9-Day Southern Ethiopia Cultural Group Tour with Omo Valley Tribes

• Meet the guide at Addis Ababa Airport or at your hotel.
• Drive to the hotel for breakfast and refresh for a while.
• Go to Entoto, the previous capital city of Ethiopia before Addis Ababa was established.
• Enjoy the view of Addis from the viewpoint at the top of Entoto, 3000 meters above sea level.
• Visit the palace of Menelik and Empress Tayitu.
• Visit Entoto Museum to see the royal treasure inside.
• Drive to the Ethnographic Museum to see the artifacts and household equipment of different ethnic groups, as well as the bedroom of Emperor Haile Selassie, the last king of Ethiopia.
• Go to the National Museum to see the famous Lucy, one of the earliest ancestors who lived around 3.2 million years ago.
• Have lunch at Lucy Gazebo Restaurant, situated near the compound.
• After lunch, see Holy Trinity Cathedral, where the remains of Emperor Haile Selassie, the last king of Ethiopia, and his wife are found.
• If time allows, visit Merkato, the biggest open-air market in Africa, especially the spice market.

Overnight in Addis Ababa hotel.

• Drive to Ziway town, named after Lake Ziway. It is known for the mass production of fish for the country's demand, but due to overfishing, the amount of fish has significantly declined. Lake Ziway is also known for the five islands found in the middle of the lake. In fact, one of the islands was the hiding place for the Ark of the Covenant during the time of Yodit Gudit.
• Stay around the shore to see the local activities and birdlife such as Marabou storks, herons, ibis, hamerkops, Egyptian geese, and more.
• Lunch at Haile Resort in Ziway town.
• Drive to Abiyata Shala National Park and visit wildlife such as warthogs, gazelles, kudus, baboons, ostriches, and other types of fauna and flora.
• Visit the hot springs of the park and also see both lakes, Abiyata and Shalla, side by side.
• Drive to Awassa for an overnight stay in Awassa.

• In the morning, drive to visit the fish market at Amora Gedel in Awassa.
• Drive to Dorze village, and on the way enjoy the landscape, the nature, and the Wolayta communities.
• Visit Dorze village, known for cloth making out of cotton.
• Visit the Dorze unique house, which looks like an elephant head; some say it looks like a beehive.
• Overnight in Arbaminch.

• After breakfast, drive to Lake Chamo to take a boat trip and see hippos and the giant crocodiles in a place called Crocodile Market.
• See birdlife such as the African fish eagle, pelicans, herons, and more.
• Have a picnic lunch on the way.
• Drive to Konso.
• Visit the village of Konso, the hard-working people who live in the highlands and are known for making terraces to protect the soil from erosion.
• Learn about their social organization, the clan system.
• Also learn about their carved grave markers called Waka.
• Overnight in Konso at Kanta Lodge.

• Drive to Jinka, and on the way visit a place called the sky "scrapers." It is a unique landscape made of a special type of soil.
• Drive toward Jinka while enjoying views of the Tsemy tribe along the way.
• Lunch break in Weyto town.
• Continue to Jinka, and on the way visit the Ari village and observe their lifestyle.
• Here in the Ari village, you will also practically learn how to bake injera.
• Overnight in Jinka.

• Drive to Mursi village and visit the lip-pierced ladies of the Mursi tribe.
• Visit their lifestyle.
• Lunch in Key Afer town.
• Drive to Turmi town.
• On the way, see the Bena tribe.
• Overnight in Turmi town.

• Drive to Omorate to visit the Dassanach tribe by crossing the Omo River with a traditional wooden boat carved hollow in the middle.
• Drive back from Omorate to Turmi.
• Have lunch in Turmi.
• After lunch, visit one of the Hammar villages and learn about their lifestyle. If you are lucky, see the bull-jumping event, a pre-marriage event.
• Overnight in Turmi.

• Drive to Erbore and visit the village, learning about their lifestyle and social organization.
• Drive to Konso, passing Weyto town on the way.
• Lunch break in Konso town.
• Drive to Arbaminch.
• Overnight in Arbaminch.

• Drive around the town to see the remaining places, including the 40 Springs. Arbaminch was named after the discovery of 40 springs, but now the number of springs is more than 400.
• Transfer to the airport and fly back to Addis Ababa.
• If there are remaining places to be seen in Addis Ababa, visit them.
• Farewell dinner party before departure.
• End of program.