15 Days Magic Ethiopia Safari

• Ethiopia

15 Days Tour with Boat Trips and Blue Nile Falls Visit in Ethiopia

This tour combines an itinerary of nature, culture, and history. On the Danakil tour, you will experience the desert life, salt miners, the long line of camel caravans, the colorful sulfur of Lake Dalol, the active volcano of Erta Ale, trekking around the desert community. Then, you’ll go to the Rock-Hewn Lalibela to visit the Monolithic Lalibela churches. The trek to the Simien Mountains can be taken as a big opportunity to experience the safari tour, a visit to the Chelada baboons, the walia ibex in which both are endemic to Ethiopia, the Jinbar Waterfall, etc. The tour will continue to Bahir Dar to visit the 1000-year monasteries, the Blue Nile Falls, and then to the south. Come to experience this exhilarating safari!

Day 1: Arrive in Addis Ababa

Upon your arrival in the sunny city of Addis Ababa, the driver guide will transfer you to the hotel and right after your check-in, the guide will explain the tour details in brief. This day, you will have a welcoming coffee ceremony in the hotel. Based on your arrival time, you are going to visit places in Addis. Dinner and overnight at the Mosaic Hotel

Day 2: Addis Ababa to Mekele

You will take the first morning flight from Addis to Mekele departing at 07:00 and arrive in Mekele at 08:15 to join the tour directly from the airport. You will start your tour into the Danakil to Erta Ale, the famous volcano with its bubbling lava lake and the rare possibility of experiencing the nomadic tribe living in this desert – the Afar people, survivors, and warriors in the hottest and one of the lowest places on earth. Today will be a 4-hour drive on an asphalt road (220 kilometers) with a few stops, for instance, having a coffee with the locals and lunch prepared by your own cook. The landscape starts to become more and much drier and less and less inhabited; you will be passing the odd local on the way, but not many people are to be seen. You will reach the local village Afdera, a 15-minute walk from the Lake Afdera, around 16:30, and have a stop there to explore it and yet another coffee or coke with the inhabitants.

After that, you will continue your journey to the ending point of today: Lake Afdera where is also your campsite. Meanwhile, the sun is setting we go for a swim, floating on the surface of the salt lake and enjoying the nearby hot springs, experiencing an incredible view. Dinner and a campfire before falling asleep right underneath a star-full nightly sky with thousands and thousands of stars will brighten up your dreams. Overnight: A campsite at Lake Afdera

Day 3: Drive to Dodom and trek to Erta Ale

Today’s aim will be first Dodom (‘tree planting’) – the base of the Erta Ale volcano and later at night, Erta Ale itself. After a breakfast at 10:00 at the lake, there will be a 70-kilometer drive on a sandy ground and over cold lava rocks. On the way, you will visit the salt miners which are local Afar people. They pump salt water over the surface and let it evaporate to create a salt crust. Lunch will be served in Dodom Village surrounded by many local people. Here, you also have to show your permission to climb Erta Ale (‘the smoking mountain’) and get the needed camels for transporting the goods and more scouts.

Dinner time will be already at 17:00-ish since you have to start trekking up to the volcano around 18:00 to 19:00. Dodom is approximately 8.5 kilometers away from Erta Ale and this stretch will take about three hours of trekking. Camels will transport all the camping materials and some food to the rim of the volcano where you will spend the night watching the dramatic actions of the boiling lava. The Volcano is 613 meters high. The lava lake contains actually two caters, one of them, the northern one, is inactive with no Magma. It is notable for being the longest existing lava lake on this planet.

Erta Ale ranks as one of the most alluring and physically challenging natural attractions anywhere in Ethiopia. It is a shield volcano with a base diameter of 30 kilometers and one kilometer square caldera at its summit. The volcano contains the world’s only permanent lava lake. You will then set your camp a little bit away from the rim on the other side of the wind so you won’t have to inhale the toxic gases. After enjoying this great, special, sometimes smelly, sometimes loud and hot experience, you will overnight in your camp, again with a brilliantly shining night sky. Dinner and overnight at A camp at Erta Ale

Day 4: Sunrise at Erta Ale and trek down Erta Ale to Dodom to Hamed Ela

For enjoying the very special sunrise, you have to get up early but you will see that it is of course very well worth it. A short stroll will take you to the northern crater; from here, you will descend in the direction Dodom which you will reach after two hours. Here, breakfast will be served and you may have some time to relax. You will start your drive to Hamed Ela, your next destination. Lunch will be served en-route and you will reach Hamed Ela, a bigger village with a total population of about 500. Lake Asale, a huge salt lake, is in walking distance where you will take a deep breath and a wine or beer for sunset, taking in the many reflections.  Dinner and overnight A camp at Hamed Ela

Day 5: Hamed Ela to Dallol to Mekele

You will get served an early breakfast and start driving the short distance to Dallol via Asebo where they mine salt. 1,200 kilometers square of the Afar Depression is covered by salt. You can watch the workers breaking the salt from the ground, cutting it into rectangular pieces and loading it onto camels. This is also the lowest point of the Danakil – 116 meters. You will continue driving ahead to Dallol and stroll through the different landscapes formed by volcanic activities. Incredible, moon-like, colorful creations of the sulfur and huge salt mountains are to be found here. From here, you will proceed to Mekele, leaving the lowland and make your way up, having wonderful mountains on your side, reaching civilization. Dinner and overnight at Planet Hotel

