Debre Libanos Monastery Tour: Experience Wildlife & Ancient Cave Church in Ethiopia

Embark on a captivating road trip through Ethiopia’s countryside to explore the ancient Debre Libanos Monastery, the Portuguese Bridge, and the stunning Nile Gorge. Encounter wildlife, including gelada baboons, and enjoy breathtaking views of Addis Ababa.

Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Debre Libanos - Founded by Ethiopian Saint Abune Tekle Haymanot, within a steep riverine canyon in 1284, Debre Libanos later became the political centre of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and is where Emperor Lebna Dengal received the first Portuguese mission to Ethiopia in 1520. The Italian army destroyed the original church in a 1937 massacre…
What's Included
  • Local guides
  • Ground transportation including a car, fuel and a driver
  • Pickup and dropoff at any location in Addis Ababa (either Hotel or Airport)
  • Lunch, including a bottle of water and hot drinks
  • Museum and Church Entrance Fees
  • Accompanying English speaking tour guide
What's Not Included
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Personal expenses
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

As part of this admired roadway journey, you will traverse through stunning pastoral landscapes and observe the authentic Ethiopian lifestyle - agriculturists, rural districts, isolated towns. The trip includes a stopover at the historic Debre Libanos Monastery (including its cave church), the renowned ‘Portuguese Bridge’ constructed in the 1890s, the…

Location
Edna Mall
Cameroon Street
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(221 Ratings)
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Aliceli1012fl
May 10, 2025
Perfect day trip! - My husband and I had a wonderful day trip from Addis Ababa with our guide Abiy and driver Muse. We were pleasantly surprised that we had a private tour and the whole van to ourselves. Abiy was a wealth of knowledge and information and shared a lot of interesting history and facts everywhere we went. The landscape was stunning and we saw three families of the Gelada baboons against the most idyllic backdrop of the gorge and Blue Nile. The monastery and museum was also interesting to see, especially with the added context provided by Abiy. Abiy also pointed out and identified a number of beautiful bird species that we wouldn't have noticed on our own, we were glad he was as enthusiastic about wildlife as we were. We highly recommend this tour, but be prepared to do some short hikes and a bumpy ride. We had tibs for lunch so not sure if they have vegetarian options.
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Ekowk730
May 3, 2025
Church and wildlife tour - Hallelujah was such an amazing tour guide, so friendly yet professional. Be sure to ask him to show you some magic tricks; breathtaking close-up magic. Muse, our driver was also a good sport
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165hajaraa
May 3, 2025
Great tour guide! - Amazing and friendly tour guide Hallelujah was very helpful and made the trip fun! Got to try authentic Ethiopian cuisine and mingle with the locals! Had a nice time in Addis because we had a good tour guide!
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Connector35538864092
Apr 3, 2025
A journey through the Savannah - It was excellent. Had nice fun with Alleluya...our guide. The places we visited was amazing. Had the best adventure ever. Grateful for such experiences.
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Pedroronin
Mar 31, 2025
Awesome Day out - This was an awesome day out tour! Haleluya was very knowledgeable, friendly and relatable guide! Strongly recommended for an experience of the beautiful Ethiopian countryside. Just do it;)
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Passport39724880471
Mar 14, 2025
Amazing - This trip was the best I could have imagined about Ethiopia. We were very well accompanied by a guide named Hallelujah, who explained a lot about the history, culture, customs, religion, and always with a great attitude. We visited a place where monkey colonies live and had the opportunity to feed them. We also visited a cathedral, a museum, and stopped for a very nice lunch. Additionally, we stopped to see the real life of the people and had the chance to get to know them better. I highly recommend this tour! 😊
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Road04420348292
Mar 13, 2025
For a day trip outside Addis I would recommend! - Upon traveling to Ethiopia for work I had a day off and decided to go on an excursion. My friend and I booked the tour the day before and were picked up promptly for 8am sharp! We were warned by locals to stay clear of the Debre Libanos area as it is close to the Amhara region, however we did not feel unsafe and thank God we did not run into any issues! Our guide Allen was extremely knowledgeable about the surroundings and made us feel very welcome, our driver M was safe and efficient. We travelled to Debre Libanos Church. The drive was about 2.5 hours both ways. Along the way we stopped to see the baboons, we saw a whole family including babies and the large male. Our tour guides assisted us in finding the best spots to see the baboons. We arrived at the church and took a tour inside as well as a walk through the museum. We spent time hiking towards the Portuguese Bridge and saw the cliffs and views. We went in mid March so the water fall was not present due to the time of year however the sights were still beautiful to see. We enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant and tried the local beer. We then drove back to Addis and stopped at Entoto park for a brief walk. Our guide and driver then drove us to our dinner location at no extra cost. Please make sure to tip your guides and drivers they deserve it and work hard :) Pros- beautiful views, great tour guides and hospitality, knowledgeable staff, wildlife * In my opinion this day trip was definitely worth the cost! *Due to the context and area/conflicts in the region do not travel here at night time * If you do not like long bumpy drives experiencing the scenic views this tour might not be for you- I get car sick easily and I found it to be manageable!
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Marcelkg5849xz
Mar 8, 2025
Touch of Culture outside of Addis Abeba - Very nice experience, to see and little touch Culture outside of Addis Abeba. To see small Villages, Nature and Church. Tastes also good food and drinks. Guide Haleluya and driver Muse give very good service and support. Thank you.
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Julietterl6958nj
May 5, 2025
Fun for a day trip out of Addis - The tour is really nice if you feel like getting out of Addis for a day. The guide had a really good energy, we saw some pretty landscapes, churches and monkeys, we could walk a little, and ate some nice specialities from the area. However, be aware that the tour includes a lot of bumpy driving. Also probably don’t book it too last minute (like the night before), it might create problems with their system.
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Ben
Mar 7, 2025
Misleading tour name - Basically it is a 3 hour car ride to the cave church one way. Nothing much to see along the way. Lunch in some dubious place. No wildlife. You will be lucky if you see any monkeys near the church. But you will definitely meet touts who will try to sell you pendants with string and marble stones. Not worth the journey in my humble opinion
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $70
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).