Arrival in Addis Ababa and City Tour

Addis Ababa - Upon arrival at Bole International Airport, a representative from Welcome Ethiopian Wanderer Tours will greet you and escort you to your reserved hotel. Depending on your arrival time, there are several sightseeing options available: a 5-6 hour city tour.

• Mount Entoto offers the best views over the capital.
• The Institute of Ethiopian Studies showcases a variety of artifacts from different regions, reflecting the country’s history and culture.
• The National Museum, which among other exhibits, houses the 3.5-million-year-old bones of Lucy.
• George Cathedral displays paintings by the renowned Ethiopian artist Afework Tekele, along with other ecclesiastical treasures and cultural heritage.
• Trinity Cathedral, the burial site of imperial family members and noted patriots, is the most magnificent of its kind in the country, adorned with carvings, mosaics, and other artistic works.
• The Mercato, the largest open-air market in Africa.

Addis Ababa – Bahir Dar

Bahir Dar - This day involves a long drive from Addis to Bahir Dar. In the morning, you will fly with your guide to Bahir Dar and be taken to your hotel. We then embark on a boat trip on Lake Tana to explore the nearby monastery of Ura Kidane Mihret on the Zege peninsula, known for its 14th-century round, grass-roofed churches and their magnificent murals, including the Azoa Mariam and Ura Kidane Mihret churches. These architectural styles, with mud-plastered round walls and a conical thatched roof, are typical examples of ancient Ethiopian Orthodox churches. The monastery is hidden in the forest of the Zege peninsula. Ura is especially renowned for its exquisite frescoes, manuscripts, and ecclesiastical objects, such as the crowns of various emperors dating from the 14th century, gold and silver processional crosses, silver drums, and royal vestments. During our walk through the densely forested area, we hope to encounter monkeys and abundant birdlife. On the lake,

Bahir Dar – Gondar (170 km) 3 hours drive

Gondar - After breakfast, we drive to Gondar, a 17th-century royal city of Ethiopia, rich in the imperial architecture of a Castle Compound and the spectacularly painted Debre Birhan Selassie Church.

Afternoon: After lunch, we visit the royal enclosures of Fassil Ghibe and all the castles of the Gonderian emperors, as well as the famous Debre Berhan Selassie Church, which is completely covered in murals, with the angels’ faces on the wooden ceiling that have become a hallmark of Ethiopian art and design.

Gondar – Simien Mountains National Park (120 km)

Gondar - Early in the morning, we continue our journey to the Simien Mountains National Park. We will reach the Simien Lodge, the highest lodge in Africa, around noon. After lunch, we start exploring the Simien Mountains National Park. Due to its unique landscape and endemic fauna, the park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996. In the park, you may experience close interaction with the friendly Gelada Baboons. We drive up to Sankaber (3,220m) and admire the impressive scenery with its deep gorges and valleys and the highest waterfall in Ethiopia. Here, a gentle walk would take about 2 hours. We hope to encounter further endemic animals, such as the Walia Ibex and the Simien fox. In the late afternoon, we return to Debark, where we will spend the night.

Debark – Axum (240 km)

Axum - After breakfast, we continue to Axum (approx. 7hrs.) with once again stunning views. Axum, at an altitude of 1,637m, is considered a holy city in Ethiopia where Ethiopian Christianity is said to have begun, dating back over 2,000 years. The Axumite kingdom is also considered the cradle of Ethiopian civilization.

Full day in Axum

Axum - The city tour of Axum includes the Axum stelae or obelisks, the largest single piece of stone erected by human beings anywhere in the world, castles of former monarchs, Mariam Tsion Church, which is built on the site of Ethiopia’s first church, the Palace of Queen Sheba, the inscriptions of King Ezana, and the tombs of the kings Kaleb and Gebre Meskel.

Axum – Yeha – Mekelle (250 km)

Mek’ele - After breakfast, we will visit the temple of Yeha (approx. 50km / 1 hour). The route passes through Adwa, where in 1896 the famous battle between the Ethiopians and Italians took place. Yeha was a pre-Axumite settlement and is famous for its well-preserved stone temple with 12m high walls estimated to be 2,500 years old.

Mekelle – Lalibela

Lalibela - Today we continue our drive through ever-changing landscapes to Lalibela (approx. 8 hours). We will reach Lalibela in the late afternoon.

Full Day in Lalibela

Lalibela - Today we will visit the 11 renowned rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, also known as the “8th wonder of the world.” The Lalibela rock-hewn churches are physically carved from the rock on which they stand. These towering edifices seem to be a superhuman creation in scale, workmanship, and concept. Some are sculpted out of solid volcanic rock, others are connected by long underground tunnels and mazes. Some are quarried enlargements of caves. The first group of six churches lies in rock cradles, one behind the other: Bet Golgotha, Bet Mikeal, Bet Mariam, Bet Maskel, Bet Dangal, and Bet Medhanealem. Bet Medhanealem, the largest rock-hewn church in the world, is built like a Greek temple.

Lalibela – Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa - This day involves a long drive of about 9 hours.

Evening: In the evening, you will be invited to a memorable farewell dinner in one of Addis Ababa’s traditional restaurants with cultural songs, dances, and traditional food and drinks. You will then be transferred to Bole International Airport.

• All Entrance fee
• Breakfast
• 9 Night Accommodation

• International and domestic air ticket Visa fees Excess luggage charges
• Flights and personal fee

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.