Day 6: Mekele to Lalibela

You will take the morning flight from Mekele to Lalibela to spend more time. Upon arrival, you will be picked up by the driver and start the Lalibela Churches visit right after checking-in to the hotel. This day, you will visit the Lalibela Churches which are located north of a small stream named Jordan River. These Churches were carved during the time of King Lalibela and are registered by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. In the afternoon, you will have an excursion trip to the cave-built up a church of Ne’akuto Le’ab which is famous for its wide collection of ancient crosses, manuscripts, and icons. In the city of Lalibela, you will see about Eleven Rock Churches organized into groups of three.  Dinner and overnight: Lalibela Lodge

Day 7: Lalibela to Gondar to Debark to Sankaber

You will wake up in the morning, have breakfast in the hotel and transferred to the airport and fly to Gondar. Upon your arrival in Gondar, you will be picked up from the airport and depart to the Simien Mountains. You will drive from Gondar to Debark. Here, you will obtain a permit from the park headquarters and collect your obligatory scout before continuing to Sankaber for the first overnight camp. An early start is needed as the drive from Gondar will take for two to three hours. The trek will begin at Buytras (Simien Lodge), taking about three to four hours to walk to the Sankaber campsite is usually possible. During the walk, there will be a good chance of seeing your first Gelada baboons. Dinner and overnight: Camping at Sankaber

Day 8: Sankaber to Jinbar Waterfall to Gondar

In the morning of day two, you will walk to Geech via the spectacular Jinbar Waterfall. The trek will take approximately three to four hours. After descending down to the Jinbar Wenz, a short ascent remains to Geech Village and then trek back to the point to meet the car. You will drive back (about three hours) to Gondar. There, you can enjoy the food and music at Goha Hotel

Day 9: City tour of Gondar and go to Bahir Dar

You will have to wake up in the morning and then have breakfast in the hotel and start your city tour of Gondar at 08:00. Among the dozen edifices found on the precinct of the royal compound, the earliest of the castles was created by Fasilidas himself and is still in such an excellent state of repair that it is still possible to climb its stairs all the way to the roof which commands a breathtaking view over much of the city. Dinner and overnight: Grand Resort and Spa

Day 10: Boat trip on Lake Tana and Blue Nile Falls visit

You will be picked up from the hotel in morning  to go to the Blue Nile Falls. The afternoon will be hot to go to the falls so it would be better to do it in the morning. You will start your tour with Blue Nile Falls visit. About 30 kilometers after Blue Nile Falls, there exists Lake Tana that plunges over a 45-meter high rock face to form one of Africa’s most spectacular waterfalls. Lake Tana with the surface area of 3673 square kilometers is the largest lake in Ethiopia. Besides being the source of the Blue Nile, Lake Tana is renowned for its varied birdlife as well as housing on its islands and peninsulas more than 20 monastic churches most of which were founded in or before the 15 the century and are still in service today.

In the afternoon, you will start the day by a boat trip on Lake Tana to visit the island monasteries such as those on the Zege Peninsula and Kibran Gabriel about three to four churches on Lake Tana. You will finish the Bahir Dar trip. Dinner and overnight at The Mosaic Hotel

Day 11: Addis Ababa to Arba Minch

You will wake up morning, have breakfast at the hotel and visit some part of Addis before your Arba Minch flight time.  It comprises many archaeological and historical findings including the famous complete hominid fossil remain of “Lucy” locally known as “Dinkinesh” meaning wonderful. The Museum offers a comprehensive overview of the country’s natural, political, and art histories. Visitors can easily spend a full morning or afternoon here soaking in the “edutainment.” A cast of the bones of the Australopithecus afarensis Lucy are here of course, but so is the throne of Emperor Haile Selassie, traditional tools and textiles, and displays about Ethiopia’s different tribes. This is the greatest open-air market in East Africa. Here, you will be presented with confusing, but fascinating, glimpse of the vast range of goods and artifacts available from all parts of the country and you will enjoy the Ethiopian trade exchange tradition in the open air, you can purchase anything you desire.

Finally, you will be transferred to the airport and fly to Arba Minch. Upon your arrival, the driver will pick you and transfer you to your hotel or directly proceed driving to Dorze which is set in the highlands above Arba Minch. The Dorze people are known for their tall beehive-like houses and their fine cotton weaving. Overnight at Paradise Lodge

Day 12: Arba Minch and drive to Turmi

In the morning, you will take a drive to Turmi to visit the Hamer Village and Dassenech tribe. Here, you will cross the Omo River by local boat and enter a Dassenech Village. Afterward, you will return to Turmi for a visit to a local Hamer Village. If there is jumping of the bulls traditional hammer coming-of-age ceremony, that will be visited. Overnight at Buska Lodge

Day 13: Mursi Village visit

In the morning, you will drive through the Mago National Park to a local village of the Mursi tribe. The Mursi are known for their lower lip and earlobe plates. In the afternoon after returning to Jinka, you can visit the South Omo Museum & Research Center to learn more about the local tribes. Alternatively, you may take a hike in the surrounding hills to visit a local Ari Village. Overnight at Jinka Resort

Day 14: Dimeka Market visit

You will depart to Arba Minch from Jinka via Dimeka and Key Afar. Tuesdays and Saturdays are market days in Dimeka which is one of the most colorful markets in the area and is visited by many tribes including Hamer, Benna, and Karo. Afterward, you will continue to Arba Minch. Overnight at Paradise Lodge

Day 15: Boat trip on Lake Chamo and fly back to Addis

You will wake up in the morning around 07:30 and have breakfast and start your last day visit in Arba Minch. In this morning, you will depart to Arba Minch for a boat trip on Lake Chamo to visit the “crocodile market” and the local hippos, enormous crocodiles, and possibly even hippopotamus before returning to the airport. The driver will drop you off at the airport fly back to Addis. Finally, you will be transferred to the airport and fly back home.