Join a wildlife expert on this exceptional natural history journey through Ethiopia’s best wildlife hotspots. Discover some of its most charismatic wildlife and explore stunning landscapes in seldom-visited national parks.
There's nowhere like Ethiopia within Africa; it blends dramatic landscapes with spectacular wildlife, with many species found only within its beautiful highlands. For this new tour, we've lined up the very best wildlife hotspots, as well as some exciting new national parks, to provide a remarkable wildlife holiday in a country unlike any other in Africa.
This trip begins in Ethiopia’s vibrant capital of Addis Ababa, where we make a day visit to the Gefersa Reservoir and Menagesha Forest. These are excellent habitats for an array of Ethiopian endemics, and a fantastic way to begin our trip as we enjoy a striking array of mammal and birdlife.
We then take to the rolling hills, montane cloud forests and riparian woodlands of Chebera-Churchura National Park. Not many know about the wildlife of this stunningly lush new national park, which is home to a large elephant and buffalo population as well as De-Brazza’s monkeys, bushpigs and the remarkable standard-winged nightjar.
Our next location, Maze National Park, is completely different, with a dry arid landscape of savannah woodland and herds of Swayne’s hartebeest, kudu, waterbuck and oribi, in addition to a new cast of grassland birdlife with raptors, rollers and orange-bellied parrots among the highlights.
We then enjoy time at a lovely lodge near Lake Awassa, where an old custom of leaving out scraps of food for spotted hyenas will provide us with unforgettable close views. Here we can also enjoy excellent birdwatching with white-cheeked turacos in the forest and a plethora of waterbirds and hippos on nearby Lake Awassa, part of the Great Rift Valley.
For our finale, we explore the diverse habitats of the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia’s must-see wildlife destination, home to the Ethiopian wolf, mountain nyala, bale monkey, giant mole rat and more.
Typical Itinerary
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Day 1:
Depart the UK
Depart the UK on an overnight flight from London to Addis Ababa.
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Day 2:
Arrive in Addis Ababa & City Tour
On arrival in Ethiopia, we're met at the airport and transferred to our nearby hotel. We have the morning to recover from our journey, before gathering together for our first lunch and a city tour, taking in the highlights of Addis Ababa.
We visit the National Museum, Emperor Haile Selassie’s former palace, and also have our first taste of Ethiopian birdlife.
Accommodation: Getfam Hotel, 2-nights
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Day 3:
Excursion to Gefersa Reservoir & Menagesha Forest
This morning, we depart the city to visit the Gefersa Reservoir and Menagesha Forest. As we explore these two locations, we can enjoy an impressive variety of habitats, from grasslands and pools to Afromontane forest dominated by giant juniper and African olive trees.
Together, these areas offer a chance to observe some wonderful Ethiopian endemics, and throughout today we hope to observe mammals such as Menelik’s bushbuck and guereza colobus monkey, along with a vibrant array of birdlife including blue-winged goose, Rouget’s rail, Abyssinian catbird, tacazze sunbird and the striking Abyssinian longclaw.
Please note that if we’re able to visit the gelada baboons at Debre Libanos Gorge, we'll do so on this day. Please get in touch with us for more information.
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Day 4:
Transfer to Chebera-Churchura National Park
This morning, we have an early transfer to the domestic airport, where we take a short flight to the city of Jimma.
On arrival, we begin the journey of approximately four hours through rural countryside and friendly villages to Chebera-Churchura National Park. We make several stops to admire the changing scenery and spot some roadside birdlife. After our arrival and lunch, we have the late afternoon to take our first drive in Chebera-Churchura in search of its diverse wildlife.
As dusk approaches we set off on our first night drive where we hope to encounter the remarkable standard-winged nightjar and some nocturnal mammals.
Accommodation: Chebera Safari Lodge, 3-nights
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Days 5-6
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Exploring Chebera-Churchura National Park
Over the next two full days, we explore this large national park on early morning and late afternoon safari-style drives, and take a few short walks near the lodge.
Home to Ethiopia’s largest elephant population, we search for family herds of these iconic mammals in the wetlands and forest clearings around the river. At some locations we may be treated to the uplifting sight of elephants, hippos, buffalo and waterbuck all mingling together, with black-crowned cranes flying overhead against a backdrop of lush forested hills.
Within the mature riparian forests we hope to observe the striking De-Brazza’s monkey and large families of olive baboons, and along the forest tracks we hope for an encounter with the shy bush pig or giant forest hog.
This stunning, yet little explored park supports over 200 species of bird, in addition to an extraordinary diversity of butterflies that we can discover within its forest clearings.
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Day 7:
Final Morning in Chebera & Transfer to Halala Kella Lodge
In the morning, we take one final game drive or forest walk in search of any species we are yet to find. We then set off for a scenic drive from the lush green hills of the Kafa region into the drier Dawro zone.
Later in the day we arrive at our next base, the charming Halala Kella Lodge, overlooking the Gilgel Gibe III Dam on the Omo River. After our long drive, we can enjoy some restful time at this high comfort lodge, perhaps taking a swim in the inviting pool before soaking up the spectacular views from the sunset deck with a drink in hand.
