What to Expect in Ethiopia

With the surge in Tourism, Ethiopia seems to be sprouting hotels. All the major cities and towns are marked by building sites, scaffolds and concrete shuttering. Many become similar sized, multi-storied, locally-owned, ‘international style’ hotels aimed at both the business and tourist markets. 

Hotels of this type are the mainstay of accommodation in Ethiopia when you are looking for something more than a local guesthouse. They are usually clean and comfortable, but have little local character or distinct style. The service at best will be enthusiastic but inconsistent, at worst, disinterested. 

Even new properties age quickly in Ethiopia because maintenance is lacking. When a problem occurs, instead of repairing to a ‘good as new’ condition, the minimal work will be done, with little eye for detail or accuracy. Repairs will also often be imaginative, resulting in visitors telling us, ‘you’ll never guess what we saw…’

On the plus side, the quality is improving quickly and the cost of this accommodation remains comparatively low, enabling Ethiopia to be one of the best value East African countries to explore.

Elsewhere in East Africa, tour companies can hold rooms in hotels for a short period in advance of booking so a client can decide on an option knowing a room is available.

This happens in only a handful of cases in Ethiopia. Instead, the world of reservations is a chaotic one, full of misinformation, with a booking only confirmed when secured in writing. Even then, it is not unusual for a property to contact our partners saying that a booking is no longer in place for a number of reasons.

We do our best to make sure this doesn’t happen and our local partners have extraordinary skills and patience when it comes to securing the right result for our clients so that you don’t see the chaos behind the scenes. But it is important that you understand things can change regardless of how hard we’ve worked to ensure things are in place. Most commonly the need for change occurs between you accepting an itinerary and the final confirmation. In this case, we will always try to obtain space at the required hotel by using a waitlist and/or book another option at a hotel of the same quality in a similar location.

The Ethiopian Government requires visitors to use local guides employed by Local Guide Associations when visiting historical sites and national parks. Therefore, most itineraries will include a combination of local guides, one for each of the destinations visited.

This means that you meet a number of characters, each representative of their region, and the financial benefit of your investment is vital.

The local guides are generally enthusiastic and welcoming. While some will speak English (and often other languages) very well, others will only have a basic ability, which can hinder communication. Sometimes, they might have a limited education with an understanding of local history that seldom exceeds the basic. What they will know extremely well are the local myths and legends. These will often be entwined with accepted ‘fact’ until the join is difficult to see, which can be annoying if you value detail and the objective record. It can be fun if you take it in context.

Over the years, with our local partners, we have developed a little black book of the best local guides and so use these whenever we can, but it is worth mentioning that some of the negative traits (to some) are shared by the best. Sometimes in peak seasons it is hard to secure favoured guides, or they will be randomly allocated, and we can’t get those we know. 

So, if you value informative and charming guides, able to both make a trip run seamlessly in a tricky country, whilst also leading you through the labyrinth of Ethiopian history, we suggest you invest in an escort guide who will accompany you throughout your tour. Whilst these guides do vary from operator to operator, generally they are professional guides with years of experience who have often studied their subjects of interest like archaeology or history to an advanced level. They know when to give you space; they know just when to appear. In our opinion, a great guide is the difference between a good trip and a brilliant trip.

As ever the more you respect the cultural differences and understandings and the more you empathise, the more you’ll learn and see. 

We love the traditional Ethiopian cuisine, it’s tasty and healthy: the fermented enjera, varied spiced vegetable dishes, and different types of delicious meat. There’s a wide variety and choice. But, as with all local cuisines, it is not to everyone’s taste and has a particular style.

Ethiopia is a great destination for vegetarians and vegans because fast days on the Ethiopian calendar prohibit meat and dairy. And there are a lot of fast days.

Most restaurants offer two menus: one for traditional Ethiopian dishes and a second for international dishes. The latter will usually be American-Italian, featuring pizzas and burgers. They will be an Ethiopian interpretation of American and Italian classics, but it will be hot, the portions will be generous and usually tasty and filling. 

Visitors are usually pleasantly surprised by the quality and variety of the food. When we do get complaints, they tend to be from visitors who have been on safari elsewhere in Eastern and Southern Africa where, even mid-range lodges and camps are now producing food of excellent quality. A common comment from clients fresh from a safari is ‘I just don’t know how they produce such wonderful food from so little in such a remote place.’

Alas, catering of that African safari standard is not yet available in many Ethiopian hotels; it is restricted to a very few luxury lodges and camps. But the quality is improving quickly, so set your expectations accordingly and be nicely surprised.

Ethiopia’s landscapes are majestic in their extent and natural drama. The Simien Mountains is as good as any landscape you’ll see anywhere in the world. Ethiopia’s wildlife is fascinating, amazingly diverse and includes species like the Black-Maned Lion, Ethiopian Wolf, Walia ibex and Gelada monkey that are seen nowhere else in the world.

Sadly, Ethiopia’s National Parks network is nothing like the national park services found in other East African countries. Conflict, lack of finance and other resources over the years have resulted in some parks existing largely in name only. Local human communities have occupied formerly protected areas, affecting wildlife populations due to both hunting and the introduction of disease. 

As with many things in Ethiopia, this is beginning to change, but the road to an efficient and professional organisation is a long one. This is not a reason to avoid visiting the Ethiopian parks. Quite the opposite. It is all the more reason to visit, but with the right expectations. The landscapes are beautiful and the remaining wildlife is interesting, important and often unique, which means it needs your support desperately. More visitors mean more income, thereby helping Ethiopian conservations in their battle to secure government support and protection.