Complete guide to Ethiopia

Our local agency, based in Addis Ababa, has been accompanying English-speaking travelers throughout Éthiopie for many years. The country can be explored at several altitudes: the capital stands at 2,400 meters, the peaks of the Simien exceed 4,500 meters, and the Danakil depression descends to 120 meters below sea level. This range shapes landscapes, climates, and cultures of great diversity, from coffee grown in the shade in the forests of Kaffa to the salt flats of Afar.

The historic Northern circuit connects Bahir Dar and Lake Tana, Gondar and its 17th-century palaces, the Simien massif populated by geladas, then Lalibela and its eleven monolithic churches carved from rock in the 12th century. To the east, Harar, a fortified Muslim city, preserves its 368 alleyways and its hyenas hand-fed each evening. To the south, the Omo Valley is home to around twenty peoples—Hamer, Mursi, Karo—whose ways of life remain deeply tied to the agropastoral cycle.

Éthiopie cannot be visited in one week. Our team recommends a minimum of twelve days for the historic circuit, and three weeks if you wish to combine the North, the Danakil, and the Omo. The official language is Amharic, the currency is the birr, and the calendar has thirteen months.