Off to Ethiopia Mar 6th to 26th! (1 Viewer)

I have some really horrible news to share. http://www.tadias.com/10/08/2016/in-ethiopia-protesters-attack-factories-eco-lodge-and-flower-farms/

I can't believe whoever these "protesters" are would drive all the way out to a remote eco-lodge just to burn it down. I am devastated for the staff and the whole Bishangari area.

Our trip is still 6 months away so I hope things are settled down. Worst case scenario, we just stay the 4 days in Ghion and make day trips out.

Feathered and Free said:

I have some really horrible news to share. http://www.tadias.com/10/08/2016/in-ethiopia-protesters-attack-factories-eco-lodge-and-flower-farms/

I can't believe whoever these "protesters" are would drive all the way out to a remote eco-lodge just to burn it down. I am devastated for the staff and the whole Bishangari area.

Our trip is still 6 months away so I hope things are settled down. Worst case scenario, we just stay the 4 days in Ghion and make day trips out.

Click to expand...

I am also shocked by this, I heard tourist lodges at Lake Langano were attacked, but I imagined it would be the ones close to the main road, I did not expect this...

Even your worst case scenario might not be feasible. 2 weeks ago many of the roads to and from Addis were blocked and an American scientist was killed when the car passed such a demonstration and was hit by a stone...

At this very moment it is safe again in Addis at least, but this has been going on for a year now and nothing has really changed yet in terms of politics... The cycle will probably repeat itself, but when and where the next protests are will be more difficult to predict...

I got this email from Bishangari sales, sadly it doesn't look like they are reopening any time soon. I didn't have a confirmed booking, just a "penciled-in" query and I hadn't paid any money so I don't know what they are doing about paid bookings. I'm still really sad that this has happened to what looked like a really nice place.

I wonder where the big birding tour operators are staying now, most of them still have Ethiopia on their schedules for next year and some of them were scheduled to be there last month, don't know if they cancelled or carried on.

We are still planning to go, I just found out that I can get really cheap flights to Awassa since we are flying in & out on ET and Awassa is very near Wondo Genet so maybe we will stay in Awassa and hire a taxi by the day to commute there.


Dear Customers,

I would like to regrettably inform you that we have encountered a total
destruction by protesters on October 5, 2016. Following this, all
facilities were damaged and we are now not in a position to provide any
services as of October 05, 2016. Therefore, we are cancelling all bookings
made to us.


We do not know when the lodge will re-open.


We thank you for your past patronage.


Sincerely yours,



Solomon Kibrekidusan,
General Manager, EcolodgesPlc,P.O.Box 1269Addis Ababa, EthiopiaTel: +251
11 662 71
59/60Fax + 251 11 662 08 27Email: themanager at bishangari.com

The trip is now only a couple months away so I am stepping up the plans. I found another lodge - Hara Langano that is open and available and seems to be very close to Bishangari and would be convenient to find Yellow-fronted Parrots.

The other alternative is a very tight connection (arrive ADD 0605 connect to Awassa 0800) then get to Wondo Genet by public transport and look for the parrots there.

I'm kind of torn, if it weren't for the October attacks, I would choose Hara Langano hands down. Now I am kind of wary of being in a remote area in case something happens.

Is either of these 2 locations safer than the other?

Or should we stay in Awassa or Shashemene and hire a car/bajaj by the day to commute to the birding area?

I don't think there is any difference in safety between Wondo Genet and Langano. The current situation is stable again and since October nothing has happened. As my Ethiopian colleagues put it "the state of emergency is very good if you want to do field work, as nobody dares to do anything". How it will be in a few months from now, nobody knows though, but current signs are promising...

If you choose to commute then always go to Awassa and not Shashemene. Shashemene is not a nice town at all and Awassa is the most pleasant Ethiopian town I have been to. And it has several good hotels right next to the lake, so good birdlife is guaranteed there. And when commuting, you would need a car, a Bajaj would take to long... This is not a bad option, it would take about 1.5 hours from Awassa to the forests on the eastern side of lake Langano where the parrots abound (and trogon and turaco are also very common) and you could try to get the local guide from the Bishangari lodge, to have a local with you, which might be a good thing, as nobody speaks English there....