Paths of Ethiopia: Historic Route and Omo Valley Tribes

Day notes

Arrive Addis Ababa

Day 01 - Upon your arrival at Bole International airport Addis Ababa, and completion of the entry formalities, you will be met by one of our representatives and transfer to your hotel. 

Day notes

Bahir Dar - Blue Nile Falls

Day 02 -  This morning you will fly to one of the biggest cities in Ethiopia  Bahir Dar.  After checking in to your hotel and a short refreshment, you will take a boat cruise on Lake Tana to visit the 14th-century Monastery of Ura Kidane Mihret which is the most famous of the Zege peninsula monasteries with a very beautiful painted Maqdas and priceless collection of crosses as well as crowns. 

Later on, you will drive to the village of Tis Isat to see the Blue Nile falls (Please be informed that  due to the newly constructed electric dam in the vicinity the water level of the falls could be very minimal). 

Day notes

Gondar

Day 03 -  Today, you will drive to Gondar: a historic town dubbed “the Camelot of Africa”. Upon arrival, Explore a town founded in 1636 by the great Emperor Fassiladas, set in a landscape of incomparable beauty; it was the Royal Capital of Ethiopia. Visit the Castles and Churches built by the Emperor and his descendants.

Then, you will proceed to the fascinating Debre Birhan Selassie Church (a UNESCO World's heritage site) whose walls and ceilings are decorated with scenes of Biblical lore and medieval history.

(Drive time: Approx 4 hours) 

Day notes

Simien Mountains

Day 04 -  Today, you will drive to Semen Mountains National Park. As you travel, you will catch breathtaking glimpses of the Semen Mountains, one of Africa’s largest ranges. The western side of the range was designated as a national park in 1969, and the entire range was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, noted for its dramatic mountain scenery, endemic plant communities, endangered large mammals, and rare and endemic bird life.

(Drive time: Approx 2 hours.) 

The landscapes vary from the plateau, escarpments, and steep gorges to rolling hills and pinnacles. Three of Ethiopia’s endemic animals are residents in the Simiens: the gelada baboon, the rare Ethiopian wolf, and the Walia ibex. The mountains are also known for cliff-nesting birds of prey, particularly the powerful lammergeyer.

Day 05 -  Early morning, after having breakfast, you will begin to visit Chenek. Today you will be rewarded with beautiful views on both sides of the escarpment ridge and it is a great place to spot the endemic Walia Ibex and the Ethiopian Wolf. You might be able to come across these endemic animals during your visit.

Tucked away behind a hillock on a mini plateau is a romantic spot with a bench, looking back to Imet Gogo and Inatye. Drive back to the lodge for your overnight accommodation.

Day notes

Gondar

Day 06 - Today, you will drive to Gondar, and then set out on a 2.5-hour drive to Buhit Ras in the Simien Mountains National Park. As you travel, you will catch breathtaking glimpses of the Simien Mountains, one of Africa’s largest ranges. The Simien Mountains make up a wild and spectacular region that has called “the roof of Africa,” with more than a dozen peaks higher than 12,000 feet, including Ras Dashen, the highest peak in Ethiopia.

(Drive time: Approx 2 hours.) 

Day notes

Axum

Day 07 - After having your breakfast, you will fly to Axum. Upon arrival, you will be transferred to your hotel, later to visit where the early history of Ethiopia (Abyssinia) begins. Dating from the second century B.C., it reached its height of power between the fourth and seventh centuries A.D., when it controlled most of present-day Ethiopia and, at times, both sides of the Red Sea. Axum was once the center of a great empire and the seat of learning for the ancient Ge’ez language and literature.

Take a city tour that includes the Stelae Park. These famed granite obelisks are relics of this time and have gained UNESCO World Heritage Site status. The tallest, the Great Stele, has fallen and broken into six massive pieces, but when standing was 33 meters (108 feet) tall and weighed about five hundred tons. The tallest obelisk still standing at Axum today is about 23 meters (75 feet) tall, still an impressive sight!

We continue the city tour, visiting St. Mary’s Church and the Sanctuary Chapel which is the repository of the Ark of the Covenant; the Coronation Yard; King Ezana’s Park; and the “Queen of Sheba” ruins, once a massive palace with finely mortared stone walls, deep foundations, and its own impressive drainage system, believed to be the oldest building in Axum.

