Destination · Harari region · ሐረር
Harari region and Dire Dawa carry no regional warning. We fly to Dire Dawa rather than drive from Addis. Checked 26 October 2026 against UK and US government advice.
01 · The place
A walled Muslim city on a ridge in the east: five old gates, coloured lanes, coffee with salt, and hyenas called by name after dark.
Harar Jugol, the old walled town, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and for centuries was a trading city between the highlands, the Somali coast and Arabia. Inside the sixteenth-century walls, the lanes are too narrow for cars and the houses are painted in greens and blues, their reception rooms hung with baskets and enamel plates.
It is also a place of Ethiopian coffee with its own character: Harar coffee is dried in the cherry and tastes of blueberries and spice, and locals drink it with salt or a little butter. We visit with a Harari guide and stay inside or close to the walls.
02 · Harar
Enter by the Harar Gate, cross the old market square, and lose the map. A Harari guide takes you to the tomb of Emir Nur, the main mosque, the basket and spice markets, and the Shoa Gate market where farmers sell from blankets.
The tradition of feeding spotted hyenas at the edge of town is generations old. It is short, close and stays with you for a long time. Your guide stands with you; you can feed them from a stick if you want, or simply watch.
Raised platforms, carved niches and walls of woven baskets and plates: the Harari house (gegar) is its own architecture. We visit a family home and the house museum that bears the name of the poet Arthur Rimbaud, who traded here in the 1880s.
Dry-processed Harar coffee has fed the coffee houses of the Red Sea for centuries. Drink a cup with salt, try qishr (spiced coffee-husk tea), and visit the coffee sellers by the market.
03 · When to go
Read across the thirteen months. For exact dates and festivals during your trip, use the calendar converter.
04 · Getting there
We fly Addis Ababa to Dire Dawa (about an hour) and drive the last 55 km up to Harar. We do not drive from Addis: the road crosses East Shewa and West Hararghe, and the flight is quicker and better.
During Ramadan the old town is quiet by day and comes alive after sunset. The two Eids are joyful but busy; the calendar shows estimated dates, which follow the moon.
Shaded by the UK FCDO zone list. Red: advised against all travel. Ochre: essential travel only.
05 · Sample journeys
Before you write
It is a conservative Muslim town. Shoulders and knees covered for everyone; a scarf for women entering religious sites.
Ask first, every time. Some people say no, some ask for a small fee; your guide will tell you what is usual. We do not photograph khat chewers or anyone praying.
It is legal in Ethiopia and sold openly around Harar, but it is illegal to take it out of the country, and luggage is searched at Bole.
Next destination
Bale Mountains