Amba Lodge Lalibela

Il panorama e la simpatia e la gentilezza del proprietario e della sua famiglia

Amazing hospitality, cleanliness, location, and breathtaking views from the balcony of the rooms. The owner is super accommodating and knowledgeable and helpful! Thank you, Lalibela 🇪🇹❤️

We had an amazing time staying as a family of three at Amba Lodge. After travelling in Ethiopia for nearly two weeks already, we stayed a couple of nights with the aim to slow down a bit and recover. Amba lodge delivered. It is a small guesthouse run by Gashaw and his family and they made us feel welcome and well looked after from the first to the last minute. We enjoyed the very familiar atmosphere, the great location close to the churches of Lalibela and the host's intimate knowledge of the area. (Of course,) we also hired Gashaw as our guide for most of the time in Lalibela, visiting the churches and for a hike from monastery to monastery. Coming home felt like coming home, the home cooked food was excellent and our coffee ceremony a highlight every time. We would come back any time again. For us, it was what we were looking for and the perfect stay and base for the area.

There was nothing we did not like about Amba Lodge. However, visiting Lalibela may be not be for the faint hearted at the moment. This is nothing within the control of our hosts but simply a result of the political instability - the whole area and most of the country are highly dependent on tourism to continue and, in fact, to pick up again. Overall, we had such a great stay in Ethiopia, but it makes you feel sad for every operator and everyone trying to make a living, that there are so very few travellers there. On the one hand, this could be considered a real blessing for the independent traveller - there were probably about 15 tourists in total across the churches during the time we visited. On the other hand, it's a blessing in disguise: the city is nearly empty, hotels and shops are closed, and the infrastructure that used to host many, many more visitors is often in decay - it can feel like COVID lockdowns never ended. But political instability is real, and aspects of life that most people visiting from stable, more developed countries may find challenging. Monitoring the current situation is part of a visit. However, we never felt unsafe and, on the contrary, were made very welcome by nearly everyone we met - especially in Lalibela and at Amba Lodge.

The location is perfect if you want to see the historic churches in Lalibela. Hot water, gorgeous view & great breakfast (fresh fruit from the hotel's garden & local produce)

The wifi's a little spotty