Coffee originates from Ethiopia. The word ‘coffee’ comes from the word ‘Kafa’; the green jungle region in the southwest of the country. Walking through the beautiful jungle with Colobus Monkeys swinging overhead, we will experience the beauty of its diverse flora, fauna, wildlife and local people; visiting the coffee plantations and villagers who work there, learning everything about the processes that allow the beans to be exported to the international market. January 7th is also the festival of ‘Genna’ [Ethiopian Christmas] which we will celebrate with the local people.

Visit beautiful wild coffee forests

Experience Genna festival & coffee ceremony

Ride horses, visit waterfalls, meet local people

Discover new coffee flavours through ‘cupping’

With group members arriving during the afternoon and evening, today is a free day for you to arrive, be transferred to the start hotel and to shake off any travel fatigue, before the start of your adventure, in earnest, tomorrow.

DAY 2

Starting off with the end product: Today we visit a local coffee company to see their coffee beans being washed and processed for export. The complex has a beautiful in-house coffee shop where we will experiment with creating different kinds of drinks. Following this we have an optional visit to the Hamlin Fistula Hospital in Addis, run by the Charity, Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia. Tonight we enjoy watching traditional musicians and dancers performing different tribal dances in a culture house.

DAY 3

Fly to Jimma, drive to Bonga, walk to a viewpoint. We will hop on a short national flight down to the city of Jimma, from where we will drive the two hours to Bonga in the Kaffa Biosphere Reserve, taking in the truly spectacular views along the way. We will stretch our legs by taking a walk up to the viewpoint above Bonga, to get our bearings, and absorb the beauty of the area we are about to explore. Our guest houses are located just outside of the town, amidst a beautifully maintained exotic garden, surrounded by acacia trees and jungle.

DAY 4

Tatmara Coffee Plantation The team at Tatmara Coffee Plantation welcome us today, introducing us to our first experience of the famous Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony.  We enjoy an al fresco lunch at the plantation and an interesting and educational walking tour of the facilities and processes that are completed here, all contributing to the packet of Ethiopian coffee we may enjoy at home.

DAY 5

Waterfall walk, Honey Producer & Tea Plantation Treat your senses today, and get under the skin of what the realities of farming are like in the area, with a visit to a passionate and knowledgeable local honey producer, and a Tea Plantation. We also enjoy a wonderful 2km leg stretch (round trip) to a stunning waterfall.

DAY 6Mankira Wild Coffee Farm Today we enjoy a beautiful 3hr (round trip) walk through lush and wild forest to the ‘Mother Tree’ in Mankira Wild Coffee Forest. It is a 40min drive from our guesthouse, and we return to Bonga for lunch and a fabulous visit to a family run Spice Farm. Our guide Bereket will translate for us so we can learn more about life for our welcoming hosts.

DAY 7

Visit Lemkaffa coffee plantation. An early start this morning is well worth the effort. Today we are truly exploring, with a 2-3hr drive into ‘Medicine Man’ country! The road is bumpy at times and we need 4x4s for this journey, but it is 100% worth it as this is some of the most stunning scenery that Ethiopia has to offer. We will see Colobus monkeys and incredible flora as well as an excellent tour of the plantation and a delicious lunch, before the return journey to Kafa.

DAY 8

Drive to Jimma, tour Jimma. In Jimma, a major nerve centre for coffee in the Oromia region, we will visit the palace and museum of Abba Jifar, King of the Gibe Kingdom of Jimma. The largest and most powerful of the five kingdoms of Gibe, it was established around 1830, when silver Maria Theressa Dollars and bars of salt were the main circulation of currency. Jimma is a very lively town so we can explore the markets and later on some of the night spots from our hotel.

DAY 9

Fly back to Addis Ababa, City Tour. In the morning we will fly back to the capital. After freshening up in our rooms and lunch with a local guide we will take a short tour of the city, stopping off at the Red Terror and Ethnographic Museum to fill any gaps in our understanding of recent Ethiopian History and to help us frame all we have seen on our adventure. We enjoy a fabulous reminisce and reflect over dinner in one of the best restaurants in town.

DAY 10 

Fly out of Addis Ababa.