark town in the Simien Mountain range at an altitude 3300asl and mean annual temperature 10.4c. It comprises the scenic mountains ranges and it is impressive escarpment both in the north and the south faces of the camping site. The trek crosses through beautiful scenery of natural vegetation; varying with altitude beginning with high forest at lower altitudes in the escarpment and extending to the high plateau touched Afro Montana evergreen bush land and thicket. There is also wildlife like the Gelada baboon and klipspringer. And birds such as such as Wattled ibis, Black kite, and White collard pigeon, and many more. |
| Day 5: | Drive/trek to Chenek. The Chenek campsite is located approximately 58km north east of debark town in the Simien mountains range at an altitude of 3600m asl and mean annual temperature 8.8c. It is extremely spectacular containing the scenic mountains range, impressive escarpment super view points and mountains submit and varieties of plant and animal species. Visitors have more chance to see the endemic mammals Walia ibex, Ethiopian wolf, and Gelada baboon. Klipspringer and common Jackal are also common for this campsite. |
| Day 6: | Drive back to Gonder. |
| Day 7: | Fly and visit Axum. Axum is a place where a high civilization had risen several centuries before the birth of Christ. The astonishing steles strike you for their huge size, their incredible almost pristine preservation and their curiously modern look sculpted from single pieces of granite to look like multistoried buildings. Though the stone is famously hard, Axum's masons worked it superbly often following a set design. |
| Day 8: | Excursion visits to Yeha and Churches near by Axum. |
| Day 9: | Fly and visit Lalibela. Lalibela rock churches are incredible and astonishing attractions. Rock hewn monolithic, semi monolithic, and cave churches; they are witnessed to undoubtedly rank among the greatest historical sites not only on the African continent, but also in the Christian world. Many are not carved into the rock, but freed entirely from it. The buildings are refined and many are within such a very short distance of one another. |
| Day 10: | Lalibela excursions. Excursion visits of the monasteries that are found out of town. |
| Day 11: | Fly back to Addis. Transfer to the airport. |
| Day 12: | Fly to DireDawa - Harer. Harar is also special for its old town within the sturdy wall built between the 13th and 16th centuries. It is a city with a rich and wonderful history; famous architecture; a friendly people who really knows how to roll out a red carpet. At the evening, you will visit the ‘Hyena Man’ at one of the gates of Harar. You will also visit the house of Arthur Rimbaud (a French poet and arms dealer) and the ancient mosque of Abu Beker. |
| Day 13: | Fly back to Addis. Visit Merkato, the largest open air market in Africa. |
| Day 14: | Departure. Transfer to the airport. |
If you want a customized itinerary, quotation, or any other tour information about this trip we are very happy to help.
travelling with a local operator
This holiday is operated by a company based in the holiday destination and they will be able to provide expert local knowledge. They will be able to tailor make your holiday to suit your requirements not only concerning the dates of travel but also typically the standard of accommodation, and thus price. It is rare for local operators to be able to help with the booking of your flights.how this holiday makes a difference
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All the guides throughout the trip are locals who are well trained and with adequate experience. We purchase most of the items that are necessary for your stay, from local shops. You may also wish to buy gifts and souvenirs, weavings, and intricate creations and various kinds of handicrafts from the locals. The income they will earn as a result of your trip will have a great deal of importance for their children and families they support.
Most of the accommodations are owned and operated by the locals. They have put in place environmental conservation, water and energy usage, and economic policies such as employing local staffs and using local resources for the services they provide. As part of an environmental responsibility, they participate in different initiatives like in '2 trees for 2000', a millennium initiative against the deforestation and land degradation in Ethiopia. It is a campaign that has helped the community to realize the importance of clean and green environment. They also protect the environment by giving away plastic bags to recycling agencies. For you to have better knowledge of the trip we will provide you an accurate pre-trip information before the start of the tour. Also in order for you to have a good understanding of the places, the environment, and the local community; we will supply you with our Travelers Code of Conduct which is also supplied to our staff and local suppliers. If you get some spare time at Lalibela, we recommend a visit to a local initiative which provides services in supporting and promoting disability prevention and rehabilitation. They have an income generation scheme and vocational trainings to help improve their lives. This small initiative also gives training to the community about personal hygiene and environmental sanitation. As part of our environmental concerns, this trip will help us buy a few seedling trees in a way to support an initiative which is working with school administrations through planting vegetable gardens and nurseries. The idea is to raise environmental awareness among students and to teach skills on how to grow, protect and plant trees as well as vegetables for income generation or improved diets. |
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