12-Day Ethiopia’s Northern Historical Circuit Highlights

• Your 12-Day Ethiopia’s Northern Historical Circuit Itinerary begins in Addis Ababa, the busy metropolis of Ethiopia. Most international flights arrive in the morning at Addis therefore we will pick you from the airport and transfer you to your hotel where you can relax and freshen up after your flight. In the afternoon take your first steps into the city and visit some of the sights in Addis, before heading to one of the capital’s wonderful cultural eateries.
• From Addis you go to Bahir Dar, a lovely lake town and a nice place for some mild adventuring. You can take a boat journey out on to Lake Tana and explore the Blue Nile Falls.
• Then, drive to Lalibela, one of the most famous places in Ethiopia, with the amazing rock-hewn cathedrals and exquisite Ben Abeba restaurant.
• Then you go to Gonder, the old capital city of Ethiopia, home to the crumbling castle ruins of the ancient kings and queens – Gonder is regarded as the Camelot of Africa.
• From Gondar the drive winds up to the stunning beauty of the Simien Mountains National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a region of almost unbelievable beauty. The 3 main campsites in the Simiens are Sankaber, Geech and Chennek. The classic trek begins at the park gate and proceeds to Sankaber for the first night. You then hike on to Geech for a second night, and a final night at Chennek (the nicest of the 3 campsites with amazing views, and the best place to see Walia Ibex!) If you don’t want to do the whole 3 night walk you can skip one of the campsites to make it 2 nights – or even 1!
• Spend the night camping in the mountains and end your visit in the Simiens at the lovely Limalimo Lodge with views over the beautiful Simien range. Limalimo is one of the top homes in Ethiopia. Amazing views, beautiful design and unrivalled service. The great setting for sundowners by the roaring fire after a few days of exploration!
• After the Simiens, drive down the switchbacks to Axum, the original capital of Ethiopia. Axum was a major powerful metropolis in the days of the Axumite empire. Its glory days are long gone but the remains that remain from that time are interesting. It’s one of the most culturally significant locations of Ethiopia. The drive takes you through some magnificent countryside.
• The rock churches and scenery of Tigray bring your journey to a glorious finale. You will be staying at Gheralta Lodge, a charming boutique lodge magnificently created with the backdrop of the Gheralta Mountains offering a great view from your porch. The rock churches in Tigray are constructed into the cliffs, and some even require a bit of short rock climbing (all safe and assisted by your guides) to reach – the views from the top are breathtaking.

A Detailed 12-Day Ethiopia’s Northern Historical Circuit Itinerary

Day 1: The adventure begins

Fly to Addis Ababa, where you will be welcomed on arrival. You check into your hotel, then unwind beside the pool for a bit before you venture out into the city for the first time. The Italian-built Piazza is near to popular marketplaces and busy streets. The Grand Anwar Mosque and Ragual Church are nearby. The mosque and church are very close to each other, which shows the peace between different religions in Ethiopia. Get lost in Mercato, Africa’s biggest open air market. Its labyrinth of lanes is great for people-watching or sipping a coffee. Coffee ceremonies are famous here and a source of pride, be sure to attempt to experience this at least once during your trip!

Head to the National Museum and discover where it all started: meet Lucy, the 3.2 million year old fossilised skeleton kept here. Her discovery changed the story of human evolution, since she turned out to have walked on two legs. See the Holy Trinity Cathedral, known for its copper dome and neo-baroque style. It is the burial place of former Ethiopian monarch Haile Selassi and British feminist Sylvia Pankhurst. A short journey up Mount Entoto will bring you to the Palace of Emperor Menelik II. From this vantage point you have a great view of the city. On the way back to Addis, possibly stop by Shiro Meda, the largest garment market in the country, where hundreds of sellers line the busy Entoto Road selling hand-woven traditional fabrics.

In the evening, have a meal in one of the capital’s fantastic cultural restaurants.

