Hotels Near Tiya World Heritage Site in Bishoftu

This hotel is situated in the in-transit area of the international airport in Addis Ababa and well worth the money if you have a long layover. The room is lovely and clean, the shower - heavely, and the bed - sublime. In addition, the breakfast buffet had a wonderful variety and was really delicious. The airport shops and restaurants are very expensive and facilities not great, so it is definitely worth booking into the hotel. It's considerably cheaper to book through trip.com, just be sure to book at least a day in advance if you are landing very early - bookings need to be confirmed by the office which only opens at 8am (Ethiopia time). (My photos don't do the bed or shower justice!)

Kefetew Guest House was our landing point for two days after arriving Ethiopia. Genet is a well-seasoned host, having lived and managed restaurants extensively in the U.S. before returning to her country of birth after the death of her father. As we were traveling with our two teeen daughters, we were covering a family room in the first floor. The room was spacious and clean, the beds were comfortable, the bathroom was excellent with ample of hot water. What sets this guesthouse apart, however, is the quality of food. Genet and her kitchen crew manage the perfect fusion between traditional Ethiopian food and dishes that are more easy to the Western palate. As traditional food is healthy and tasty, you will get used to it very fast, but if you travel with children, Genet's kitchen is a very good starting point from a culinary perspective. I would also like to remark that we left two suitcases at Genet's house for a charity to pick up in the following days. Not only was this not a problem to Genet - she even gave us an update once the goods were collected. Kefetew Guest House is located at CMC road, which is quite a busy road leading to the airport. At night however, the neighbourhood is quiet. You might however get an early wake-up call by the muezzin of a mosque situated nearby. To us, this was not a disturbance, as we considered this an exotic increase of our vacation experience. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - We would like to add the following general observations which we found helpful at the time of our travelling through Ethiopia (April and May 2023). These observations are not related to above review, but should considered as additional input for readers considering to travel to and in Ethiopia: 1. At the time of this writing, Ethiopia still suffered from the consequences of two years of Covid and 16 months of civil war. Tourists were still scarce, therefore we were both regarded as a source of potential business and as a welcome change in perspective. The Ethiopians we met were friendly, open and curious. We responded friendly and open ourselves, but remained firm when things got too overwhelming. 2. The majority of Ethiopians are orthodox Christians with a minority of Muslims. Although people are tolerant and friendly, they take their religion seriously. When visiting churches and mosques, the tried to treat these institutions with utmost respect and dignity, also with our dress attire (no tank tops please). If visiting a church on Sunday, we would recommend buying a white shawl to cover shoulders and (women) head, they cost almost nothing, make a good souvenir and earn you the respect of other churchgoers. Most of the churches have guides eager to explain paintings and structures - and bear in mind: If a curtain is covering an entrance or a painting, it is there for a reason and not as an invitation to boldly go where no tourist went b