Since its establishment in the 19th century, Addis Ababa has always seemed like a magical gateway to another world. Africa’s fourth-largest city and Ethiopia’s diplomatic capital is traf-fic-choked and sprawling, but is the best place to sample Ethiopian food, and has wonderful museums and accommodation.

• delve into the excellent treasure trove of the Ethnological Museum
• maps
• see Lucy, one of our oldest ancestors, at the National Museum
• transport
• stare in silent contemplation at the moving memorial of the ‘Red Terror’ Martyrs Memorial Museum
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: History, Sights, Activities, Tours, Courses, Festivals & Events, Sleeping, Eating, Drinking & Nightlife, Entertainment, Shopping.

This tiny speck of a country packs a big punch. What it lacks in size, it more than makes up for in beauty, and few countries in the world offer such weird landscapes.

• catch local vibes while wandering through the animated streets of Djibouti City, and enjoy its culinary delights
• maps
• descend to Lac Assal, the lowest point on the African continent
• transport
• wander flabbergasted in Lac Abbé’s Martian landscape, with hundreds of spikelike lime-stone chimneys
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Djibouti City & Around, Lac Assal, Lac Abbé, Goda Mountains, Plage des Sables Blancs, Tadjoura, Obock, Understand Djibouti, Djibouti Today, His-tory, The Culture, Arts & Crafts, Environment, Food & Drink, Survival Guide.

Most of eastern Ethiopia is a stark landscape of dust-stained acacia scrub and forgettable towns. But scattered around this cloak of the commonplace are gems of genuine adventure. Un-doubtedly, the east’s pièce de résistance is the walled city of Harar.

• explore the magical jumble of alleyways of Harar’s old walled town, and witness the fa-mous feeding of the hyenas after nightfall
• maps
• take a tour of the popular Awash National Park, known for its outstanding birdlife and vari-ety of landscapes
• transport
• get out of the car and track elephants on foot around the underrated Babille Elephant Sanctuary
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Bishoftu (Debre Zeyit), Awash National Park, Djibouti Road, Asaita, Dire Dawa & Around, Harar & Around, Jijiga.

For most visitors to Ethiopia, it’s all about the north. More than anywhere else on Earth, northern Ethiopia has the ability to wow you day after day after day.

• immerse yourself in Lalibela’s mind-blowing rock-hewn churches
• maps
• try not to lose your balance as you trek along the endless Abyssinian abysses with gelada monkeys for company in the Simien Mountains
• transport
• smell the sulphur and staring in disbelief at the thermometer in the otherworldly land of the Danakil Depression
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Debre Libanos, Bahir Dar, Lake Tana & its Monaster-ies, Gonder, Gorgora, Wunenia & Kosoye, Simien Mountains National Park, Aksum, Adwa, Adigrat, Rock-hewn Churches of Tigray, Mekele, Danakil Depression, Lalibela, Dessie, Kombol-cha, Bati, Menz-Guassa Community Conservation Area, Debre Markos.

This chapter contains the Welcome to Ethiopia & Djibouti, Ethiopia & Djibouti’s Top 14, Need to Know, If You Like…, Month by Month, Itineraries, and Regions at a Glance chapters from Lonely Planet’s Ethiopia & Djibouti guidebook.

Your journey to Ethiopia & Djibouti starts here. You’ll find the tools to plan your adventure: where to go and when, how much to budget, plus in-depth info on the unmissable sites of the region.

• tailor-made itineraries, arranged by region, themes and events
• list of highlights and best experiences
• where to see Ethiopia & Djibouti’s unique wildlife and historical sites
• user-friendly country overview ensures you won’t miss a thing

Coverage includes: Welcome to Ethiopia & Djibouti, Ethiopia & Djibouti’s Top 14, Need to Know, If You Like: Wildlife Watching, Birdwatching, History & Culture, Festivals, Trekking & Hiking, Dramatic Scenery, Traditional Cultures, Offbeat Travel, Creature Comforts, Month by Month, Itineraries, and Regions at a Glance.

Southern Ethiopia is a canvas ripped in two. Its landscape is being torn apart by the Great Rift Valley, leaving a trail of lakes where you can go see crocodiles, hippos and birds – or just drink in the scenery from your hotel.

• spot the world’s rarest canid, the Ethiopian wolf, while trekking the sublime Bale Mountains National Park
• maps
• barter for an inscribed calabash at the lively tribal market of Key Afar
• transport
• get lost in the labyrinthine traditional Konso Villages
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: Butajira, Hosaina, Sodo, Rift Valley Lakes, Lake Zi-way, Lake Langano, Abiata-Shala Lakes National Park, Shashemene, Awasa, Lephis, Bale Mountains, Dodola, Bale Mountains National Park, Dola-Mena, South to Kenya, Dilla, Yabelo, Borana National Park – Yabelo Wildlife Sanctuary, Moyale, Arba Minch & Around, Arba Minch, Nechisar National Park, Dorze, Konso, Konso Kantas, The Lower Omo Valley, Jinka, Mago Na-tional Park, Key Afar, Turmi, Arbore, Dimeka, Kangaten & Kolcho, Omorate, Weyto, Southwest Omo Valley, Kibish, Omo National Park.

This chapter contains the Ethiopia Today, Ethiopia’s History, Ethiopian Culture, Ethiopian Cuisine, Ethiopia’s Environment, Directory A–Z, Transport, Health, and Behind the Scenes chapters from Lonely Planet’s Ethiopia & Djibouti guidebook.

All the info you need on everything from history, culture and legends to flights, public transport, climate, money, the internet... you name it. Get hints on the gay and lesbian scene and tips for women travellers, travelling with kids and travellers with disabilities, as well as handy language guide and glossary.

• a rundown on Ethiopian cuisine
• info on Ethiopia’s culture, people and legends
• full coverage of the country’s ancient and epic history
• details on the diverse wildlife, national parks and landscapes

Coverage includes: Ethiopia Today, Ethiopia’s History, Ethiopian Culture, Ethiopian Cuisine, Ethiopia’s Environment, Directory A–Z, Transport, Health, and Behind the Scenes.

Western Ethiopia is undisturbed and seldom visited, but it’s one of the most beautiful regions in the country. Rainforests and coffee plantations share the landscape with savannah grass-lands, wildlife-rich swamps and high plateaus carpeted in fields of tef.

• visit Ethiopia’s first coffee museum and trekking through wildlife-rich forests in Kafa Bio-sphere Reserve
• maps
• fall off the map in Gambela National Park as you try to be among the first to witness one of Africa’s greatest but least-known migrations
• transport
• climb aboard a scrawny horse for a scenic descent into the pretty lake-filled crater of Mt Wenchi
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: The Western Highlands, Addis Alem, Ambo, Mt Wen-chi, Guder, Nekemte, Bedele, Metu, Tepi, Mizan Tefari, Jimma, Weliso, Kafa Biosphere Reserve, The Western Lowlands, Gambela, Gambela National Park.