You'll stay in the Herfazy Resort, just outside of town. It offers great views across the highlands and is a peaceful spot, away from the busy roads and city centre.

Gondar

You'll stay in a roomy, two-man tent. There is also a dining tent and basic long drop toilets. The trek is fully supported by your team of mountain guides, cook and camp assistants who set up the camp (before you arrive), take down the tents, and prepare your meals.

Simien Mountains 

You'll stay in the Herfazy Resort, just outside of town. It offers great views across the highlands and is a peaceful spot, away from the busy roads and city centre. 




You'll stay in a roomy, two-man tent. There is also a dining tent and basic long drop toilets. The trek is fully supported by your team of mountain guides, cook and camp assistants who set up the camp (before you arrive), take down the tents, and prepare your meals. 



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You'll need to be fit and able to hike all day for the full duration. Although not technical, some days are long and challenging. 

Ethiopian-style eating means rethinking the very way you eat; that's because the foundation of almost every meal in Ethiopia is injera, a one-of-a-kind pancake of near-universal proportions that is used as a utensil first and then eaten last. Plates, bowls, knives and forkes are replaced by 'injera'. Served on top, you can find a vareity of meat or vegetable based dishes that are all scooped up by hand/using the injera. Injera is found easily in Addis Ababa and Gondar.
During the trek, the cooks will provide simple energy filling foods such as pancakes, porridge, eggs and bread for breakfast and sandwich lunchboxes for while trekking. Dinner will likely be rice or pasta dishes with some local flavouring. There will be the chance to try regional fresh fruits throughout and of course, to enjoy a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, an important part of the dining culture.
Vegetarians, vegans and other dietary requirements and allergies can be catered for - please just request on your passenger info form.

Simien Mountains Ethiopia 

Baboon Ethiopia

Please ensure you book your international flights with Ethiopian Airlines only. If you choose to arrive on a different airline there will be a $160 surcharge to pay. Please see 'Frequently Asked Questions' for more information.
You will be met at the airport at 8am on Day 1 if you arrive that morning. If you arrived the day before, please inform your host who will arrange for you to be collected before the city tour.
Your trip will end at Addis Ababa Airport on Day 8 at approximately 6pm. If you are not flying home that evening and would like a transfer in to town, your host can arrange this if requested.

Internal flights to and from Gondar

Internal Flights 

Local, professional, English-speaking guides

Guides

2 nights in a hotel and 5 nights camping

Accommodation

Meals

Both airport transfers to and from Gondar

Transfers

A mule will carry your overnight luggage on the trek

Porterage

All camping equipment is provided for the nights in the mountains

Equipment

All your permits and entry fees are covered and sorted

Permits

Local, professional, English-speaking guides

2 nights in a hotel and 5 nights camping 


Both airport transfers to and from Gondar



A mule will carry your overnight luggage on the trek

All camping equipment is provided for the nights in the mountains

All your permits and entry fees are covered and sorted


Arrive in Addis Ababa and meet your local guide who will whisk you off to the capital for a tour of this great city. You'll visit some key sites before heading back to the airport mid afternoon for a short flight to Gondar, the 'Camelot' of Ethiopia.
In the evening there’ll be a group dinner at a local restaurant and the chance to sample some ‘injera’ as you get to know your crew and hear about the adventure ahead.

Addis Ababa

Welcome to Ethiopia

Day 1

Start the day with a drive to Debark to tick the official paperwork boxes and meet your local team, then get ready for some dramatic landscape as you drive along the famous Limalimo road, an old Italian-built military road teeming with epic switchbacks. Time permitting, you'll stop for a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony - if you're in need of a bit of pep, this will certainly do the job.
Spend a few hours trekking through remote villages and past ‘tukuls’ (traditional cone shaped thatched houses) before arriving at your first campsite, set in the grounds of a local farm with donkeys, with cows and goats as neighbours. Grab a drink and head to the fields for sunset over the mountains.

Simien Mountains Lowlands

Ethiopia muleman

Lowlands Ethiopia

The Simien National Park

Day 2

Journey through the deep and remote Ansiya Valley before reaching a secluded swimming spot. Cool off in the Ansiya River before pausing for a picnic in the village of Hawaza. If you've got time, you can enjoy a post-lunch coffee and rest under the huge Ficus Africana tree.
Follow the trail to tonight's campsite in the village of Mekarabya where you’ll get the opportunity to chat to the locals as you soak up one of the last really warm nights in the balmy lowlands.

