Today we are travelling to one of the most beautiful countries, which is slowly but surely gaining fame among travellers from all around the world. To be more precise, we are talking about Ethiopia! Ethiopia is a historic country with a rich cultural legacy, proud traditions, and a diverse ecosystem. It is bordered on the north by Eritrea, on the northeast by Djibouti, on the east by Somalia, on the south by Kenya, and on the west by Sudan and South Sudan. The country occupies the majority of the Horn of Africa, which is the continent's easternmost region. Ethiopia is also one of the world's oldest countries. Ethiopia is the only country on the African continent that has never been colonized over its long and turbulent history. To be more precise, Ethiopia and Liberia were the only two countries to maintain their independence despite European colonial powers' efforts to colonize them. That was the main reason why several newly independent African countries adopted Ethiopia's flag colours of green, gold, and red. Surprisingly enough, Ethiopia has developed its present borders during this time by conquering areas to the east, west, and south.
Like a highland country, Ethiopia has a usually cold climate than other countries near the Equator. Interestingly enough, within its boundaries is the world's fourth holiest Islamic city, as well as Sahara's oldest continually occupied settlement. Ethiopia's natural beauty, which includes high mountains, lakes, waterfalls, and dry deserts, is one of the country's main draws. Ethiopia is home to eleven massive monolithic churches chiselled out of solid rock, which many believe to be the world's eighth wonder. These magnificent sandstone cathedrals from the 12th century are unique to Ethiopia, and they represent the country's long history of Christianity, which dates back to the apostles. No trip to Ethiopia would be complete without a journey to this ancient holy place, which has two main groupings of churches just to the north and south of the river, which was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 1978.
I am pretty sure our readers are already starting to pack their luggage and book the accommodation in adventurous Ethiopia, however before you start planning your trip, there is one more important thing that you should take care of. And yes, you are completely right, we are talking about an Ethiopia visa. As seen from the title of this article, our main topic will be tourist visa for Ethiopia. The Ethiopian visa policy lays forth the conditions that a tourist from another country must satisfy to travel to, enter, and stay in Ethiopia. Here you can find answers to questions such as "Can you renew a tourist visa for Ethiopia?", "How long can you stay in Ethiopia on a tourist visa?" and also can have detailed information about specific requirements, for example, the cost of a single-entry tourist visa to Ethiopia.
First of all, you should check if you are required to showcase a visa at all or not. And in that case, we can easily separate all the countries around the world into a couple of groups. A major part of the world nationals is eligible to apply for an e-visa. If potential travellers want to enter Ethiopia by air, tourists from over 150 countries can submit an online application to get an e-visa before departure. However, bear it in your mind that all visitors to Ethiopia who are not visa-exempt or who are not eligible to apply for obtaining an Ethiopian tourist visa online must get a "traditional" visa before entering the country. It might be an Ethiopia tourist visa on arrival, which requires standing in line at border crossings to apply, or an embassy visa from the Ethiopian government's nearest diplomatic post. When applying for a visa at an embassy or consulate, applicants must choose the appropriate visa type for their visit, such as a tourist visa, work visa, or any other present visa type. For instance, if you plan to visit Ethiopia for 20 days and apply for a single-entry tourist visa more than a week before your trip, you must include in the time it takes for mail to arrive at the Embassy, as well as the time it takes to process the visa.
Meanwhile, there are only two countries located in the second group, Djibouti and Kenya, whose citizens are completely exempt from obtaining a visa before their visit. According to Ethiopia's current visa policy, residents from less than a couple of countries must apply for a visa through an embassy to travel to Ethiopia. No matter the visit's objective or how long the visitor intends to remain, a consulate visa must be obtained at the nearest Ethiopian diplomatic post before departure. It is important to schedule a visa appointment before applying. Candidates should do so well ahead of their planned travel date in Ethiopia since the processing period for an embassy visa can take up to two weeks or longer.
So how long can you stay in Ethiopia on a tourist visa? Tourist visas are only available on arrival at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. In most situations, the Ethiopia tourist visa on arrival will be valid for three months. In any event, the Ethiopian government recommends that travellers get an Ethiopia tourist visa online in advance to avoid any issues or misunderstandings upon arrival, which is quite a common thing among travellers.
How to get a six-month tourist visa to Ethiopia? You need to have a passport with a validity minimum of six months beyond the date of your departure from Ethiopia. Also, the passport must be no more than ten years old and have at least one or two free "visa pages." Next, two photos with a frontal view of the face encompassing 70-80% of the shot are no more than 6 months old with a uniform and a white background. Along with the other needed documents, you must also provide your trip itinerary. Also, double-check that the vacation plan includes both flight ticket reservations and hotel confirmation.
The cost of a single-entry tourist visa to Ethiopia on arrival for a 30-day Ethiopia is 52 USD, while the fee for a 90-day multiple-entry visa which is also known as the longest tourist visa to Ethiopia, is 72 USD. However, of course, the processing time might slightly vary depending on your country and nationality. Your Ethiopia tourist visa on arrival will be issued at the Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa when you arrive.
Ethiopia Tourist e-visa is open to all nations, however, unfortunately excluding Syrians and Pakistanis. On June 12, 2017, Ethiopia established its own electronic visa portal. The validity of a single-entry tourist visa might range from 30 to 90 days which is the longest tourist visa to Ethiopia. However, how can you renew a tourist visa for Ethiopia? To put it most simply, before the visa expires, foreigners can request an extension at the Immigration, Nationality, and Vital Events Agency's Head Office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Also, worth mentioning that your e-visa will be emailed to your email address whenever it has been completely processed and is ready to be given out. To apply for an e-visa, you must have a valid passport for at least six months after your departure date from Ethiopia. The passport must also be less than 10 years old and include at least one or two free "visa pages." 3 to 4 photographs with a consistent and white backdrop is also required. You must also present your vacation itinerary in addition to the other required papers. Also, pay attention that the trip itinerary contains both airline and hotel bookings. Very importantly, you will need to have your printed Ethiopia e-visa. In addition, nationals of any country other than Pakistan and Somalia who have a diplomatic or service passport can visit Ethiopia without a visa for up to 90 days.
On a usual basis, Ethiopian tourist e-visa processing takes somewhere between 1 and 3 business days on average if, of course, all of your documents are correctly submitted. The cost of a single-entry tourist visa to Ethiopia is 52 dollars for a 30-day period of time and 72 dollars for a 90-day single admission visa. To sum everything that we have said above up, let us remind you one more time that just because alternative points of entry are not permitted for e-visa access, all online visa holders for Ethiopia must enter the country by plane, through Addis Ababa Bole International Airport. However, it also might be very important to mention the fact that travellers in transit, regardless of country, are not required to get a visa if they arrive by air, stay in the designated transit region, and exit within 12 hours.
