Must-see attractions in Northern Ethiopia

  • The Sunken Rock Hewn church of Bet Giyorgis (St  George), Lalibela, Northern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

    Bet Giyorgis

    Lalibela

    When you think of Lalibela, you're thinking of Bet Giyorgis. Resting off on its own, St George’s Church is Lalibela’s masterpiece. Representing the apogee…

  • Lonely Planet Traveller Magazine, Issue 66, Ethiopia, In the beginning
Priest sitting on ledge outside Abuna Yemata Guh cave church.

    Abuna Yemata Guh

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    There's nowhere on earth quite like Abuna Yemata Guh. Although less impressive architecturally than most, the church is spectacularly sited within a cliff…

  • Simien Mountains National Park

    Northern Ethiopia

    No matter how you look at it, the Unesco World Heritage–listed Simien Mountains National Park is one of Africa’s most beautiful ranges. This massive…

  • The Northern Stelae Park of Aksum, famous obelisks in Axum, Ethiopia, UNESCO World Heritage site.

    Northern Stelae Field

    Aksum

    Despite the dizzying grandeur of the numerous rock needles reaching for the stars, it’s what’s under your feet here that’s most important. Amazingly,…

  • Orthodox Christian pilgrim men being hauled up a 15m cliff face by monks to reach the mountain-top church and monastery of Debre Damo, Northern Tigray province, Ethiopia.

    Debre Damo

    Northern Ethiopia

    Debre Damo is one of Ethiopia's most important monasteries and is thought to date back to Aksumite times and the 6th-century reign of King Gebre Meskel…

  • Bet Maryam, rock-cut church in Lalibela, Ethiopia.

    Bet Maryam

    Lalibela

    Connected to Bet Medhane Alem by a tunnel is a large courtyard containing three churches. The first, Bet Maryam, is small, yet designed and decorated to…

  • The church of Debre Berhan Selassie in Gondar.

    Debre Berhan Selassie

    Gonder

    Welcome to one of Ethiopia's most beautiful churches. Appealing as it is on the outside with its stone walls, arched doors and two-tiered thatch roof, it…

  • Bet Medhane Alem, rock-cut church in Lalibela, Ethiopia.

    Bet Medhane Alem

    Lalibela

    Resembling a massive Greek temple more than a traditional Ethiopian church, Bet Medhane Alem is impressive for its size and majesty. Said to be the…

  • Bet Amanuel rock-hewn church in Lalibela, Ethiopia.

    Bet Amanuel

    Lalibela

    Free-standing and monolithic, Bet Amanuel is Lalibela’s most finely carved church. Some have suggested it was the royal family’s private chapel. It…

  • Yemrehanna Kristos

    Lalibela

    Despite Yemrehanna Kristos being one of Ethiopia’s best-preserved late-Aksumite buildings, few people reward themselves with a visit. And a reward it is…

  • Debre Tsion Abraham church in the Gheralta Cluster of Tigray region.

    Abuna Abraham

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    Rectangular in shape, with six massive free-standing pillars, this large and impressive 14th-century church (also known as Debre Tsion) is known for its…

  • Abreha Atsbeha Christian church in Tigray, Ethiopia.

    Abraha We Atsbeha

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    Architecturally speaking, this 10th-century church is one of Tigray’s finest. It’s large and cruciform in shape, with cruciform pillars and…

  • Ura Kidane Meret monastery, Lake Tana, Amhara, Ethiopia

    Ura Kidane Meret

    Lake Tana & its Monasteries

    The Zege Peninsula’s largest and most famous monastery is hardly the most attractive on the outside, but its maqdas (inner sanctuary) is beautifully…

  • Maryam Korkor

    Maryam Korkor

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    Although an unsightly green from the outside, this impressive, cross-shaped church is known for its architectural features (cruciform pillars, arches and…

  • A man entering the grass and moss covered bastion of the island monastery, Narga Selassie, on Lake Tana

    Narga Selassie

    Lake Tana & its Monasteries

    Set in the middle of the lake on Dek Island, Narga Selassie is peaceful, atmospheric and little visited. Built in the mid-18th century, it has a Gonderian…

  • Abba Pentalewon

    Aksum

    High above Aksum, on top of a tall, narrow peak, is Abba Pentalewon monastery. Tradition states it was built by Abba Pentalewon, one of the Nine Saints…

  • Mikael Debre Selam

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    This church or ‘church within a church’ has an exceptional brown-and-white, Aksumite-style facade fronting its inner rock-hewn section. The bright, modern…

  • Ark of the Covenant Chapel

    Aksum

    In between the old and new St Mary of Zion churches is the real reason for most people’s devotion: a tiny, carefully guarded chapel that houses what most…

