Travel advice for Ethiopia
From travel safety to visa requirements, discover the best tips for traveling to Ethiopia
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Ethiopia is a vast country and its road infrastructure, though greatly improved in recent years, is still rudimentary by most standards. Because of this, the most efficient way to get around is by plane, though some sites are accessible only by road, so many visitors prefer to travel on bespoke tour with an agency that provides a 4x4 and driver/guide. Terrestrial public transport leaves much to be desired and is recommended only to adventurous travellers who are prepared to explore Ethiopia at its own erratic pace.
Full-fare domestic flights are quite expensive, for instance around 3150 birr from Addis Ababa to Lalibela. At the time of writing, however, Ethiopian Airlines was offering a discount of around 40 percent to passengers who flew or will fly into Ethiopia with them. This discount makes internal flights extremely affordable, though this type of offer is subject to regular revision, so do check the situation before you book anything.
One negative about domestic flights is the tedious bureaucracy at check-in. Passengers are required to be at the airport at least two hours in advance, and should expect to spend much of that time queuing. You’ll usually go through at least two X-ray machines, and be asked to produce your passport three or four times.
There are two main luxury bus operators: Selam Bus (selambus.com) and Sky Bus (skybusethiopia). In truth, their buses wouldn’t really qualify as luxurious outside Ethiopia, but they do at least meet international standards, with comfortable seating, air conditioning, experienced drivers and a fair safety record. Using Addis Ababa as a hub, both companies cover a limited network that includes Bahir Dar, Gondar, Dessie, Harar, Dire Dawa and Hawassa, almost invariably leaving between 5am and 6am, depending on the route. Unlike most other buses, seats can be booked the day before you travel. Typical fares from Addis Ababa are around 340 birr to Bahir Dar or 310 birr to Harar.
Ordinary buses are a lot less comfortable and tend to operate to a more haphazard schedule. On routes where there are only one or two buses daily, there is usually a more or less fixed departure time, but early or late departures are to be expected. On busier routes, buses usually leave when full, so you might wait anything from a few minutes to a couple of hours to get rolling, depending on how busy the route is and how full the bus is when you arrive. This guide includes travel times for most routes, but these are very approximate and journeys are subject to any number of delays. As a rule, buses leave most regularly in the morning, before 8am, and the last bus on any given route will depart in time to make the destination before nightfall (say, 6pm). This means, for instance, that you can expect departures to dry up after noon on a six-hour route. On some routes, three classes of buses are available, numbered one to three. Go for the best bus where you can: the cost difference is nominal and the gulf in quality can be immense. Typical fares from Addis Ababa are 185 birr to Bahir Dar and 175 birr to Harar.
As a rule, minibuses operate only on shorter hauls, covering distances of up to 100km, sometimes a bit further. On all but the most obscure routes, they tend to run throughout the day and to leave when full. On busy routes such as Harar to Dire Dawa, or Gondar to Bahir Dar, you’re unlikely to wait more than fifteen minutes to leave. On quiet routes, you could wait a couple of hours. As for fares, a minibus from Gondar to Bahir Dar costs 20 birr; from Harar to Dire Dawa is 75 birr.
From travel safety to visa requirements, discover the best tips for traveling to Ethiopia
written by Andy Turner
updated 26.04.2021
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