Ethiopia Simien Mountains

Locals Ethiopia

Ethiopia Simien Mountains 

Wild swimming and coffee

Day 3

You’ll start the day with the option to visit a rural water project that your host supports, a great chance to learn a little about water management in these remote areas. Then serious trekking begins... Climb well over 1000m uphill, on a path shared with mules and villagers as you trek out of the Ansiya Valley to Sona.
Once at the campsite you’ll be rewarded with stunning views of the high plateaus that you'll be summiting in the next few days. The sunset here is pretty special as the camp is perched on the top of the valley. It can also get very cold at night but the effort of putting the extra layers on is worth it for the clear night skies.

Sona Ethiopia Simien Mountains

Simien Mountains Ansiya Valley

Baboons Ethiopia

Ethiopia sunset Simien Mountains

Ansiya Valley to Sona

Day 4

Wind your way up the Bwahit Pass (4100m). Looking back at the green lowlands, you’ll notice the lack of villages and farming as the landscape gets more barren and challenging.
Get your first sighting of Ras Dashen (4550m), Ethiopia's highest mountain, and if you’re lucky also spot the indigenous Walis Ibex. Mentaber Camp is the base camp for the climb up Ras Dashen. An early night is in order tonight as you prepare for summit day tomorrow.

Ethiopian Man

Ethiopia Ibex

Simien Mountains Ambiko

Sona to Mentaber Base Camp

Day 5

Set off under the stars and begin the trek to the summit of Ras Dashen (4550m). Head up the valley and through the small village of Mizma, climbing steeply upwards towards an impressive amphitheatre made up of three major buttresses of expanded rock, one of which is your goal, Ras Dashen.
Closer to the mountain, the path becomes steeper and weaves through huge lobelia plants. The last part of the hike is demanding for most trekkers, but all the more rewarding when you reach the highest point of Ethiopia. Soak up the panoramic sunrise and revel in the awesome view - on a clear day you can see all the way to Eritrea! Make your way back to Ambiko Camp for the night, relax and give yourself a pat on the back - you did it.

Simien Mountains sunset

Simien Mountains Ras Dashen

Summit day

Day 6 

Soak up one last great sunrise before setting off on your final trek on the ‘Roof of Africa’. As you descend, the landscape changes dramatically as you wind through the Afro-alpine ecosystem. Walking along the Enatye escarpments, it's likely you’ll see the Gelada Baboon that the Simien Mountains are famous for. Extra beady eyes may even catch sight of the shy Ethiopian wolf. You'll have a short walk today before hopping into a 4x4 for the drive back to Gondar.
Enjoy your last final dinner with your team and likely a few 'Habesha' beers, you've earned it.

Baboon Ethiopia 

The great baboon descent 

Day 7

Enjoy some free time to explore Gondar this morning. You might want to visit Gondar's famous highlight, Fasil Ghebbi - a UNESCO cultural world heritage site dating back to the 17th-century. Or simply grab a coffee in the downtown 'piazza', filled with Italian art-deco architecture.
You'll take a later afternoon flight back to Addis Ababa where the trip ends.

Gondar Castles

Back to Addis Ababa 

Day 8

Arrive in Addis Ababa and meet your local guide who will whisk you off to the capital for a tour of this great city. You'll visit some key sites before heading back to the airport mid afternoon for a short flight to Gondar, the 'Camelot' of Ethiopia. 

In the evening there’ll be a group dinner at a local restaurant and the chance to sample some ‘injera’ as you get to know your crew and hear about the adventure ahead. 


Start the day with a drive to Debark to tick the official paperwork boxes and meet your local team, then get ready for some dramatic landscape as you drive along the famous Limalimo road, an old Italian-built military road teeming with epic switchbacks.  Time permitting, you'll stop for a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony - if you're in need of a bit of pep, this will certainly do the job.  

Spend a few hours trekking through remote villages and past ‘tukuls’ (traditional cone shaped thatched houses) before arriving at your first campsite, set in the grounds of a local farm with donkeys, with cows and goats as neighbours. Grab a drink and head to the fields for sunset over the mountains. 


Journey through the deep and remote Ansiya Valley before reaching a secluded swimming spot. Cool off in the Ansiya River before pausing for a picnic in the village of Hawaza. If you've got time, you can enjoy a post-lunch coffee and rest under the huge Ficus Africana tree.

Follow the trail to tonight's campsite in the village of Mekarabya where you’ll get the opportunity to chat to the locals as you soak up one of the last really warm nights in the balmy lowlands.