Day notes

Lalibela - church visits

Day 08 -  The following morning, you are transferred to the airport for your flight to Lalibela.  Lalibela is a town in the Amhara region of northern Ethiopia. It has known for its distinctive rock-cut churches dating from the 12th and 13th centuries, which are pilgrimage sites for Coptic Christians.

Shortly afterward, you will drive to another striking attraction just outside of Lalibela. About a 90-minute drive from the town of Lalibela passing through magnificent scenery, one finds a church that is built inside a cave. Yemrehanna Kristos dates back to 1100 to 1200 AD period in Ethiopia's history; predating even the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela itself. The drive there and back is slow yet scenic as one passes villages and churches with a scattering of shepherds every now and again.

After you park, your vehicle is a steep walk leading up to Yemrehanna Kristos cave church, roughly 30 minutes. Inside the cave, a beautiful church presents itself, laid out on a foundation of Africa Olive Wood.  Visit and drive back to Lalibela.

Day 09 - This day you will have a full-day visit of Lalibela churches. The 1st  group of churches: “Bete Medhanialem”, “Bete Mariam”, “Bete Meskel”, “Bete Denagil” and “Bete Golgota”. After finishing the 1st  group you will then visit the church from the 3rd  group “Bete Giorgis”, a church referred to as the eighth wonder of the world, hewn out of solid rock and believed to have been built in either the 12th or 13th century. After lunch, you will visit churches from the second group: “Bete Gebrel”, “Bete Rufael” “Bete Gebre Marqorios”, “Bete Amanuel” and “Bete Aba Libanos”.

Day notes

Lake Langano

Day 10 - Today, you are transferred to the airport for your flight to Addis. Upon arrival, you are met and continue driving to Langano. Upon arrival, you will check in to your hotel and for your overnight stay.

Lake Langano resembles a giant puddle of milky English tea set against the blue curtain of the Arsi Mountains. The water may be brown and unappealing, but it is one of the few Ethiopian lakes to be declared bilharzia-free and thus safe for swimming. Moreover, as with all the Rift Valley lakes, the bird watching is good. Langano is also the obvious base from which to explore Abiata-Shala Lakes, National Park.

(Drive time: approx 4 hours.) 

Day notes

Arba Minch - Village visits

Day 11 -  Today you will continue to Arba Minch.  Arba Minch is named for the numerous local springs that produce a groundwater forest. In Amharic, Arbaminch means “forty springs.” The town itself is divided into two distinct settlements. Buses and taxis connect Shecha (on higher ground) and downtown Sikela.

Just two and a half miles away is Sikela, home to the commercial, industrial, and downtown residential areas. On the eastern side of Sikela lies the gate to Nechisar National Park, which covers the isthmus between Lake Abaya to the north and Lake Chamo to the south.

After a short break, you will visit a very scenic route to the mountain village of Chencha, home of the Dorze people. Renowned for their cotton weaving, called Shammas and their distinctive house- towering beehive-shaped structures made from woven thatch.

These structures can stand two stories high and have a life span of over 50 years. You will take a leisurely walk about the village, meeting some residents and watching the women weave.

(Drive time: 2 hours.) 

Day notes

Konso Tribe visit

Day 12 -  After breakfast,  depart for Konso to visit a Konso Village. Konso Cultural Landscape is an arid property of stone-walled terraces and fortified settlements in the Konso highlands of Ethiopia. It constitutes a spectacular example of a living cultural tradition stretching back 21 generations (more than 400 years) adapted to its dry hostile environment.

The landscape demonstrates the shared values, social cohesion and engineering knowledge of its communities. The site also features anthropomorphic wooden statues - grouped to represent respected members of their communities and particularly heroic events - which are an exceptional living testimony to funerary traditions that are on the verge of disappearing. Stone steles in the towns express a complex system of marking the passing of generations of leaders.

(Drive time: 2.25 hours)

Day notes

Omo River - Village visits

Day 13 - Early in the morning after breakfast, you will  be driven to Turmi. Despite being an important transit and tourist hub, Turmi is just a speck of a town. Hamer women, with their shimmering copper-colored tresses, sell vegetables, spices, butter, milk and traditional items like incised calabashes, head stools, metal arm bracelets and fantastically smelly goatskins decorated with beads and cowrie shells – it does not get more atmospheric than this.

