1: ITINERARY
01. FRI. Arrival in Addis Ababa. Transfer to the chosen hotel. Have a free morning. Afternoon (1400 hrs from the hotel) tour of the capital: visit Entoto mountain with views over the capital, the National & the Ethnographic museums, St George church and the Mercato, biggest open air market in Africa.
Meals free. ON (overnight) hotel.
02. Transfer from the hotel to the airport for the flight to Bahirdar, 2 hrs before the flight time (meet your driver at your hotel). Ones in Bahirdar drive to the hotel for check-in. After the check-in, drive approximately 1 hour to reach the Blue Nile falls. Admire these spectacular falls. Then late morning drive back to Bahirdar.
Afternoon make a boat excursion on lake Tana to visit the monasteries over its islands, as Ura Kidane Mehret and Asua Mariam.
Breakfast can be at the airport or in Bahirdar. Lunch at your hotel in Bahirdar. Have dinner in a restaurant in town or at your hotel. ON hotel in Bahirdar
03. Leave the hotel at 0800 am to drive to Gondar. It takes about 2 hrs driving, visit on the way very nice landscapes, lake Tana and Amhara people villages.
Drive then to your hotel for check-in and lunch.
Afternoon visit the castles, the Debre Birhan Sellasie church (light of Trinity) with wonderful murals, King Fasiladas bath and Empress Mentewab palace.
Have lunch at your hotel. Dinner in a restaurant in town. ON hotel in Gondar.
04. Drive 2 hrs before flight schedule to the airport. Fly to Lalibela. Transfer hotel.
Afternoon visit the rock-hewn churches, defined as the 8th wonder in the world.
Have your meals & ON hotel
05. Morning drive to visit Naktuleab cave church. Or you can choose to walk (or with mules) to the Asheten Mariam church, with spectacular views too.
Afternoon visit the remaining churches in town. And then take part of the coffee ceremony (the coffee ceremony in an important part of Ethiopian culture).
Have your meals in town or at your hotel. ON (overnight) hotel
06. Drive 2 hrs before flight schedule to the airport. Fly to Axum. Transfer hotel.
Afternoon visit the steles, St Mary of Tsion church (where legend says the Ark of Covenant is deposited), the bath & palace of Queen of Sheba, and more.
Have your meals & ON (overnight) hotel
07. THU. Drive 2 hrs before flight schedule to the airport. Fly to Addis. Meet your vehicle/s. Drive then to the Rift Valley lake of Langano. Here you have possibility walking in the nearby Munessa forest, bird-watching (this is inhabitant of 400 species of birds), spot mammals and monkeys as the culubus monkey (in Amharic guresa), have the possibility to explore the area by horse-riding, and can have a relaxing swimming in the only bilharzias free lake.
Lunch on the way. Dinner and ON Wenney eco-lodge. http://www.greenlandtoursandhotels.com/wenney/
08. Leave your hotel around 0700 am & drive through the Wolayta people & villages and admiring spectacular green hills. Proceed to Chencha mountain, for the Dorze people, with their unique culture, particular houses and traditions.
Have lunch on the way. Dinner & ON Swaynes hotel Arbaminch. http://www.greenlandtoursandhotels.com/swaynes/
09. SAT. Leave around 0700 am & drive to Turmi, admiring on the way the Konso, Derase, Tsemay & Hamer people + very attractive views. On the way visit the Saturday’s very colorful Hamer, Karo and Tsemay people market at Dimeka village. Have lunch on the way. Dinner & ON Turmi at the Evangadi lodge (in bungalows or camping. Pls pass us your choice) http://www.greenlandtoursandhotels.com/evangadi/
10. Leave your hotel around 0730 am & drive to the Nyangatom people crossing the Omo river with small boats at Kangate. Walk to the villages. Then back to Kangate, meet the vehicles and drive about 1 hr to visit the Karo people, for their very interesting decoration and scarification all over their body. From Kortcho village you’ll enjoy also a spectacular view over the Omo river. Late afternoon drive back to Turmi, to visit the Hamer people and their villages + culture
Lunch on the way; dinner & ON Turmi Evangadi lodge
11. MON. Leave your hotel around 0700 am & make a morning excursion to visit the Dassanech people villages at Omorate, at bank of Omo river.
Then back to Turmi to visit the colorful Hamer, Karo and Dassanech people market.
After the market visit the Hamer people and their villages. With luck we’ll try also to participate to their marriage ceremonies, with the bull jumping; and Evangadi dances.
Have meals & ON Turmi at the Evangadi lodge
12. Proceed through the Ari & Benna people and villages, to Jinka. Reach on time to visit the very interesting museum.
Have lunch on the way. Dinner & ON hotel in Jinka.
13. Enter into the Mago National park and admiring different mammals and birds on the way, drive to visit the Mursi people and their villages. Here for beauty women use to put round plates into their lips. Men different scarifications all over their body.
Afternoon drive back to Jinka town.
Have lunch on the way. Dinner & ON hotel in Jinka.
14. THU. Leave your hotel around 0700 am & drive to Arbaminch. Being Thursday admire the very colorful Tsemay and Erbore people market at KeyAfer village.
Make also a stop to visit Konso people culture and villages, famous for their terracing agriculture and traditions. Reach Arbaminch late afternoon
Have lunch on the way. Dinner & ON Arbaminch Swaynes hotel
15. Morning drive to the Netch Sar National park to see spectacular views & animals as the endemic Swaynes Hartebeest, zebras & other.
Afternoon make a boat excursion on Chamo lake to admire the biggest crocodiles in Africa (reach 6 meters of length), hippos and birds.
Meals & ON Arbaminch Swaynes hotel
16. SUN. Leave your hotel around 0700 am & drive back to Addis, visiting the Guraghe people villages & very nice views on the way.
Lunch on the way. Have dinner in a traditional restaurant with folkloristic dances. After dinner transfer to the airport for departure (or if the flight is next day, have an overnight in Addis Ababa. The next day you’ll be picked up from your hotel 3 hrs before your flight and transferred at the airport. So on your quotation add one overnight in Addis Ababa)
We also suggest extension to another tour in Ethiopia as the Danakil or Surma people or the people of the north-west in Ethiopia, or to the parks in Tanzania or Kenya or the fantastic beaches in Zanzibar or Monbasa or Malindi or Djibouti.
WT-CODE 693