You’ll start the day with the option to visit a rural water project that your host supports, a great chance to learn a little about water management in these remote areas. Then serious trekking begins... Climb well over 1000m uphill, on a path shared with mules and villagers as you trek out of the Ansiya Valley to Sona. 

Once at the campsite you’ll be rewarded with stunning views of the high plateaus that you'll be summiting in the next few days. The sunset here is pretty special as the camp is perched on the top of the valley. It can also get very cold at night but the effort of putting the extra layers on is worth it for the clear night skies.


Wind your way up the Bwahit Pass (4100m). Looking back at the green lowlands, you’ll notice the lack of villages and farming as the landscape gets more barren and challenging.

Get your first sighting of Ras Dashen (4550m), Ethiopia's highest mountain, and if you’re lucky also spot the indigenous Walis Ibex. Mentaber Camp is the base camp for the climb up Ras Dashen. An early night is in order tonight as you prepare for summit day tomorrow. 


Set off under the stars and begin the trek to the summit of Ras Dashen (4550m). Head up the valley and through the small village of Mizma, climbing steeply upwards towards an impressive amphitheatre made up of three major buttresses of expanded rock, one of which is your goal, Ras Dashen. 

Closer to the mountain, the path becomes steeper and weaves through huge lobelia plants. The last part of the hike is demanding for most trekkers, but all the more rewarding when you reach the highest point of Ethiopia. Soak up the panoramic sunrise and revel in the awesome view - on a clear day you can see all the way to Eritrea! Make your way back to Ambiko Camp for the night, relax and give yourself a pat on the back - you did it. 


Soak up one last great sunrise before setting off on your final trek on the ‘Roof of Africa’. As you descend, the landscape changes dramatically as you wind through the Afro-alpine ecosystem. Walking along the Enatye escarpments, it's likely you’ll see the Gelada Baboon that the Simien Mountains are famous for. Extra beady eyes may even catch sight of the shy Ethiopian wolf. You'll have a short walk today before hopping into a 4x4 for the drive back to Gondar.

Enjoy your last final dinner with your team and likely a few 'Habesha' beers, you've earned it. 


Enjoy some free time to explore Gondar this morning. You might want to visit Gondar's famous highlight, Fasil Ghebbi - a UNESCO cultural world heritage site dating back to the 17th-century. Or simply grab a coffee in the downtown 'piazza', filled with Italian art-deco architecture. 

You'll take a later afternoon flight back to Addis Ababa where the trip ends. 


United States Dollar

Pre/Post trip Accommodation in Addis Ababa

Twin/Double Room in Addis

Single Room in Addis 

Optional Private Room and Tent Upgrade

Airport transfer to/from Addis Airport 

Climb Ethiopia’s highest peak, hike through lowland villages and cross lofty plateaus, eyes peeled for grazing troops of baboons

Trek the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia

Trailblazer Price - 4 spots left at 5% off

Trailblazer Price - 3 spots left at 5% off

Trailblazer Price - 1 spot left at 5% off

Journey through remote villages and past traditional ’tukuls’ as you trek the lowlands of the UNESCO-listed Simien National Park

Descend the dramatic escarpments of the Bhawit Pass, eyes open for the famous Gelada Baboon and elusive Ethiopian wolf

Pass through the deep and remote Ansiya Valley and wild swim in a secret spot along the Ansiya River

Journey through remote villages and past traditional ’tukuls’ as you trek the lowlands of the UNESCO-listed Simien National Park

Descend the dramatic escarpments of the Bhawit Pass, eyes open for the famous Gelada Baboon and elusive Ethiopian wolf 

Pass through the deep and remote Ansiya Valley and wild swim in a secret spot along the Ansiya River 

Trek the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia

Trek the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia

DURATION

LOCATION

ANNUAL LEAVE

SEASON

GROUP SIZE

MEETING POINT

ACCOMMODATION

DIFFICULTY

Similar Trips

EXPERT LOCAL
GUIDES

YOUR MONEY
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ACTUALLY TRUST

Trek the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia

Trek the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia

DURATION

LOCATION

ANNUAL LEAVE

SEASON

GROUP SIZE

MEETING POINT

ACCOMMODATION

DIFFICULTY

Similar Trips

EXPERT LOCALGUIDES

YOUR MONEYIS SAFE

TOTALFLEXIBILITY

A COMPANY YOU CANACTUALLY TRUST

EXPERT LOCAL
GUIDES

YOUR MONEY
IS SAFE

TOTAL
FLEXIBILITY

A COMPANY YOU CAN
ACTUALLY TRUST