Culture & Nature

Yamral Africa’s representative will welcome you at the Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. You then will drive to your hotel. If your flight arrives in Addis Ababa in the morning, time can be made for sightseeing of in and around Addis Ababa. You will stay the night in Addis Ababa.

After breakfast at your hotel, you will set for a drive to Awassa a lakeside and a bustling Ethiopian town in the heart of the Great Rift Valley. Lake Awassa is set in a volcanic caldera; with no outlets the water still remains fresh and supports a rich variety of plankton and an abundance of fish. Afternoon walk around the lake to see birds like: hamerkop, marabou stork, sacred ibis, yellow billed stork and Egyptian geese. You will stay the night in Hawassa.

This day you will drive to Arba Minch and en route you will visit the mountain village of Chencha, home of the Dorze people. The Dorze are known for their cotton weaving, called Shammas and their distinctive house- towering beehive shaped structures. You will then continue driving to Arba Minch and stay the night in Arba Minch.

Leaving Arba Minch you will drive to Turmi where the Hamer people live. Along the way you will meet the Ari, Tsemay and Benna people. Tsemay are among the least known ethnic groups of Ethiopia. They are mixed farmers and they also rear livestock. Continue to Turmi and meet the beautiful Hammer who enjoy decorating their bodies and wearing and colorful beads. You will stay the night in Turmi.

On Mondays there is a market in Turmi for the Hammer people.

On Saturdays the Hammer and Karo people get together to buy and sell commodities at the Dimeka Market which is about 30km from Turmi.

After a relaxed breakfast you will take an excursion to Murulle to visit the Karo-Koricho people. The Karo are experts in the body painting, using clays and locally available vegetable pigments to trace fantastic patterns on each other’s faces, chests, arms, and legs. The men are also famous for their unique hairstyle.

After lunch you will visit a Hammer village and meet the community in their neat compounds constructed entirely from mud, wood and thatch. You will stay that night in Turmi.

In the morning you will leave to Jinka via Key Afer and spend the afternoon at leisure. You will stay the night in Jinka.

On Thursdays many cultures come together for the big colorful Key Afer market. In the crowd you may see Ari, the dominant people of the region; Banna, with their red clay braids; and Mali, from the highlands.

Early morning you will take a day excursion to Mago National Park to visit the Mursi village, one of the most fascinating tribes in Africa. The women are known for wearing large clay plates into their enormously stretched lower lips and ear lobes lower lips. The Mursi live in very low huts made of straw leaves.

Drive back to Jinka for unch and later continue to Konso, a region declared a UNESCO World Heritage site for its rich culture. The Konso people live in a land of low terraced hills. They are reputed to be one of hard working groups in the country. Their elaborately terraced hillside grows some of the county’s best coffee. Stay the night in Konso.

After an early breakfast you will head back to Yirgalem. On your way you will encounter the Borena people extracting mud salt for their livestock food. Then you will proceed driving to Yirgalem. Stay the night in Yirgalem.

This morning you will have a relaxed morning in the lush and tranquil town of Yirgalem. Later you will drive back to Addis Ababa.