Accommodation: Caravan Hotel
Meals: Breakfast & Dinner

Day 2: Bahir Dar

From Addis, you’ll fly north for an hour to Bahir Dar. Here your guide will join you on an excursion on the boat on Lake Tana, Ethiopia’s largest lake. Visit some of the tranquil monasteries that sit on the islands and peninsulas around the lake and walk through coffee farms, try some of the local brew and meet local farmers.

The monasteries are utilised for religious retreats, the lake and islands an unofficial natural reserve. Keep an eye out for white pelicans and “air-breathing” catfish. Your boat journey will end at the Zege peninsula. A short stroll down the route leads towards Ura Kidrane Mehret, possibly the most beautiful of all the churches at Lake Tana, with hundred-year-old characterful frescoes.

Next, to the only outlet of the lake, the Blue Nile Falls. The 42 metre falls release so much spray that they are called ‘Tis Abay’ meaning ‘Smoking Water’ in Amharic (Ethiopia’s national language). There is a stone bridge built in 1626 along the Blue Nile a little distance: possibly one of the 7 fabled stone bridges, built by the emperor Fasilides. The two main tributaries to the Nile (the longest river in the world) are this river and another one called the White Nile.

Accommodation: Blue Nile Resort
Meals: Breakfast

Day 3: Lalibela

A short flight from Bahir Dar will take you to Lalibela, a World Heritage Site and site of the rock-hewn cathedrals. These eleven structures carved from a single block of rock in the 12-13th centuries are world-famous. Reports say that Haile Selassie risked his life to undertake a solo pilgrimage to this place searching for clarity and wisdom during the war with Italy.

Discover Biete Medhane Alem (House of the Saviour of the world), said to be the world’s largest monolithic church, before traversing through the labyrinth of trenches to reach at Biete Ghiorgis (House of St. George), the most famous and secluded of all the structures. It’s worth spending a day just walking these mazes of granite and soaking up the past. There is also a great walk up to a monastery on the side of the mountains if you have the time.

Complete the day with a tasty dinner in the famed Ben Abeba restaurant, a crazy construction of steel and concrete that overlooks the hills and valleys of the Alps.

Brilliant says: There’s typically value in staying more than one night in Lalibela, to fully absorb it up. Having an extra day also lets you check see some of the wonders in the highlands around Lalibela.

Accommodation: Tabor Hotel
Meals: Breakfast

Day 4: Gondar (2,133m)

In the morning explore the remaining rock hewn churches in Lalibela. Fly at midday to Gondar, the former capital of the country. Your first destination is the Debre Berhan Selassie Church, with a hefty, unpretentious stone front hiding vibrant frescoes inside.

Then you will move on to the well-preserved Fasil Gebbi in Gondar. Some refer to it as the ‘Camelot of Africa’. Originally constructed in 1636 and built by Emperor Fasilides as his residence, but following emperors and rulers added to his blueprint. Now known as the Royal Enclosure. Today the structures occupy more than 70,000 square metres of land and include palaces, libraries, two lion homes, royal baths and a women’s vocational school established by Mentewab, the Empress of Ethiopia. Inside the walls is an eclectic mix of architectural styles and influences. The influences are Indian, Portuguese, Moorish and Axumite.

Accommodation: Goha Hotel
Meals: Breakfast

Day 5: Simien Mountains National Park – Gondar – Debark to Sankaber (3,200m) 2-3 hours / 7km

Your accommodation in Gondar will be your starting point for a car ride to Debark, the Simien Mountains National Park headquarters. Here you will meet your trek leader and scout. For part of the journey to your first camp at Sankaber you will travel by 4×4, but to help you acclimatise to the altitude you will walk the rest of the route (about 3 hours).

The views from the offset will blow your mind. The landscape is rugged, and you are reaching above 3000m above sea-level. You’ll be greeted with beverages, a delicious and filling meal, and a campsite in Sankaber where you can sit around the fire and tell stories with guides and other trekkers.