Accommodation: Halala Kella Lodge, 1-night
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Day 8:
Halala Kella Lodge & Transfer to Sodo
This morning, we could start with a gentle birding walk in the surrounding bush, hopefully discovering pygmy falcons, skinks and butterflies’ before the day heats up.
After a leisurely lunch, we then set off for the transfer to Sodo, stopping along the way at good birding locations around the Omo River. We arrive at our comfortable hotel in Sodo in time for dinner.
Accommodation: Haile Resort Wolaita Sodo, 1-night
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Day 9:
Morning Excursion to Maze National Park & Transfer to Yirga Alem
Starting the day just after sunrise, we take an early drive south into Maze National Park for a half-day safari. A beautiful and remote national park of savannah grassland and scattered woodland, our morning here's a contrast to the verdant forests of Chebera.
As we drive along the network of tracks through the park, we look for herds of the endangered Swayne's hartebeest, an Ethiopian endemic subspecies, in addition to greater kudu, waterbuck, oribi and warthog. The park also supports a growing lion population, and we do have a small chance of encountering them along the road, early morning. Birdlife is also very different here, with rollers and shrikes perched atop the prominent bushes and African orange-bellied parrot and many colourful starling species within the woodlands.
We then return to Sodo for lunch and continue on to the coffee growing lands of Yirga Alem and our next base at the lovely Haile Resort.
Accommodation: Haile Resort, 2-nights
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Day 10:
Wildlife Watching & Coffee Tour Around Lake Awassa
This morning, we explore the shores of Lake Awassa. To begin with, we visit a nearby fish market and urban park on the shores of the lake where we can savour remarkably close views of marabou storks, hamerkops, kingfishers and sunbirds, plus habituated guereza colobus monkeys and even possibly spotted hyenas. Later in the morning, we enjoy a delightful boat trip around the marshy edges of this great rift valley lake, seeing hippos, African fish eagles and a huge variety of waterbirds up close.
After lunch at our hotel, we hope to visit one of the nearby organic farms and wild coffee plantations, before visiting one of the coffee washing stations in the town to learn more about the whole coffee growing and harvesting process. We also hope to get time to explore the area surrounding the village of Wondo Genet, an important habitat for birds such as black-winged lovebird and the elusive spotted creeper.
Later this evening, we have a special opportunity to return to the local park where we hope to have the excitement of watching the resident clan of spotted hyenas emerging just metres away from us on the edge of the forest.
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Day 11:
Transfer to the Bale Mountains
Today we make a long but highly rewarding drive into the Bale Mountains National Park. Our route to our lodge takes us right through the park, and we stop to first enjoy time in the wildlife rich Gaysay grasslands and juniper forests at Dinsho, the park headquarters.
As we enter this lush area we're greeted by the sight of mountain nyalas, bohor reedbuck and warthogs grazing at the roadsides. With careful scanning and luck, we may also encounter a serval stalking rodents amongst the long grasses, or locate the Abyssinian long-eared owl at its day roost, tucked into a moss clad juniper tree.
We complete our journey crossing the Sanetti plateau, to the hotel, arriving in time for dinner.
Accommodation: All Seasons Hotel, 3-nights
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Days 12-13
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Exploring the Bale Mountains
We have the next two full days to explore the rich variety of habitats across this special national park. One of the highlights is spending time on the Sanetti Plateau, a vast alpine landscape, studded with ancient boulders and giant lobeilas, and numerous moorland pools. This is the home of the largest remaining population of the highly endangered Ethiopian wolf. This beautiful canid is now very rare, but as we drive across the plateau we have excellent opportunities to observe them.
In addition to the wolves, the plateau also offers us the chance to see the giant mole rat, Stark’s hare, Ethiopian klipspringer and a great range of birds including Rouget’s rail, spot-breasted lapwing and blue-winged goose.
Away from the plateau, we also spend time within the dense Harenna Forest that surrounds our lodge. Here there are more local specialities to discover including the localised Bale monkey, two species of horned chameleon and majestic crowned eagles. On evening drives through the forest we hope to find giant forest hog and if we're very lucky, maybe even Bale’s unique population of forest dwelling lions.
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Day 14:
Bale Mountains & Addis Ababa
Today we have a final early morning to explore the Harenna Forest in search of its secretive wild inhabitants. Later, we transfer back across the Sanetti Pleatau passing Mount Tullu Dimtu, one of the highest peaks in Ethiopia and again hope for some final encounters with the Ethiopian wolves.
We then reach Goba airport, where we check in for our flight back to Addis. On arrival back in Addis Ababa, we transfer to the hotel where we have day use of the rooms and facilities to relax before a special farewell dinner together as a group, and our overnight flight back to the UK.
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Day 15:
Arrive in the UK
Please note: On day 3, we aim to visit the Debre Libanos Gorge and its iconic gelada baboons. At present, travel to this area isn't recommended, so we've arranged an alternative excursion to Menagesha Forest, which offers an excellent range of endemic bird species and primates. Should the situation at Debre Libanos improve, we'll reinstate the visit there for this day.
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