How to get to Ethiopia

Ethiopian Airlines operates direct routes from London Heathrow to Addis Ababa, with a flight time of eight hours.

These flights are relatively frequent, with a number of trips a week. Layovers through Europe, North Africa and the Middle East are options when flying with British Airways, EgyptAir, Emirates and Lufthansa, however these are considerably longer than the direct flights, and generally cost more.

Both Qatar and Ethiopia Airlines have recently started offering direct routes from Manchester airport, which take between nine and ten hours, depending on conditions. Flights from Dublin to Addis Ababa run thrice-weekly and fly direct.

Flights from America's east coast are the most popular routes to Addis Ababa, with daily direct flights from Washington DC and Toronto scheduled, catering to the big Ethiopian expat communities found in both cities.

These direct inbound flights go via Rome on the return leg, with flight times increasing from fifteen hours to over twenty.

There is also a direct flight from Los Angeles, that has a stopover on both legs in Dublin.

As with all other departure destinations, there are a number of indirect routes, however these generally cost considerably more, and see a sharp increase in travel time.

Direct flights from Rome and Frankfurt are all relatively frequent, and only take a few hours to arrive.

Egypt Air flies non-direct routes out of Madrid, however these flights involve layovers, often in either Cairo or South Africa.

Most countries around Europe offer relatively easy transport links, however scheduling flights from some of the continent's smaller countries can prove difficult with a number of stops and layovers involved. 

Ethiopian airlines offer direct routes from Hong Kong, Bangkok, Beijing, Seoul, Shanghai and Singapore, meaning Asia is one the easier continents to travel from.

These flights depart weekly, and are fulfilled via a range of carriers including Air Ethiopia, Thai airways and Air China.

As of 9th September 2020, routes from across China have increased, and now include weekly direct flights from Chengdu, Guangzhou and Shanghai Pu Dong.

At this point in time, there are no direct flights from Australia or New Zealand, but several airlines offer one stop options via a range of airports.

Thai Airways, Emirates and South African Airways are often considered the more popular choices, with layovers in Bangkok, Dubai and Johannesburg, however all these routes take well over 24 hours, so scheduling slightly longer layovers is advised for those not wanting extensive travel times.

 recent agreement between Brizlian GOL Linhas Aéreas and Ethiopian Airlines means a new non-stop service between Addis Ababa will fly direct to destinations across Brazil, however most frequent flights fly from Sao Paulo Guarulhos International.

In Argentina, flights run from Ezeiza to Addis Ababa semi-frequently, however for much of the rest of the continent, non-direct flights are really the only option.