Turmi is also a handy base from which to arrange day trips to Omorate. Upon arrival, you will check in to your hotel for your night stay.

(Drive time: approx 4 hours.) 

Day 14 - Early morning, you venture to Omorate to visit the Dasenach tribes across the Omo River by wooden local boat to have an interesting cultural experience with inhabitants of lower Omo River Valley.

The Dassenech is a nomadic tribe live in the region where Ethiopia borders Kenya and Sudan. As for most other communities of the Omo Valley, cattle are central to the lives of the Dasanach. Meat and milk are their staple foods. The women are known for wearing headpieces fashioned from bottle caps and any other small metal items that can be strung up. 

Then, you will visit the Dimeka Market. Dimeka 28km north of Turmi is the biggest town in Hamer territory and its Saturday market. It is the most atmospheric and liveliest of the big ones. It has a great crafts section, with jewelry, woodcarvings, masks, and pottery. Around noon, they are full of Hamer men and women enjoying calabashes of honey wine or sorghum beer. The cattle market, which is held in the morning about 400m further north, is also not to be missed. There is little reason to stop here besides the markets.

(Drive time: approx 3 hours.) 

Day 15 -  After an early breakfast, you will venture to Murulle to visit the Karo people, who reside along the banks of the Lower Omo River. The Karo incorporate rich cultural symbolism into their rituals and use ornate body art, intricate headdress, and body scarification to emphasize beauty and status within their community. This small but lively tribe numbers under 1,000, but they are the main non-nomadic agriculturalist group in the Lower Omo Valley.

The Karo’s are differentiated from neighboring tribes by placing a higher emphasis on body and face painting. They paint themselves daily with colored ochre, white chalk, yellow mineral rock, charcoal, and pulverized iron ore - all resources found in this area.

Karo body painting is a deep aspect of their culture; they are communicating as well as decorating. The experience of visiting the people of this incredibly rich, proud, yet adapting culture gives amazing insight into Ethiopia’s indigenous peoples.

Hammer, they are one of the most known tribes in Southern Ethiopia. They inhabit the territory east of the Omo River and have villages in Turmi and Dimeka.  They are cattle herders and practice agriculture. Very colorful bracelets and beads are worn in their hair and around their waists and arms.

(Drive time: approx. 4 hours)

Day notes

Omo River Valley - market day, Bena, Hamar, Ari. Tsemay tribe visits

Day 16 - Today, you will visit the town of Jinka, one of the larger outposts in the area. Despite its location on the main road, the town of Jinka seems to exist in virtual isolation from the rest of Ethiopia. High, cool, and green, Jinka sits at the edge of the highland plateau, standing guard over the vast Omo Valley to its west.

Then, drive to visit Key Afer Market. Key Afer is about 1.5 hours from Jinka.  The tribes who come here to trade are mostly the Ari, Bena, and Tsemay tribes.  The Bena look very similar to the Hamar and is believed to have originated from them centuries ago.  Like the Hamar, the Bena boys participate in bull jumping and wear colorful clay caps decorated with beads and feathers. Visit and continue onto Jinka. 

(Drive time: approx. 2.5 hours) 

Day notes

Return to Addis Ababa

Day 17 -  Today you are driven to Mago National Park to visit a Mursi village. The Mursi are one of the most original ethnic groups. They live in very low huts made of straw leaves. The women like to wear terracotta on their enormously stretched lower lips and ear lobes. The men are famous for their hairstyles.   The tribe is famed for its fierce warrior disposition and wildly decorative appearance, with large circular clay labrets that the women wear in the lower lip. The larger the lip plate, the greater the woman’s value when she is married. She removes her plate for eating and sleeping. We may see some women, especially elder women, without their lip plates. They are easily distinguished by how their long, distended lips hang down from their mouths.

In the afternoon, you are transferred to the airport to catch your local flight back to Addis Ababa. Upon arrival, you are transferred to your hotel. You may spend the rest of the day resting at your hotel or you may opt to take a short walk and enjoy the pleasant weather of Addis.

Optional  - On your last night in Ethiopia  we can arrange a memorable farewell dinner at one of Addis Ababa’s wonderful cultural or international restaurants. 

Day notes

Homeward...

Day 18 - You are transferred to the airport for your departure flight homeward...