Flights and Travel Guide to Ethiopia

The landlocked country, Ethiopia enjoys an extended neighborhood with popular African countries and has earned a reputation for being ‘a multi destination holiday’ host. It is one of the oldest countries in the entire world, with a history full of encouraging stories, intriguing myths and tales of great valor.

Geography

Located toward the horn of African continent, Ethiopian neighbors include

• East: Djibouti and Somalia
• West: Sudan
• North: Eritrea
• South: Kenya

Climate / Weather in Ethiopia

Having the 10th largest area, Ethiopia has a varying climate that changes along with the topography but it can be generalized as Tropical, divided in four seasons.

• Summer: June, July and August - Hot, humid and rainy
• Winter: December, January and February - dry and cool
• Autumn: March, April and May - hot with occasional drizzling and showers
• Spring: September, October and November - harvest time!

Best time to Visit

The best time to visit Ethiopia is winter as the summer and autumn months are extremely hot with temperatures climbing as high as 60°C in certain areas.

Getting In Ethiopia

Being a landlocked country, Ethiopia is easily reachable either directly or through another country’s border.

Passport / Visa Information

A transit is not required however, a travel or tourist visa is required to get in Ethiopia.

A biometric, machine readable passport is required to travel to Ethiopia and there should be 2-3 pages for entry and exist stamps. The passport should better be at least six month valid and should be renewed well in time, if the duration of stay exceeds the duration of the passport expiry.

Capital City

The Ethiopian capital is the most popular city of the country as well, Addis Ababa. The city has all amenities of a modern day metropolis however these are restricted to the city centre and suburban areas only. The outskirts of the capital and neighboring cities are underdeveloped.

Other Cities of Ethiopia

Other than the popular capital, tourists commonly visit the following cities:

• Adwa
• Desa
• Awasa
• Goba
• Harar
• Dire Dawa

Airports in Ethiopia:

Ethiopia has air access in the 53 cities and airports. However the most popular International airport that is frequented by flights from London to Ethiopia is:

• Addis Ababa: HAAB Bole International Airport (ADD)
• Awassa: HALA Awassa Airport (AWA)
• Dire Dawa: HADR Aba Tenna D Yilma Airport (DIR)
• Bahar Dar: HABD Bahar Dar Airport (BJR)
• Goba: HAGB Goba Airport (GOB) 
• Lalibela: HALL Lalibela Airport   (LLI)
• Asosa: HASO Asosa Airport (ASO) 
• Axum: HAAX Axum Airport (AXU) 

Airlines to / from Ethiopia

The national airline of the country, Ethiopian Airline (ET) offers direct flights to Addis Ababa. The carrier also provides a vast network of domestic and regional flights. Other than that, the European Airline KLM, Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are counted among the most popular carriers flying to Ethiopia from London Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham, New Castle, Gatwick, Aberdeen, Dublin, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburg and other departure airports in the UK and Ireland.

Hotels and Accommodations in Ethiopia

The hotels and accommodations in Ethiopia have to be reserved very carefully as the local standards are considerably lower than the western standards of accommodation. Some vacationers have reported trouble with the electric showers while in some cases people were robbed of their possessions in the hotel room. Therefore, it is highly recommended to make your reservation in a five star to four star hotels only and always check the accommodation reviews prior reservations.

There are lodges, guest houses, hostels and very cheap hotels for budget travelers concentrated in near the city centre.

Recommended hotels based on travelers review include:

• Sheraton Hotel Addis Ababa
• Imperial Hotel
• Aarat Hotel Addis Ababa
• Ghion Hotel Addis Ababa and
• Hilton Hotel Addis Ababa

Getting Around in Ethiopia

Ethiopia is the oldest independent African nation, however getting around the capital is much easier than the rest of the country that is still in a development phase.

Infrastructure / Transport in Ethiopia

Like other developing countries some roads in Ethiopia, mostly in the uptown and capital are well paved while others are in a bad condition. Tourists prefer to travel around Ethiopia in a rented car. However one must make sure to get a letter from the renting company as some checkpoints in Ethiopia require showing a letter from the rent a car company.

Cycling in Ethiopia is also an option, however uncommon for tourists due to hot weather.

Places to See in Ethiopia

Ethiopian attractions are generally divided in:

• Historical Attractions
• Wild Life, Safari and Natural Attractions and
• Cultural Attractions

Following is a list of popular places to see, based on the above criteria.

