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 Axum, 2 hrs before the flight time (meet your driver at your hotel). Ones in Axum transfer to the hotel for check-in.
Visit the steles, St Mary of Tsion church (where legend says the Ark of Covenant is deposited), the bath and the palace of Queen of Sheba, and archeological sites.
Breakfast can be at the airport or in Axum. Lunch and dinner at the hotel in Axum.

03. Leave your hotel at 08am to drive to Mekele, capital of the Tigray region. On the way make very interesting visits, as: the Yeha pre-Christian temple, DebreDamo monastery (where to reach the monastery men have to climb 16 meters by ropes. Women are not allowed) and one of the Tigray rock churches, as Abreha We Atsbeha or Wikro Cherkos (or could be both, if clients prefer not to visit DebreDamo).
Lunch on the way. Dinner traditional restaurant in town. ON hotel in Mekele.

04. Leave your hotel at 08am to drive to Lalibela, crossing sites as Ambalagi, Alamata, Dild & the Tekeze river, with very nice views and admiring the Tigray, Azebo/ Raya, Afar (with luck around Woldya) & Wollo people on the way.
Spot also the endemic Gelada Baboons around Dild.
Lunch on the way; dinner & ON Yemereha htl or similar http://www.greenlandtoursandhotels.com/yemereha/

05. Full day visit of the rock-hewn churches in Lalibela, defined as the 8th wonder in the world. Churches built in the 12th century; the African Jerusalem.
And late afternoon take part of the coffee ceremony in a traditional house or the hotel (the coffee ceremony in an important part of Ethiopian culture).
Meals & ON at your hotel

06. Leave your hotel at 08am to drive to Gondar, the city of castes and churches, defined the African Camelot, admiring very nice views over the Semien mountains.
Lunch on the way; dinner in a restaurant in town. ON hotel in Gondar

07. Morning visit of Gondar: the castles, Debre Birhan Sellasie church (light of Trinity) with wonderful murals, King Fasiladas bath and Qusquam monastery.
Have lunch in a restaurant in town.
Afternoon drive to Bahirdar, with views at lake Tana and Amhara people villages. Dinner and ON at your hotel in Bahirdar

08. Leave your hotel at 08am to drive to admire the Blue Nile falls.
Drive back then for lunch at the hotel.
Afternoon have a boat excursion on lake Tana to admire some monasteries over the lake’s islands, as Asua Mariam and Ura Kidane Mehret, with also the visit of an Amhara people village & coffee plantations.
Dinner in a restaurant in town. ON hotel in Bahirdar

09. SAT. Transfer from the hotel to the airport for the flight to Addis Ababa, 2 hrs before the flight schedule. Ones reached Addis Ababa transfer to the hotel for a day use room available till 18:00 hrs. Have your free afternoon.
Lunch free. Have dinner invited in a traditional restaurant with folkloristic dances. Then 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)

10. SUN. Arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport. Please issue your visa at the Immigration Desk (50 US per person), get your luggage and go through customs. There your driver will wait for you and will take you to Tarangire National Park. To the gate it will take you around 3 hours drive. Do a first game drive along the shores of Lake Manyara. This park impresses by the big Lake and the thick forest. You will find Impalas and Dik Diks as well as hippos and elephants. Take care of the lions in the park, sometimes they are laying in the trees and inspect their surroundings. After the game drives proceed for dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Lake Manyara National Park Information:The Lake Manyara National Park has a rare ground water forest, which merges into grassland with acacia trees and open grassland. On the shores of Lake Manyara are marshy areas. In the park live about 20-30 lions, who like to rest are particularly on the trees, a few leopards and monkeys. Prevalent in the park are giraffes, impalas, wildebeests, zebras, hippos and big herds of buffalo.
Things to do nearby the park: Cultural excursions, bicycle tours, forest walks outside the park
Best time to visit: July to October: large mammals
Accommodation lodge. Meals: LB/D

