Getting to northern Ethiopia
The easiest and quickest way to get to Northern Ethiopia from Addis Ababa is to fly. Ethiopian airlines currently are the only scheduled airline operating these routes. Their daily service connects Addis Ababa with Bahir Dar, Gondar, Lalibela, Mekele and Axum. Many flights leave Addis early in the morning, and return early in the afternoon, but the schedule is liable to change.
Tesfa Tours can assist by reserving and booking flights through our partner travel agency.
Buses
Those with more time and who want to see more of the surrounding countryside may chose to do all or some parts of their journey by road. The roads are improving, the main East west road that dissects Meket (the ‘Chinese Road’) is now asphelted, as are the main arteries from Addis heading north. Local buses ply all major roads in Ethiopia and vary from uncomfortable to hellish. However good buses leave Addis for Dessie, Gondar and Bahir Dar, and the buses from Dessie and Weldiya to Gondar and Bahir Dar can be OK and pass close to many of the sites south of Lalibela.
Driving
Instead of relying on buses it is also possible to hire a vehicle to take you around. Tesfa Tours can arrange this for trips to Meket from Lalibela, Gondar, Bahir Dar or Mekele (or even Gheralta Lodge). Habtamu Baye has been working with us in Lalibela for a number of years and his company (Treasure Transport) operate a number of vehicles based in Lalibela. Tesfa Tours also has a fleet of landcruisers and minibuses too and we are able arrange pick up at Addis Ababa airport, a tour of Addis itself and trips out of Addis.
If bringing your own vehicle without a driver, we will need to arrange a driver who can take your car for safe parking and back to meet you for a fee.