Visiting Alone or With A Guide

From November 2020 to November 2022, the north of Ethiopia was embroiled in the Tigray War. Tensions are still high, and there is the possibility of armed conflict to occur again. Because of this, you cannot legally travel to the north (Tigray, Afar, Amhara) by yourself. All foreigners must register with the Tigray government so that they are aware of the presence of foreigners in the country, and must have a local guide who will organise an armed guard to accompany you as a precautionary measure. 

Due to the conflict, most visitors will fly in and out of Semara, rather than Mekele. If you are considering going and looking at other travel guides, please make sure you are referring to ones from 2025 or newer - older information may be out of date. 

When travelling with a guide, they will organise your food, safety, and accommodation. They will also organise a 4x4 landcruiser with air conditioning for you - this is vital due to the extreme heats (regularly between 45°C and 55°C - it reached around 48°C on the days we were there). Even if you travel with your own car to the region, you will still need to organise a local guide to take you around. 

Please note that at this time (May 2025), there are very few visitors to the region, and travelling with a guide does not mean you'll be lumped in with a tour group. On the days we were there, there was a total of 9 foreigners in the Danakil Depression. The tourism industry has almost entirely collapsed due to the war, and the money that you spend goes directly into the local economy with high impact for the Afar people. It is safe to travel with a local guide, and will be an incredible, remote, unique, and interpersonal experience. 

The Best Guide in the North of Ethiopia!

We'll talk about him more on this page, but if you're travelling to the North of Ethiopia, you'll want to go with Fisseha from Gheralta Expeditions. You can contact him on his website: https://gheraltaexpeditions.com/ or via WhatsApp +251 91 443 0313. 

Duration & Cost - How Long To Visit Danakil For?

Visiting the Danakil Depression and Erta Ale is usually a 3 day, 2 nights trip. This will cost USD$300 for the whole trip, with food, water, 4x4 transport, entrance, paperwork, camping and armed guard included. There are no "hotels" to stay at in this remote part of the world, so you will be camping under the beautiful stars. Because of the extreme heat and lack of water, there are no mosquitos to worry about, and sleeping outside at the foot of a volcano and on the expansive salt flats is a beautiful experience. 

It is highly recommended to add on one extra day and visit Abune Yemata Church. This will cost you USD$100, which includes 4x4 transport, a guide, entrance fee, food, and water for the day. 

You can visit Danakil Depression and Erta Ale is a 2 day, 1 night trip, but this will not change the cost, as the cost is primarily calculated based on the kilometres covered and the amount of fuel consumed. The advantages of 2D1N is that you're in the extreme heat for less time, BUT it also means you don't have as much time to visit each of the incredible places you travel to and will have to rush through them. Notably, 2D1N also means that you wll sleep only one night at the foot of the volcano. You'll go to bed around 10pm after you've finished exporing the volcano (you cannot see lava during the daytime), and will need to wake up at 2am to make it to the salt flats and Dallol sulphur pools before the evening flight back to Addis Ababa. 

Itinerary - Danakil Depression & Erta Ale

Here is the itinerary for a visit through the Danakil Depression and Erta Ale. There are very few tourism operators, and most of them work in coordination with each other. If you speak to many people who have travelled to the Danakil, the guide who's name you will hear most is Fisseha (also known as Fish) from Gheralta Expeditions. He trained most of the current guides in the region, and is the driving force behind promoting tourism in the north of Ethiopia. He also speaks English fluently, and has been running tours longer than anyone else. Other guides will often refer their clients to him to assist with everything from translation, to transport, to supplies. We've met people who went with other guides and were disappointed to get incorrect information or not be able to communicate with their guide. If you're travelling to the North of Ethiopia, Fisseha is the guy for you!

You can contact him either via his website: https://gheraltaexpeditions.com/ or via WhatsApp +251 91 443 0313.