Itinerary

Day 1 The Hilton, Addis Ababa

On landing in to Addis, we’ll be there to meet you and take you to the Hilton.
Ethiopia does not enjoy an overwhelming choice of accommodation but the Hilton is
in the heart of the city on a 15-acre site and will be the perfect place to rest up before
the start of your adventure tomorrow. Addis is a mixture of new and old. Menelik II
founded the city in 1886 and although there are plenty of high rise monstrosities it has
not lost its atmosphere and charm.

Day 2 The Tana Hotel, Bahir Dar

This morning you will catch the est 50 minute schedule
flight up to Bahir Dar. Bahir Dar is one of Ethiopia’s more
impressive towns, located on the shores of Lake Tana, the
largest lake in the country.
There are 37 islands on Lake Tana and 30 of them have
churches and monasteries of considerable historical and
cultural interest. After breakfast we will have the morning
to take a city tour of the town.
We will break for lunch before taking a boat excursion out
on the lake to an island monastery called Ura Kidane
Mehret that dates back to the Middle Ages. After this, we
will then return to town and overnight at the Tana Hotel.

Day 3 Hotel Goha Gondar, Gondar

After breakfast, we’ll fly to Gondar, Ethiopia's royal capital until 1868. Its location at
the intersection of several caravan routes made it the perfect location for a capital. It
was founded by Emperor Fassilides in 1632 and has been the home of the Falasha, the
"Black Jews" of Ethiopia, ever since. In 1991many left for Israel, a story that has not
been a complete success.
Gondar has been called the "Camelot of Africa" because of its castles and churches. It
is not known for sure who built the castles but many surmise they’re the work of
Portuguese craftsmen.
It will take some while to explore the Royal Enclosure that lies in the heart of the city.
It is surrounded by high stonewalls and connected all together by a series of tunnels
and raised walkways. The oldest and most impressive of the castles in the Enclosure
is Fasiladas’ Palace. Its roughly hewn brown basalt stones reflect Indian and Moorish
influences.
A must to see is also the Debre Birhan Selassie Church, famous for the "winged
angel" faces that decorate its entire ceiling. The “Trinity at the Mount of Light” is one
of Ethiopia’s most revered places to visit adorned with frescos that depict in full
technicolor the life of Ethiopia.

Day 4 Yeha Hotel, Axum

A sixty minute flight this morning will take us to
Axum, the legendary residence of the Queen of
Sheba as told in the Kebre Nagast, the ‘Book of
Kings’. It is recounted that the son of the Queen of
Sheba and King Solomon brought the Ark of the
Covenant to Axum where it remains today,
preserved in a sanctuary under the watchful
guardianship of the priesthood.
Axum was the capital of the Axumites, one of the
oldest African empires, and represented a crucial
connecting-point between Africa and Asia for
almost a thousand years. You will visit the pre-
Christian granite monoliths decorated in symbolic
engravings. Known as Steles, there were seven in
all, including the one which has recently been
returned from Rome – Mussolini took it there
during Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia.
You will also visit the church of Saint Mary of
Zion, which contains the crowns of Ethiopian
kings and other treasures, and the museum of
Axum which has a wide collection. Please note that women are not permitted to enter
the church.
There is an incredible amount to see and serious historical immersion. Once in Axum,
we can discuss a day plan appropriate to what you would most like to see and
experience.

Days 5 & 6 Roha Hotel, Lalibela

The final visit on your northern tour is to
Lalibela. At the end of the 12th and beginning
of the 13th centuries, King Lalibela organized
the construction of a series of rock hewn
churches. Carved out of pink granite rock, they
really are wonders of the world. Each church
has a unique architectural style; all are
superbly carved and most of them are decorated with well-preserved paintings.
The largest, Bete Medani Alem, is 100 feet long, 70 feet wide, 35 feet high, and has
walls that are up to six feet thick. We will spend the day gently exploring the
churches.
Our second day in Lalibella allows us a chance to further explore Lalibela and visit
more of the fascinating churches located in this city. We have the option of visiting
Yemrahane Krestos
which is a remarkably
beautiful church built in
typical Axumite style
within a cave, or taking
an excursion to Asheten
Maryam church with a
mule and guide. We will
also spend our second
night at Roha Hotel.

Day 7 Hilton, Addis Ababa

Today after a leisurely morning we fly to back to Addis Ababa and spend a night at
the Hilton to recharge our batteries before beginning our incredible expedition
tomorrow.

Days 8 – 12 Expedition Base Camp, Lumale

We’ll catch the morning flight to the provincial strip at Jinka.
We then set off in rugged 4x4 vehicles to reach our
expedition base camp at Lumale, amidst the Karo tribe. Our
camp on expedition will be basic but of the highest quality.
Each tent is tall enough to stand up in and has two camp beds
with high quality mattresses. A traditional “naval” bucket
shower tent and long drop loo is shared between two tents.
There is then a mess tent where we will all eat the freshest
food, re-supplied by boat up from Kenya. Most importantly,
there will always be cold drinking water and ice available for
your chosen dust settling cocktail.
As is the nature of expedition, we’ll play much by ear day to day. However, we have
many excursions we intend to carry out. Many of them follow.
We’ll culturally immerse ourselves in
the Karo tribe. They are our immediate
neighbours to camp on the one side of
the river. They have remarkable
traditions that we will see throughout
our stay. You’ll be free to wander in
and out of their settlement as you wish.
After nearly a decade of currying relations with the Karo, you’ll also have a chance to
witness many of their traditional Karo dancers perform their extraordinary evening
ceremony in the village of Duss.
Using fast expedition speedboats we’ll explore the waterways of the homerange of the
Muguji. We will also stray across the boundaries of the Kweko and the Mursi tribes,
famous for their enormous lip plates.
The Nyagatom, a tribal subset of the greater Karamajong people have occupied across
the river. Infamous as one of the most feared tribes in the whole of Eastern Africa, we
enjoy a privileged relationship with them and you’ll have unrivalled access to their
world too.
On one of our days, we’ll meet up with our vehicles
and climb 60 km’s in to the Hammar Mountains
where we’ll explore the area and search for one of
their phenomenal “Bull Jumping” and whipping
ceremonies.

Day 13- 15 Expedition Mobile Camp, Omo Delta, Dassenich Tribe

We’ll navigate down the river in to the Omo
Delta, the home range of the Dassenich nation
and more specifically, the Galeb tribe. We’ll
further explore on foot and by boat.
The Omo River runs through south-west
Ethiopia and will take us on a magnificent
journey observing the different tribes who
reside along the banks. This expedition allows a very unique insight the different
cultural and traditional practices.

Day 16 The Hilton, Addis Ababa

This morning we catch a charter flight from the Kenya Ethiopia border back to Addis
Ababa where there is a day room reserved for you at the Hilton. Here you can relax
and reflect on your journey before your international flight home.

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