Historical journeys
The city often called Africa’s capital, in one easy day: the emperor’s tomb, the hammering lanes of Merkato and the hill where Addis began.
Overview
Addis Ababa is often called the capital of Africa: the African Union and the UN Economic Commission for Africa sit here, and the Organization of African Unity was founded here in 1963. It keeps its own time, with a 13-month calendar, a clock that starts at dawn, its own script and the history of a country never colonised.
The day follows that history: the human-origins gallery, with casts of Lucy (3.2 million years old) and Selam, the child found at Dikika (about 3.3 million years old); Haile Selassie’s tomb; Merkato’s scrap-metal lanes; and Entoto, where Menelik II ruled before founding the city in 1886. Bring a layer for the hill.
Itinerary
The National Museum’s early ancestors and royal regalia set the scale; Holy Trinity adds stained glass and the tombs of Haile Selassie and Empress Menen. In Merkato, metalworkers hammer scrap into stoves at Minalesh Tera. The afternoon climbs to Entoto Maryam, where Menelik II was crowned emperor in 1889, and ends with a coffee ceremony.
Activities
Itineraries can change with weather, road and flight conditions. We will tell you promptly if they do.
Gallery
Photo: Unsplash
Good to know
Dress code: Shoulders and knees covered at Holy Trinity Cathedral and Entoto Maryam; women may want a light scarf.
This tour follows the Flexible policy. Days are whole calendar days before departure.
| When you cancel | What you get back |
|---|---|
| 14 or more days before departure | Full refund |
| 7 to 13 days before departure | 50% refund |
| Fewer than 7 days before departure | No refund |
Questions
Questions welcome
Dates, prices, hotels, a private version: ask, and a local specialist replies by email.
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Plan with us
Choose your dates above, or tell us what you have in mind and we will shape the trip around you.
