Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia.
Addis Ababa is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. With an estimated population of 6,287,000 inhabitants as of 2025, it is the tenth largest city in Africa. At an elevation of 2,355 metres (7,726 ft), it is the fourth-highest capital city in the world and the highest capital in Africa. Addis Ababa is a highly developed and important cultural, artistic, financial and administrative center of Ethiopia.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Addis Ababa
10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01Addis Ababa University
Addis Ababa University is a national university located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is the oldest university in Ethiopia.
1.4 km · national university in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 02Addis Ababa Stadium
Addis Ababa Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is used mostly for football matches although it also has athletics facilities.
2.5 km · football stadium · Wikipedia - 03National Museum of Ethiopia
The National Museum of Ethiopia, also referred to as the Ethiopian National Museum, is a national museum in Ethiopia. It is located in the capital, Addis Ababa, near the Addis Ababa University's graduate school.
1.1 km · museum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 04Holy Trinity Cathedral
Holy Trinity Cathedral, also known in Amharic as Kidist Selassie, is the highest ranking Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It was initially built in 1931 under Emperor Haile Selassie before being disrupted by Italian invasion.
1.6 km · cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 05St. George's Cathedral
Saint George's Cathedral is an Ethiopian Orthodox church in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The cathedral is noted for its distinctive octagonal form.
200 m · cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 06Mount Entoto
Mount Entoto is the highest peak on the Entoto Mountains, which overlooks the city of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. It reaches 3,200 meters above sea level.
9.1 km · mountain in Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 07National Archives and Library of Ethiopia
The National Archives and Library of Ethiopia, located in Addis Ababa, is the national library and archives of the country. The library was inaugurated in 1944 by Emperor Haile Selassie and began service with books donated by the emperor.
2 km · national archive and library · Wikipedia - 08Meskel Square
Meskel Square is a public square in the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is often a site for Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church gatherings or for demonstrations and festivals, notably, the Meskel Festival from which it takes its name.
3 km · square in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 09"Red Terror" Martyrs' Memorial Museum
The Red Terror Martyrs' Memorial Museum in Addis Ababa was established in 2010 as a memorial to those who died during the Red Terror under the Derg government. The museum has displays of torture instruments, skulls and bones, coffins, bloody clothes and photographs of victims.
3.1 km · museum in Ethiopia · Wikipedia - 10Yekatit 12 monument
The Yekatit 12 monument is a memorial in Addis Ababa commemorating the Yekatit 12 pogrom, an Italian war crime in Ethiopia. The pogrom took place from 19 to 21 February 1937 and is known as Yekatit 12 after the start date in the Ethiopian calendar.
1.3 km · memorial monument in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
If you walk along the road from Meskel Square to Sidist Kilo (6 Kilo), you'll probably find it quite entertaining and interesting. You'll see the Africa Hall, the palaces and the Parliament building, the Hilton Hotel, the marvellous architectural adventure of a building hosting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Sheraton Hotel, the first modern school (which Emperor Menelik II built in the 1880s), the Trinity…
- 01Addis Ababa Museum
Bole Rd / Airport Rd / Africa Ave (near Meskel Square).
- 02Ethiopian Railway Museum
In the old French-built railway station of the city.
- 03Ethnological Museum
Also known as the Museum and Library of the Institute of Ethiopian Studies, this is a fascinating museum with exhibits about the history and culture of Ethiopia.
- 04National Museum of Ethiopia
King George VI St (between Arat Kilo Ave and the University of Addis Ababa Graduate School).
- 05The Zoological Natural History Museum
Queen Elizabeth II St (at the University campus).
- 06Anwar Mosque
It's quite impressive, with its arcades and several minarets.
From Wikivoyage: Addis Ababa, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
- 01Hager Fikir Theatre
Event venue, not just used for horse racing but other events too.
- 02Bihere Tsige Recreation Center
Green area in southern Addis, bisected by the Akaki stream.
- 03Addis Ababa Golf Club
18 hole golf course with a restaurant.
- 04Entoto Mountain
Mary church, the first church of Addis, and St Urael church and see the city from the top of the mountain.
- 05Yewedale
Performances by traditional azmari minstrels.
- 06BailAmor Dance Group
Pick up some dance lessons in salsa and bachata here so that you can impress the world later.
From Wikivoyage: Addis Ababa, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
Food is generally cheap. Make sure you try the national dish injera at least once, since there is no other food like it. It is a yeast-risen flat bread with a unique, slightly spongy texture. It is traditionally made out of teff flour. In making injera, teff flour is mixed with water and allowed to ferment for several days, as with sourdough starter. As a result of this process, injera has a mildly sour taste.
- 01Purple Cafe
- 02National Cafe
- 03Finfine Restaurant
Ethiopian restaurant, vegetarian menu available.
- 04Yohannes Kitfo Bet
- 05Antica
From Wikivoyage: Addis Ababa, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Addis Ababa
- Airports
- Addis Ababa Bole (ADD), 8 km · Hawassa (AWA), 219 km
- Stations
- Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, 8.3 km · Lideta Army Airport, 4.6 km
- Hawassa → Addis Ababa222 km · quickest by road, 4h 23m · Br910–1,220
- Dire Dawa → Addis Ababa348 km · quickest by air, 3h 49m · Br5,700–8,830
- Jijiga → Addis Ababa446 km · quickest by air, 4h 27m · Br6,700–10,390
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Addis Ababa
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Addis Ababa. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get aroundBlue and white minibuses Blue and white minibuses/taxis travel quite efficiently around town.
- Get aroundTo catch a minibus, stand on the side of the road and hail it.
- Get aroundIt is worth having an Ethiopian guide with you if it is your first time using these taxis, since it can be quite chaotic to find out what minibuses go where, and from what places.
- Go nextAdama is accessible by bus and train, from there minibuses go to Sodere.
- Go nextIt's the only other chartered city in the country.
From Wikivoyage: Addis Ababa, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 01335 km
- 021,218 km
- 031,276 km
- 041,282 km
- 051,486 km
If you know how people move in Addis Ababa – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Addis Ababa
- Yekadistrict of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia9.1 km
- Nifas Silk-Laftodistrict of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia8.7 km
- Kirkosdistrict of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia3.6 km
- Gulleledistrict of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia3.2 km
- Kolfe Keraniodistrict of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia5.7 km
- LidetaDistrict of Addis Ababa3.3 km