Accommodation: Camping at Sankaber
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Simien Mountains National Park – Sankaber (3,200 m) – Geech (3,600m). 7-8 hours / 15km.

Breakfast and a route along the ridge mark the first full day of hiking. This affords you a vantage position with fantastic views across the foothills some 800m below. The mountains are famous around the world for their biodiversity; Ethiopia’s position on the equator makes this mountain range a particularly temperate one. Your guides will be able to point out interesting flora and animals, but regulars on this trek include Gelada Monkeys, Kilpspringer and Ibex. From here you can witness birds of prey soaring on the thermals down below.

The highlight of the day’s route is Genbar Falls, a sobering 500m straight down waterfall, which we view from the other side of the slope. After a lunch break you’ll continue on into Geech, a rural traditional village with thatched roofs. This is the perfect pick me up. Some coffee and injera. Great place to observe the sunset from there and continuing to the camp.

Accommodation: Camping at Geech
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 7: Simien Mountains National Park – Geech (3,600m) – Inayte (4,070m) – Chennek (3,600m) – 7 hours, 15km.

Today’s path is mostly along the edge of the ridge. You’ll descend through a forest of Giant Hazel before climbing back up to open grassland and onwards on your climb to Inyate. The views from the top are spectacular. After the climb and the view, you will recuperate and descend to Chenek camp. This camp is noted for its guests and is home to Wallia Ibex and Gelada Baboons.

Accommodation: Camping at Chennek
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 8: Simien Mountains National Park – Mount Buahit (4,430m) 5-6 hours

Today you will reach the highest point of the hike thus far. The day starts with a nice walk up the Buhait pass before the track begins to get steeper. The journey will be a test but also a reward as the rough and steep terrain gives way to magnificent views once you reach the summit. Wildlife is widespread here, as it is in the other locations, and visitors have sighted the elusive Ethiopian Wolf as well as Ibex, monkeys and a diversity of bird species.

Brilliant says: you can swap camping in the Simiens for lodge stays, or increase/decrease the amount of camping in the Simiens based on your interests and fitness levels.

Accommodation: Camping at Chennek
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 9 – Limalimo Lodge

Morning travel (~2.5 hours) to the magnificent Limalimo Lodge Unwind at the lovely lodge for the day – the perfect way to round off your Simien Mountains experience.

Accommodation: Limalimo Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 10: Axum

After breakfast at Limalimo, drive down the switchbacks (4-6 hrs) to Axum, the most holy city of Ethiopia and home to a spectacular display of Obelisks. It is said that the city was the abode of the Queen of Sheba. The Church of St Mary of Zion is said to hold the lost Ark of the Covenant. Take a short walk down the cobblestone streets to the stelae fields. Some of the granite constructions from the 4th century AD are more than 23 metres high.

Accommodation: Sabean Hotel
Meals: Breakfast

Day 11: Gheralta Lodge

End your tour throughout northern Ethiopia with a stay at Gheralta Lodge.

After lunch at the lodge, see some of the rock-churches in the area. The rock churches of Tigray are astonishing not only for their history, rock carvings and paintings but also for their expression of the religious conviction of the local people. Some of these churches are hewn into the face of the cliff high above and can only be reached by climbing the vertical cliff, yet still are used by local Ethiopians of all ages. The view from within the churches is magnificent. As the sun sets behind the mountains, the sky lighting up in dark reds, yellows and oranges, your excursion comes to a wonderful finale.

Accommodation: Gheralta Lodge
Meals: Breakfast

Day 12: Addis Ababa to Home.

Go to Mekele airport and call in at two excellent churches on the way. Fly to Addis Ababa where your Ethiopian odyssey will come to an end. Don’t forget to have a coffee and do some market stroll before you head home.

End of the 12-Day Ethiopia’s Northern Historical Circuit Itinerary