Selasé Tours

South Omo Valley Tribal Tour – Into the Heart of Ethiopia’s Living Tribes

Day 1: Arrival in Jinka – Ari Village Experience
Highlights: Traditional homes, herbal knowledge, artisanal crafts
Arrive in Jinka and visit a nearby Ari village. Learn about traditional house-building, indigenous herbs, and local pottery practices unique to the Ari people.

Day 2: Mago National Park – Visit the Mursi Tribe
Highlights: Lip plates, scarification, river landscape
Drive through Mago National Park to meet the Mursi tribe, famous for decorative lip plates and body scarification. Return to Jinka for a museum visit or optional evening cultural talk.

Day 3: Turmi and the Hamar People
Highlights: Hamar dance, bull-jumping ceremony, tribal markets
Drive to Turmi and visit the Hamar tribe, known for their intricate hairstyles and rituals. Depending on the schedule, attend a bull-jumping initiation or visit the local market at Key Afer or Dimeka.

Day 4: Karo Village by the Omo River – Return to Jinka
Highlights: Body painting, riverside views, wood carvings
Visit the Karo people near the Omo River, known for elaborate body art and riverbank settlements. Explore their traditions before returning to Jinka for your departure.

Awramba, Woito, and Beta Israel Cultural Circuit

Day 1: Bahir Dar – Boat Trip to Woito/Zeghe Peninsula
Highlights: Zay people, monastery murals, Lake Tana ecology
Take a boat ride to visit the Zay communities near Woito and the Zeghe Peninsula. Explore Ura Kidane Mehret Monastery and learn about the Zay people’s unique island customs, dialect, and way of life.

Day 2: Awramba – Social Innovation in Rural Ethiopia
Highlights: Gender equality, cooperative living, artisan weaving
Drive to the Awramba community near Woreta. Discover a society built on equality and respect, where women and men share roles equally. Visit weaving centers and talk with elders about their philosophy.

Day 3: Gondar – Castles and Beta Israel Village
Highlights: Wolleka synagogue, Royal Enclosure, Jewish-Ethiopian history
Head to Gondar and explore the Royal Enclosure. Visit Wolleka, a Beta Israel village that preserves the heritage of Ethiopia’s Jewish community. Tour the abandoned synagogue and meet artisans who keep traditions alive.

Sidama, Alaba, and Dorze Cultural Circuit

Day 1: Drive to Yirgalem – Sidama Coffee Culture
Highlights: Enset farming, coffee ceremony, local storytelling
Travel to the lush Sidama region and visit a family compound. Participate in a traditional coffee ceremony and learn about enset (false banana) cultivation, music, and oral traditions.

Day 2: Alaba Region – Painted Homes and Symbolic Art
Highlights: Alaba house murals, indigenous symbols, community structure
Explore Alaba villages near Hosanna, famous for their vividly painted homes. Understand the cultural meanings behind their mural art and the social roles within extended households.

Day 3: Drive to Dorze – Mountain Weavers of Chencha
Highlights: Woven huts, traditional looms, highland views
Head to Chencha to visit the Dorze people, known for towering bamboo houses and masterful cotton weaving. Try local bread made from enset and enjoy panoramic views over the Great Rift Valley.

Harar: The Walled City of Saints and Stories

Day 1: Arrival in Harar – Historic Walled City Walk
Highlights: Stone alleyways, traditional Harari homes, shrines
Begin with a guided walk through Jugol, Harar’s old city. Visit the home of Arthur Rimbaud, colorful local markets, and intricately designed Harari houses built with five-tiered platforms.

Day 2: Spiritual Heritage and Sufi Traditions
Highlights: Mosques, shrines, Sufi music, community rituals
Explore centuries-old mosques and shrines. Learn about Harar’s role as a center of Islamic scholarship and Sufi mysticism. Visit religious centers and interact with community elders.

Day 3: Hyena Feeding and Local Market Life
Highlights: Hyena man ritual, spice market, street culture
In the early morning, visit the bustling spice and khat markets. In the evening, witness the famous hyena feeding ritual outside the city walls—an ancient practice of coexistence between humans and wild animals.