Awash National Park Safari – 2 Days

Awash National Park is Ethiopia’s oldest protected area, established in 1966, and sits just 225 kilometers east of Addis Ababa in the Great Rift Valley. It is not a big-game park in the classic sense lions and leopards are present but rarely seen. What it offers instead is something quieter and more honest: volcanic landscapes, the dramatic Awash River gorge, and over 460 recorded bird species, including the extremely rare yellow-throated seedeater found nowhere else on Earth. This two-day trip is built for travellers with a tight schedule who still want to see wildlife, walk near hot springs, and sleep within earshot of the falls.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ROUTE

• Ethiopia’s oldest national park, 756 sq km of acacia woodland and grassland
• The Awash River Falls plunging into a volcanic gorge
• Beisa oryx, hamadryas baboon, lesser kudu, warthog, and Soemmerring’s gazelle
• Birdwatching with over 460 species recorded
• Filwoha Hot Springs, turquoise pools surrounded by doum palms
• Fantale Mountain, a dormant strato-volcano on the park’s western edge

Day 1: Addis Ababa – Awash National Park

Depart Addis Ababa and drive approximately 4 to 5 hours east through the Rift Valley. The route passes through Debre Zeit, Mojo, and Nazret, with the landscape shifting from highland farmland to volcanic plains. After checking into your lodge and having lunch, head out on an afternoon game drive. Beisa oryx and Soemmerring’s gazelle are common on the grassy Illala Sala Plains; hamadryas baboons move through the acacia scrub; warthogs trot across the tracks. Birders should watch for kori bustards, secretary birds, and Abyssinian ground hornbills. In the late afternoon, visit the Awash River Falls, where the river cuts through volcanic rock into a deep gorge. Overnight at Awash Falls Lodge or Doho Lodge.

Day 2: Awash National Park – Addis Ababa

Rise early for a sunrise game drive. The morning hours offer the best chance to see lesser kudu in the acacia woodland, greater kudu near Kudu Valley, defassa waterbuck, black-and-white colobus monkeys along the riverine forest, and salt’s dik-dik. Raptors are active in the morning thermals: fish eagles, lammergeyers, and pygmy falcons are regularly sighted. For those who want to venture further, a guided drive to the (Filwoha) Hot Springs at the park’s northern edge is possible turquoise-blue pools where you can swim, though the water temperature reaches about 45°C, and crocodiles are known to lurk in cooler areas nearby. After the morning drive, return to the lodge for breakfast, then begin the drive back to Addis Ababa. Arrive in the city by mid-afternoon. End of tour.