Day 1 Addis AbabaArrive at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport and transfer to hotel for overnight stop.

Day 2  Awash National Park
After breakfast drive from Addis to Awash National Park through the awe-inspiring crater lakes of Debrezeith for birding. Then continue to Awash for afternoon birding. Overnight Awash Sebatkilo in the local hotel

Day 3  Awash National Park
Birding in Awash National Park, located in the rift valley. It is enriched with many species of birds and mammals; African orange-bellied parrots, Somber rock-chat, yellow-throated serine, Pygmy baits, Lesser striped swallow, Black-backed Jackal, Bat-eared Fox, Egyptian Mongoose, Warthog, Lesser Kudu, , etc. Overnight same

Day 4  Ziway
Early morning leave Awash for Langano via Mojo. En route, birding at Lake Ziway and Koka dam. Among some bird species you will see; African pygmy goose, Black-billed wood hoopoe, Abyssinian ground hornbill, Northern black tit, little weaver, etc. Overnight hotel

Day 5  Bale Mountains National Park
After breakfast, continue driving to Bale mountains National Park and it is here you will visit many of the endemics like Blue-winged goose, Spot-breasted lapwing, Abyssinian long claw, Wattled ibis, Black-headed siskin, Rouget’s rail, Barred barbet and of course other species, too. Overnight hotel.

Day 6  Goba, A day excursion to Sof Omar
After an early breakfast start driving to Sof Omar, about 120 km from Goba. Along the route you will have some stops for birding. For Nightingale, Dodson's bulbul, Somali golden-breasted bunting, sunbird, warbler, Northern gray tit, Salvadori's serine, Brown-tailed chats, etc. Overnight hotel

Day 7  Goba, excursion to Senate
Leave Goba early in the morning towards Sanete Plateau. While crossing a lush green forest, you will enjoy the Semien Wolves, endemic mammals. Then you will walk slightly down and down across a moorland landscape dotted with white and yellow cushions of flowers, colorful lichen-covered rocks and sparse Giant Lobelias. You will visit many water birds in the small lakes. Overnight hotel

Day 8  Awassa
After an early breakfast drive to Awassa. En route and in Awassa, you will see lots of species, for instance, Silvery-cheeked hornbill, Abyssinian ground hornbill, Rouget’s Rail, lots of Marabou storks, Black & white egrets, African pygmy goose, Spur-winged goose, thousands of swallows, Ibis, Woodland kingfisher, and many more (over 200) species.

Day 9 Wondogenet
After an early morning birding at Awassa drive to Wondogenet, via Shashemene. Wondogenet is a green and lush area, inhabited with lots of Grivet Monkeys, Colobus Monkeys and many species of birds. On the other hand, Wondogenet is an excellent place for fresh tropical fruits and hot spring Overnight hotel

Day 10  Yabello
Head south to Yabello, birding en route. In the late afternoon, we head into woodland west of Yabello, in search of the endemic Stresemann’s Bush Crow. O/n local hotel

Day 11  Yabello
Full day birding (picnic lunch) in Yabello Wildlife Sanctuary, where we expect to see the white tailed swallow, Abyssinian Bush Crow, and if luckily, Prince Raspoli’s Turaco. O/n local hotel.
 

Day 12  Negele
Morning birding around Mega, then we drive east to Negelle, birding en route. O/n Hotel.

Day 13 Negele
Here, you will spend the day exploring different localities for birding. O/n Hotel.

Day 14 Langano
After an early breakfast full day drive to Lake Langano, this is the best place for birding many species. O/n hotel.

Day 15  Langano
These three neighboring lakes in the central Ethiopian Rift Valley could not be more different from each other. The medium depth reddish-brown Lake Langano, Abijatta, and the extremely deep, blue Shalla, once a volcanic crater and now home to several bubbling hot springs, are all superb birding localities.

You will spend today exploring woodlands of all three lakes, and we will find different bird specious like Somali Ostrich, huge flocks of Greater and Lesser Flamingo, Cape Teal, Dark Chanting-Goshawk, Imperial and Long-crested Eagle, Gray Kestrel, the rare Clapperton’s and many species of Palaearctic waders, Great Black-headed and Lesser Black-backed Gull amongst several other species of gulls and terns, Bare-faced Go-away-bird, and many more … Mammals we may see here include Grant’s Gazelle, Oribi and Spotted Hyena.

Day 16 Alem Ketema
After a final morning birding around the cliffs surrounding the hotel, you will drive to Addis Ababa, thus completing your southern loop. Continue driving beyond Addis Ababa across the Sululta Plains. Birds like Lammergeier, Hooded and White-backed Vulture, African Hobby Falcon, Blanford’s and the localized Red-chested Swallow, Abyssinian Longclaw, Ground scraper Thrush, and other migrants also abound and possibilities include Black Stork, Eurasian Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Steppe Eagle, Eurasian Buzzard, Pied and Yellow Wagtail, as well as flocks of Ortolan Buntings.
Suddenly the seemingly endless plain dramatically drops off into the Jemma Valley, provide habitat for some sought-after endemic birds like Rüppell’s Griffon, Verreaux’s Eagle, African Hawk-Eagle, Augur Buzzard (dark morph birds are commonly seen here), Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat, the endemic and localized Rüppell’s Chat, the endemic White-winged, the Mocking Cliff-Chat, Brown Warbler, endemic White-billed Starling, the elusive Yellow-rumped Serin and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting and many more.

Day 17  Alem Ketema to Debre Berhan via the Jemma Valley
An early departure from Alem Ketema is essential in order to be at our chosen site when the endemic Harwood’s Francolin is at its most vocal, thus providing our best opportunity for seeing this elusive species.
We will have a picnic breakfast at the river and bird the surrounding woodlands for Stone Partridge, Blue-spotted Wood-Dove, Black-billed Barbet, Lesser Whitethroat, Foxy, , Speckle-fronted Weaver, Red-collared Widowbird, Black-winged and Fawn-breasted Waxbill (the local form of the last mentioned species is often split off as Abyssinian Waxbill.) and many more. O/n Akalu hotel at Debre Berhan.
 

Day 18 Ankober - Addis Ababa for night departure
Very early morning drive to the edge of the Great Rift Valley at Ankober. Our target species for this morning’s excursion is the much localized Ankober Serin, a rare and elusive Ethiopian endemic discovered only in 1976, which survives along a few kilometers of this grand escarpment, and the Gelada or Lion-headed Baboon an endemic to Ethiopia. Other species which we may find here include Verreaux’s Eagle, peregrine Falcon, the seldom recorded Somali Starling and Long-billed Pipit. Afternoon, drive to Addis Ababa and use a day use room for shower and little rest. Evening fare well dinner party then transfer to airport for departure. End of the tour.