  • Dega Estefanos

    Lake Tana & its Monasteries

    One of the lake’s most sacred monasteries, Dega Estefanos (men only) was rebuilt in the mid-19th century and though the church isn’t too interesting, it…

  • Ashetan Maryam

    Lalibela

    Set at 3150m, atop Abune Yosef mountain, is this monastery where the local priests believe they’re ‘closer to heaven and God’, and it’s easy to see why…

  • St Mary of Zion Churches Complex

    Aksum

    Though religions have come and gone, Aksum has always remained a holy city – welcome to the centre of the universe for Christian Ethiopians. A church of…

  • Mekina Medane Alem

    Lalibela

    Two to three hours’ walk from Geneta Maryam and six hours’ walk from Lalibela, this remote church was, according to Ethiopian tradition, constructed by…

  • Arabtu Ensessa Church

    Aksum

    The ‘Four Beasts’ Church, named after the writers of the Biblical Gospels, was rebuilt in the 1950s and is worth a look for the wonderful murals (most…

  • Monday Market

    Northern Ethiopia

    Attracting up to 10,000 Afar, Oromo and Amhara, and even some traders from Djibouti, this market is epic. It’s Ethiopia’s largest after Addis Ababa’s…

  • Bete Selassie

    Lake Tana & its Monasteries

    Bete Selassie (men only) is a 30- to 45-minute walk inland from the Lake Tana shore at Zege Peninsula. The simple exterior of the church (rebuilt in 1858)…

  • Royal archive and library buildings in the Royal Enclosure in Gondar, Ethiopia

    Royal Enclosure

    Gonder

    The Gonder of yesteryear was a city of extreme brutality and immense wealth. Today the wealth and brutality are gone, but the memories linger in this…

  • Tis Abay Waterfall, The Blue Nile, Ethiopia, Africa

    Blue Nile Falls (Tis Abay)

    Northern Ethiopia

    The Blue Nile looks like a sluggish beast as it meanders out of Lake Tana, but not far out of Bahir Dar you’ll see the Nile in a very different mood. The…

  • Cross shapped windows in Bet Merkorios

    Bet Merkorios

    Lalibela

    Reached via a series of trenches and tunnels (one is long, narrow and pitch-black) that starts from Bet Gabriel-Rufael, this church may have started as…

  • Debre Libanos Monastery

    Northern Ethiopia

    Although no trace of the 13th-century monastery remains (a casualty of the Muslim–Christian Wars), the modern site is impressively set beneath a waterfall…

  • Gobodura Hill

    Aksum

    A site known as Wuchate Golo is one of Aksum's four ancient quarries, the birthplace of the famous stelae. Several stelae (all unmarked) were almost…

  • Old Church of St Mary of Zion

    Aksum

    The rectangular, men-only old church at the southern end of the complex of churches here is a remarkable example of traditional architecture built by the…

  • Bet Gabriel-Rufael

    Lalibela

    Its entrance flanked by a sloping sliver of rock known as the ‘Way to Heaven’, this imposing twin-church marks the main entrance to the southeastern group…

  • Bet Golgotha & Bet Mikael

    Lalibela

    A trench at the southern end of the Bet Maryam courtyard connects it to the twin churches of Bet Golgotha and Bet Mikael (also known as Bet Debre Sina)…

  • Church of Debre Sina

    Northern Ethiopia

    The most interesting relic of Gorgora’s former days as a short-lived capital is the attractive Debre Sina church. Built in 1608 by Emperor Susenyos’ son…

  • Maryam Papaseit

    Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray

    In a pretty valley south of Hawzien and signposted off the Megab-Wukro road, Maryam Papaseit is one of the most accessible and rewarding churches in the…

  • King Bazen's Tomb

    Aksum

    Despite being the crudest of tombs, roughly hewn into solid rock instead of constructed with fine masonry, this place has a slightly magical feel…

  • King Ezana's Inscription

    Aksum

    On the way up to the tombs of Kings Kaleb and Gebre Meskel, you’ll pass a small shack containing a remarkable find that three farmers stumbled upon in…

  • Geneta Maryam

    Lalibela

    Geneta Maryam is thought to have been built around 1270 by Yekuno Amlak, who restored the Solomonic line. With its rectangular shape and 20 massive…

  • Bilbila Giyorgis

    Lalibela

    Lying west of Arbatu Ensessa, around 32km from Lalibela, Bilbila Giyorgis is attributed to King Kaleb. It resembles Bet Abba Libanos in design. According…

  • Bet Abba Libanos

    Lalibela

    Hewn into a rock face, Bet Abba Libanos is unique among Lalibela’s churches because only the roof and floor remain attached to the strata. Many of its…