Cattle Drive, Awash, Ehtiopia

Ethiopia – Tribes of the Omo Valley

  • TAILOR-MADE HOLIDAY IDEA

Duration

5 Days

Prices Start from

£4,200pp(ex. flights)

To travel through Ethiopia’s Omo Valley is to remind oneself that there are ways of life that still exist that are vastly different to our own. The Omo is renowned for the vibrancy and distinctiveness of its people.

This trip opens up access to these fascinating communities, using a culturally sensitive approach that focuses on promoting responsible tourism, whilst also enabling profound cultural experiences.

Key Highlights of this Itinerary

Dassenach, Dimi, Ethiopia 1

The Dassenach People

Visit the crocodile-hunting Dassenach people, staying at a mobile camp nearby.

Kara, Body Paint, Ethiopia 2

Kara Tribe

Meet the colourful Kara, renowned for painting their bodies with a tapestry of colours.

Local people by Omo River, Ethiopia 3

Omo Delta

Explore the Omo Delta by boat, visiting isolated and rarely encountered communities.

Mursi girl, Omo Valley, Ethiopia 4

The Mursi

Encounter the Mursi, the most renowned of the Omo tribes, with their impressive lip and ear plates.

Why we like it

The Omo Valley is a wild place and is therefore not for everybody. This holiday does not attempt to sanitise your experience and will not cosset you from the realities of life in one of Africa’s least developed regions. This makes for memorable and profound encounters with some of Africa’s most fascinating and charismatic tribes.

Explore our suggested itinerary

  • Day 1

    Jinka - Omo Valley

  • Day 2

    Omo Valley

  • Day 3

    Omo Valley

  • Day 4

    Omo Valley

  • Day 5

    Omo Valley - Jinka

Day 1

Jinka - Omo Valley

Day 2

Omo Valley

Local people by Omo River, Ethiopia

Omo Delta

Explore the Omo Delta by boat, visiting isolated and rarely encountered communities.

Day 3

Omo Valley

Dassenach, Dimi, Ethiopia

The Dassenach People

Visit the crocodile-hunting Dassenach people, staying at a mobile camp nearby.

Day 4

Omo Valley

Kara, Body Paint, Ethiopia

Kara Tribe

Meet the colourful Kara, renowned for painting their bodies with a tapestry of colours.

Day 5

Omo Valley - Jinka

Mursi girl, Omo Valley, Ethiopia

The Mursi

Encounter the Mursi, the most renowned of the Omo tribes, with their impressive lip and ear plates.

Our travel experts can tailor this itinerary to suit you.

More Details

Kara, Body Paint, Ethiopia
Omo Valley, Ethiopia

Omo Tribes

This holiday will put you in a position to meet with some of the Omo’s most fascinating tribes such as the Dassenach, Mursi, Hamar and Kara. While we will put together an itinerary for your holiday, rigid schedules will often be meaningless and counter to the experience most travellers will desire. It is imperative that you are given time and opportunity to get to know the various hosts on your trip. This will often mean reacting spontaneously to a chance encounter, so do not expect to follow your itinerary in a prescriptive fashion.

Client with kids, Tigray

Photography and Responsible Travel

We take great care to ensure the interaction you have with the people of the Omo Valley is done in a sustainable, respectful and non-exploitative fashion. Too often, cultural tourism of this kind is conducted with the emphasis on the experience and needs of the visitor rather than the host. The exchanges made possible on this trip will give equal consideration to both parties. This will enhance your enjoyment of the experience as well as giving the people of the Omo a positive impression of tourism.

The Omo Valley is an exciting place for photographers and you should return home with images with which you will be very happy, safe in the knowledge you have not exploited or antagonised the local people to obtain them.

Lale's Camp arrival, Omo Valley, Ethiopia
Lale's Camp, Omo Valley, Ethiopia

How will I travel?

You will travel by a combination of air, river and road. The roads in the Omo are a combination of asphalt and dirt tracks. The asphalt roads are in a very good condition and there is a lot of work being done to extend the road network throughout the Omo. The guide price shown is based on scheduled flights between Addis and Jinka (return); however, speak to our travel experts to find out about travelling around Ethiopia and the Omo region by private charter flight or helicopter.