11. Mto wa Mbu cultural excursion. After breakfast go on a bicycle ride on the edge of Lake Manyara National Park. You will see the animals from a different perspective and discover things, you would have never seen from the car. For lunch enjoy a local meal under banana tree and get ready for a guided walk through the village. There you will see how the farmers plant their crops and how craftsmen produce their goods.
Accommodation lodge. Meals:B/L/D

12. Ngorongoro Crater Tour – Karatu. Today you will do an unforgettable Ngorongoro Crater Tour. At the beginning you will descend into the crater – 600m from the rim to the floor. When you reach the bottom, start your game drive and discover this breathtaking landscape. Wildebeests, zebras and lions will cross your way. Enjoy your picnic lunch next to the hippo pool. After the game drive ascend the steep crater wall with the safari car and return back to the lodge.
Ngorongoro Crater Information: The Ngorongoro conservation area is located between the Serengeti and Lake Manyara. Within the protected area is the Ngorongoro Crater, which is the largest caldera in the world. The crater is 600m deep and 260 square km in size and offers the diversity of East African scenery and wildlife in a confined space. Enjoy the breathtaking views at sunset from one of the lodges on the crater rim.
Accommodation lodge. Meals: B/LB/D

13. After breakfast proceed to Serengeti National Park. On the way you can visit Olduvai Gorge and get more information about this National Park at Naabi Hill Gate. Game en route to lodge.
Serengeti National Park Information: The Serengeti is a treeless savanna, which extend from the north Tanzania, east of Lake Victoria, to southern Kenya (Africa) extends and covers an area of about 30,000 sq km. There live more than 1.6 million herbivores and thousands of predators. Common animals in this region are wildebeests, gazelles, zebras and buffalo. A unique experience is the migration taking place every year between the Sernegeti and the Masai Mara.
The word “Serengeti” is derived from the Maasai language and means “Wide area / high level.” You can find extensive, flat grasslands in the south and slightly wooded plains in the north. The central Serengeti is an almost treeless savanna. In the southeast arises Ngorongoro Conservation Area (world heritage site since 1979). The highest mountains are located about 1,850 m above sea level, lower parts of the savannah to reach “down” to about 950 m.
The region encompasses the Serengeti “Serengeti National Park”. With its 14,763 km ² it is one of the largest and certainly the best known National parks in the world. Since 1981 it is part of the UNESCO World Natural Heritage.
The documentary film “Serengeti Shall Not Die” by Bernhard Grzimek was honored in 1960 with the Oscar. 
Best time to travel: Throughout the year; Great Migration: December to July
Accommodation lodge. Meal: B/LB/D

14. Full day game drive in Serengeti National Park. Discover landscape and animals.
Accommodation lodge. Meal: B/LB/D

15. Serengeti – Tarangire National Park. Today you will leave Serengeti National Park. Do an early game drive in the morning and proceed towards Ngorongoro and go on until you reach Tarangire National Park. Game en route.
Tarangire National Park Information: Tarangire National Park is one of 11 national parks in Tanzania. It is located south-west of Arusha in the Lake Manyara region. The Tarangire River flows through the park even in the dry season and is the only water source for the wildlife. Therefore, the wildlife in the park is very rich dring dry sesaon. The landscape consists of savannah and the river. The park is 2600 square kms and is located on 900m altitude. Furthermore the park is well known for its uncountable baobab trees, the large number of elephants and various species of birds. Best time to visit: Throughout the year (June – September high animal density because of dry season)
Accommodation lodge. Meals: B/LB/D

16. For the last day on safari do an early morning game drive in Tarangire National Park and leave towards Arusha. Here then either transfer to catch your flight or stay a night in Arusha.
Accommodation hotel. Meals: B/LB

17. Transfer to the airport on time to catch your flight. Meal: B

We also suggest extensions to the fantastic beaches in Zanzibar, or another tour in Tanzania as trekking to Kilimanjaro or the parks of the south, or another tour in Ethiopia as the Omo valley or the Surma people or people of the north-west or trekking to the Semien mountains, or to the parks in Kenya (see our programs)