Awasa
Hawassa, known historically as Adare, is a city in Ethiopia, on the shores of Lake Hawassa in the Great Rift Valley.
It is 273 km (170 mi) south of Addis Ababa via Bishoftu, 130 km (81 mi) east of Sodo, and 75 km (47 mi) north of Dilla. The town serves as the capital of the Sidama Region. It lies on the Trans-African Highway 4 Cairo-Cape Town and has a latitude and longitude of 7°3′N 38°28′E and an elevation of 1,708 meters (5,604 ft) above sea level. Its name comes from a Sidama word meaning "wide body of water".
Getting to Awasa
Hawassa is 5 hours by road from Addis Ababa. Sky Bus has good and relatively modern Neoplan buses, and runs from Meskel Square in Addis Ababa every day (except Mondays) around 13:00 for 149 birr for a one-way trip. Buy tickets a day or two before you leave as they often sell out for the day. Get them at the Sky Bus office at Taitu Hotel or on Meskel Square.
Worth seeing
- 01Hippos in Lake Awasa
Things to do
Bicycle the 55 km around the lake. It is extraordinary beautiful opposite of Awassa as you ride the small path through the villages on the shore speckled with cacti and wild olive trees. Beware of the children, especially when they are in a large group with no adult around as they could start grabbing you and throw stuff. Fish Market (by the lake on the south west edge of the town).
Where to eat
The better hotels also have some of the best restaurants in town. Tropical Burger (next to Whataburger Bar and around the corner from the Guesthouse guesthouse, near the western end of Piazza Rd). Quiet setting under palm trees inside a fenced garden, many locals come here too, good fresh juice, local coffee. It has free Wifi. 50 birr for a large hamburger, 5 birr for an Ethiopian coffee, 70 birr for a pizza..
Getting around Awasa the local way
- Get aroundIf you need transportation, there are countless blue motorbike rickshaws everywhere in town and a ride should never cost more than a few birr.
From Wikivoyage: Hawassa, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-03.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Senior Airman Jarad Denton (Public domain), Wikimedia Commons.