Accommodation

As well as staying at the excellent, river-side Lale’s Camp, you will also stay at a combination of mobile camps and fly camps, at locations that provide easy access to some of the Omo’s wildest places and most rewarding cultural interactions.

Accommodation

Below you can see some of the wonderful places we have recommended for this journey.

Lale’s Camp £££££

  • Ethiopia

Named after its owner, Lale, a proud local Kara, Lale’s Camp sits on the edge of a sweeping ox-bow bend of the River Omo. The camp comprises of four large tents each with a veranda and en-suite facilities including a flush toilet, sink and bucket shower. Large fig trees provide welcome shade around the camp and the mess area sits under a cool spacious tree canopy offering exceptional views of the river. The camp is only available on an exclusive basis.

View Property

A note on price

Prices will vary depending on the time of year you are travelling. Prices do not include international flights. Please ask one of our Travel Experts for an accurate quote. Flights purchased through Steppes Travel departing from the UK are ATOL protected.

This Itinerary
Price
From £4,200 Per person

When to travel

Ethiopia in January

The climate in Ethiopia is divided into two seasons – the west seasons that runs from June to September, and the dry season than begins in October and ends in May. Whilst it is usually advised to travel during the dry season, travelling during both seasons has advantages so it will depend on your travel plans as to which month is best to travel.

Ethiopia in February

It should be noted that from February to June, it can be quite dusty but rainfall will be minimal and average temperatures in February throughout Ethiopia will average in the low 20s.

Ethiopia in March

Even though Ethiopia’s wet season begins in June, the southern regions will experience occasional periods of rainfall from March onwards and temperatures will start to rise throughout the country.

Ethiopia in April

As temperatures are pleasant and prior to the west season, April can be an ideal month to travel to mountainous regions, ideal for trekking.

Ethiopia in May

Prior to the west season, it is not uncommon for May to experience the occasional rainy day with temperatures averaging in the mid-20s.

Ethiopia in June

From June to September, Ethiopia will experience the wet season. Daily rainfall will occur, mainly in the northern territories of the country.

Ethiopia in July

The months of July and August are the peak months in Ethiopia’s wet season. The southern regions of the country will experience the rains first as they move on to the North from June onwards.

Ethiopia in August

August can be a great time to visit some of the Southern tribes in Ethiopia, particularly in the Omo Valley. However, it should be noted that there are dramatic differences in temperatures from day to night, where the evenings are much cooler.

Ethiopia in September

September is a good month to travel to Ethiopia. Just before the peak tourist season begins, there will be marginally less rainfall and the beautiful countryside comes to live as a result of the wet season.

Ethiopia in October

October marks the start of the dry season which runs through until May. This is the best time to visit Ethiopia as after the heavy rains from June to September, the landscape will have flourished and so everything will be in full bloom.

Ethiopia in November

Throughout the peak months, from the end of September until January, accommodation can get busier, particularly as many festivals take place in Ethiopia. Generally, Ethiopia will experience long days of sunshine and minimal rainfall.

Ethiopia in December

In December, it is very uncommon to experience much rainfall throughout Ethiopia however, the temperatures in each region of Ethiopia will vary. The eastern areas of Ethiopia experience daily temperatures in the mid-30s yet the mountainous regions will be cooler due to the altitude.

Holiday Inspiration

Our experts have created and curated these tailor-made holiday ideas to get you started. Take the time to search through them and find something that is the spark for your unique adventure.

Why Choose Steppes?

Our knowledge, curiosity and expertise set us apart, driving us to create remarkable holidays and Beautiful Adventures tailored perfectly to you, carefully curated to help protect and conserve our planet.

Are you ready to Discover Extraordinary?


More about Steppes

F L E X I B I L I T Y P R O M I S E B O O K W I T H C O N F I D E N C E

Get in touch

  • By sending your enquiry you are stating that you agree to our T&C

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.