Because Ethiopia is so vast,


an escorted tour makes sense, especially for first-time visitors. Several operators including Saga, who I travelled with, offer small- group trips led by local guides, exploring the country’s cultural and natural highlights.


NATURAL WONDERS From mountain peaks and plateaus to cloud forests, lakes and fields of wheat and teff (a grain used to make the ubiquitous injera flatbreads), Ethiopia’s varied landscape makes it difficult to pin down. This dramatic natural beauty is


a big draw for many visitors, who come to comb the landscape and spy native birds and wildlife. Yet, compared with popular safari destinations, most parts of the country are still relatively quiet, especially outside the busy winter season. I frequently spotted the same faces as I travelled, bumping into one couple at three locations, several hundred miles apart. In the north, the rugged Simien Mountains are roamed by curved- horned walia ibex, an endangered


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wild goat you won’t find anywhere else, and about 150 miles south of the capital, Addis Ababa, Bale Mountains National Park is the best place to see Ethiopian wolves – the world’s rarest canid, with fewer than 500 in the wild. They look like elegant foxes, with vivid copper coats, long, narrow jaws and tails tipped in black. While some stalk the Simiens, most live on the Sanetti Plateau, whose open, stark landscape increases the chances of spotting them. This part of the country is like something from a fairy tale. The Harenna Forest clings to the lower slopes of the mountains, thick with giant fig trees coated in velvety moss and dripping with lichen. Endangered black-maned lions have been sighted in this cloud forest, while tiny Bale monkeys hide in bamboo groves. Colobus monkeys, with jet-black fur, snow- white beards and long tails like curtain pulls, are easier to spot, as are birds such as white-cheeked turacos and tiny gold and green bee-eaters.


CULTURAL CAPITAL Most visitors arrive in Ethiopia via Addis Ababa, and the capital has plenty to occupy them for a few days.


Suggest starting at the National Museum of Ethiopia, surrounded by lilac-flowered jacaranda trees, for an overview of the country’s history. Among the archaeological treasures is ‘Lucy’, the 3.2-million- year-old fossil of an early human ancestor. It’s locked away for preservation purposes, but visitors can view a cast. For a more modern dose of culture, the sprawling open-air


BOOK IT


Saga’s 12-night escorted tour, Ethiopia: An Antique Land, costs from £2,999 based on a November 13 departure. The price includes Ethiopian Airlines flights from Heathrow, transfers, Saga tour manager, all meals and optional travel insurance (price reduction available without insurance). travel.saga.co.uk


Ethiopian Airlines flies daily from Heathrow and four times a week from Manchester to Addis Ababa, with return fares starting at £495 in economy and £1,927 in business class, including taxes. ethiopianairlines.com


travelweekly.co.uk


Merkato is a hectic hodgepodge of stalls selling leather goods, fruit and veg, honey and mattresses. Many people come to Ethiopia for its palaces and religious sites, including some of the world’s oldest Christian churches. Gondar’s Royal Enclosure houses several grand emperors’ palaces, and visitors can wander around the well-preserved remains of banquet halls, libraries and ceremonial sites. From there, Lalibela is a short flight away. And the journey provides a hint of what’s to come, with the plane swooping above


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