• Church of St. George Lalibella - Historical Attraction
• The ruins of Axum – Archeological Attraction
• The historical attractions of Gonder
• The Addis Ababa great Mosque
• Cultural visit to the towns of Bahir Dar and Hawassa - Cultural Attractions
• The Tribal Safari at Omo Valley- Cultural Attractions
• The Lake Tour at Danakil depression and Eretaale – Natural Attraction
• Sof Omer Caves, Bale– Natural Attraction
• A trip to the Rift valley lakes– Natural Attraction
• Boating at the Wonchi Crater Lake – Natural Attraction
• Exploring the Abijatta-Shalla Lakes National Parks– Natural Attraction
• Wildlife tour of the Awash National Park
• Camping at the Omo National Park
• Visiting the Nechi Sar National Park
• Feeding Hyenas by hand at Harar
• Hiking at the Semien Mountains National Park
• Safari in the Mago National Park

Things to Do in Ethiopia

There are many activities of varying nature that can keep your spirits high in Ethiopia such as:

• Wild Life Safari
• Boating
• Hiking and Trekking
• Bird Watching and
• White Water Rafting

Food and Shopping

Shopping in Ethiopia from the Ethio Supermarket is the best thing to begin with as it remains open and packed. Buying fruits, vegetables, bread, handicrafts, textile items and other such things from the open-flea markets is also recommended.

Pork and shellfish is prohibited in both Islam, Orthodox Christianity and Judaism therefore you will not get it in Ethiopia however the food in Ethiopia is prepared according to traditional recipes that are both meat and vegetable based and served with stew.

Events and Festivals in Ethiopia

Following are the popular festivals in

• Enkutatash – The New Year Celebration
• Meskel Festival also called ‘finding of the True Cross’
• Debra Damo also called the ‘Feast of Saint Aregawi’
• Kulubi the celebration feast of Saint Gabriel
• Ledet the Ethiopian Version of Christmas
• Timket the marking of Epiphany
• Fasika the Ethiopian celebration of Easter
• Milad-an-Nabi - birthday of Prophet Mohammed (P.B.U.H.)
• Lailt-ul-Isra - Islamic Festival to mark the night of ascension
• Lailat-Ul-Bara’ah - Islamic Festival celebrating the night of forgiveness
• Ramadan – the Islamic calendar month of fasting
• Eid-ul-Fitr – the end of the fasting month 
• The Hajj – the marking of the pilgrimage season to Mecca
• Eid-ul-Adha – the celebration at the end of the Hajj pilgrimage
• Rosh Hashan – the Jewish New Year
• Yom Kippur - the most solemn day for Jews marking end of the ten days fast
• Sukkot – the Jewish calendar Harvest Festival. This is also to mark the great Egypt to Israel migration of the Jews.
• Simkhat Torah – the celebration of Almighty’s Holy book Torah
• Hanukah – to mark the re-direction of the second temple in Jerusalem Israel
• Tu B’Shevat – beginning of Spring celebrated by planting trees by Jew community
• Purim - celebration of the savior of Jews of Presia, Queen Esther
• Passover (Pesach) – the eight day commemoration of Jews returning to promised Holy land
• Shavuot – week long Feasting and celebration by Jews to commemorate the revelation of Holy book Torah at Mount Sinai.

Travel Advice for Ethiopia

Ethiopia is generally a safe travel destination. However one must contact the concerned embassy or consulate to get up to date information on matters relating to Visa and passport requirements for Visa. Following is only for indication and applicable as of now.

Travel Tips

The following travel tips will make your trip and stay in Ethiopia more comfortable.

• As the major attraction in Ethiopia is Wildlife safari, consider taking vaccination of Malaria and other recommended vaccinations are Yellow Fever, Typhoid, Hepatitis A, Diphtheria and Meningococcal.
• Keep your money secure and at more than one places and also make copies of all your travel documents for safety reasons.
• Avoid deserted streets or far away pubs and avoid going out after dark
• Flashing jewelery or money in public places can mean trouble.
• It is recommended to wear a money belt under your clothing to stay safe from pickpockets.
• Hire a driver or stay alert at all times as livestock often get onto the main roads.
• Be watchful of the potholes at night while driving or walking.
• US Dollars are largely accepted however credit and debit card acceptance is only limited to the larger hotels or city centre.
• The ATM machines do not support the foreigner cards.
• Choose registered travel agents only when making flight, hotel, car or guide reservations.

Is it Safe to Travel to Ethiopia

As of now, fco advises against travel to any area within 10km of the Ethiopian borders with Somalia, Kenya, Eritrea, Sudan or Djibouti. However traveling to the capital is not restricted. For details please visit fco official website.