Addis Ababa

I dedicated a year to myself, travelling and exploring Ethiopia and Northeast India (the Seven Sisters). During the year, your tips and many others accompanied me in times of distress and when there was no source of information. With great appreciation, I wanted to share a few things I learned myself. Enjoy reading.

City of sin, city of scammers and tricksters... In my opinion, Addis could easily change its name to the beloved city, the city that has everything. However, I wouldn't recommend it as a first destination in Ethiopia. Depending on the season or period, I would book a connecting flight very quickly to another destination, leaving it for a small taste in the middle and at the end.

What is in this city?

When you miss the West, you love Addis. Addis offers nightlife, markets, cool restaurants, food of all kinds, all with an Ethiopian character that has already been exposed to the West.

Landed in Addis? Able to forgo your comfort upon landing? – I recommend saving 200 birr and skipping the blue taxi that will take you to Piassa. With your backpack on your back, try to find out where the nearest bus stop is (10 min walk) – and in the meantime I will try to practice written directions:

Exit the airport and go straight, pass all the taxis competing for you and answer politely "No thank you". When you reach the road, follow it to the left. The road curves right and reaches a roundabout. Continue straight (neither right nor left, you'll understand when you arrive) and walk on the sidewalk on the right side of the road. Well done. Now continue straight until you reach a large roundabout with a bridge over it. Cross the road again and continue straight until you see a gas station on your right. Pass slightly past the gas station and you'll see a pedestrian crossing leading to the other side of the road – dozens of taxis will be waiting there. Not all of them lead to Piassa of course, ask the driver if he goes to Piassa. Succeeded? You won 200 birr – pay only 5 birr per person and enjoy a crowded and fragrant ride. Piassa is the last stop so relax in the back of the taxi. Half an hour at most.

This time I chose to stay at the Wutma Hotel in Piassa, after discovering that in one year the Baro Hotel doubled its prices and left me no choice but to look for another place to stay. But as they say, everything is for the best, and in an instant Wutma Hotel became my favorite hotel in Ethiopia (especially if you ignore the bedbugs and condoms on the floor). So true, it wasn't love at first sight, but the hotel staff simply do such a wonderful job that you can't help but fall in love. It is the cheapest hotel you'll find –

260 birr a night for a couple.

What did we do in Addis? We simply started walking down the street, between an errand here and an errand there (booking a bus, buying a SIM card, withdrawing cash...) we tasted buna (Ethiopian coffee) on the street, fresh samosa, and entered the winding alleys to find a proper injera.

Culinary snippet:

Oslo Cafe. Go for breakfast at Oslo Cafe (in Piassa, not far from the hotel), ask for fatira. The best fatira you'll find in Ethiopia is there. Drink a good macchiato and enjoy the atmosphere. If you feel like a strong, tasty local buna, right to the left of Oslo Cafe there is a cute buna house with very tasty buna.

On the taxi street you'll see 2-3 convenience stores with fruit spread outside. Do yourself a favor and go inside. Order a fruit punch (fruit salad), or a vegetable salad with juice. Simply fun.

Missing Western food? Eat at the Wutma restaurant which received a high rating in Lonely Planet. You're welcome to taste the pasta, pizza, fries, and they sometimes let you help and even make your own food. Try it

New York – great restaurant with amazing Western food. Located in Bole (you see it on the way from the taxi – two large statues of fries and burger/ ice cream cones, I don't exactly remember. But very prominent and colorful)

Ilan's Falafel – located in Haya Hulet

Tomoca Cafe, enjoy strong and tasty coffee, you can also buy any kind of coffee to take home (fresh, roasted, ground)

Wow Burger – can be found in many places. For the meat eaters among us who love to eat – ask for the special, and don't forget that you mustn't lick your fingers in Ethiopia, it's impolite.

I especially recommend walking down the streets, turning down unexpected alleys and finding hidden places, ask for shiro tegabino / shiro / bayenetu / firfir for the vegetarians among us, tibs for the adventurous among us.​

Nightlife:

Clubs!!! - I must emphasize that I never went out to them alone / as a group of feranjis – meaning without local people. I was always surrounded by at least two or three (if not 20) local people who knew the club and knew how to enjoy it with us. (In my opinion this rule applies to guys among us as well). Not dangerous, at least I don't think so, but gives a sense of security and familiarity with local prices.

Who to go out with? There are a lot of scammers... Don't trust anyone who pretends to be your best friend. I would recommend going out with Yared – the shift manager at Wutma Hotel, or people you knew from before...

In my personal opinion only - there is nothing to do in the Bole area, a high-end, boring area full of scammers and other creatures. Nevertheless, I won't lie that about two years ago I arrived in Addis for the first time when we were a group of Israelis walking the streets of Bole in the evening. We found cool pubs and clubs. For some reason when I returned it wasn't the same. But maybe you'll like it ;)

If you are surrounded by a large group of people that includes sturdy guys, well, missed high-volume Western parties (not that Piassa lacks them), you're welcome to order a taxi for all of you to take you to Bole. Walk around the streets and go into cool and diverse pubs.

H2O – club number 1 in Bole and in all of Addis. Impressive in its beauty and impressive in its prices – 50 birr entrance + another 100 birr per beer. Arrive at the club relatively late and dressed appropriately!

Still, if you find yourselves wandering the streets of Bole hungry and with nothing to do, here are a few options:

Look for the cool New York restaurant. It's not hard to spot. Huge letters spell NEW YORK and statues of fries and burger (or ice cream cones...) stand proud outside. Very delicious Western food, desserts, shakes. So why not? Try it.

Sheraton Hotel – not for us backpackers... not a room and not food... but treat yourselves to a coffee and pastry in the lobby and a walking tour of this massive hotel with stops to dip your feet in the pool water.

Errands in Addis:

ATM and banks can be found on every corner in the city.

Ask a local to direct you to the nearest shop where you can find a local SIM. Very important for your continued journey in Ethiopia. It can be found in almost every shop. Don't forget to bring documents (passport copy, passport, and a few hundred birr – depending on the package you want).

Booking buses – depending on the season, period, and approaching holiday – booking buses should happen about two days to a week in advance when dealing with good buses like Sky Bus and Selam Bus. Do yourselves a favor and go on the first day or two to Meskel Square in the city center – there you can find both offices. Navigate using locals. You can reach Meskel Square by taxi / 20 minutes walk downhill from Piassa.​​

Markets:

The famous Merkato – the largest market in Ethiopia, some say in all of Africa. Hide your money well, but your head and muscles you can relax and walk freely in the market. I can swear that Merkato is not as scary as people make it out to be, and can even be a very fun day out.

Shiromeda – a pleasant and smaller market. You can reach it by one taxi from Piassa (but return by 2 taxis). The market mainly offers traditional clothes and scarves.

There is a rumor about the Tinish Merkato – I didn't find it myself, but try your luck.

Additional attractions in the city:

Mount Entoto (for those looking for nature in Addis... I wasn't looking)

Red Terror Museum

National Museum of Ethiopia.​

Onward travel (as you will find detailed in the community maps viewable on mobile)-

Addis Shashemene - 5 hours (change of 3 taxis) – 140 birr

Addis Hawassa – 6 hours – 150 birr

Addis Harar – 9 hours – approximately 350-400 birr

Addis Bahir Dar – 11 hours (at least) – approximately 400 birr

Addis Gondar – 13 hours (they only say it's 11 hours...) – approximately 450 birr

Other journeys from Addis I less recommend (can take two to three days) unless you've heard from another person.

Injera (tibs and doro) - a warm and delicious family meal