Romantic Ethiopia: A Highland Honeymoon

This morning you fly north to Bahir Dar, the relaxed, palm-lined town on the shore of Lake Tana, Ethiopia's largest lake and the source of the Blue Nile, and settle into your lakeside hotel. After time to relax together by the water, the highlight of the day comes in the late afternoon with a private sunset boat trip on the calm lake, just for the two of you. You glide across the glassy water, perhaps pausing at a tranquil island monastery half-hidden among the trees, watching fishermen pole home on slender papyrus tankwa boats and pelicans skim the surface, as the sky turns gold and rose over the distant hills. It is a serene, magical experience. Back on shore, enjoy a romantic dinner by the lake. Rest well in Bahir Dar beside the beautiful waters of Lake Tana.

This morning you journey out to the spectacular Blue Nile Falls, known in Amharic as Tis Issat, the Smoking Water, where the great river plunges over a broad cliff in a thunder of spray that throws rainbows across the gorge, most dramatic after the rains. A gentle, scenic walk across countryside and a centuries-old bridge brings you to fine viewpoints amid lush greenery and birdlife. Returning to Bahir Dar, you have the afternoon at leisure to relax together, perhaps enjoying a lakeside cafe, a spa treatment, or simply unwinding by the water and watching the birdlife, with the option of visiting a nearby island monastery or the palace viewpoint of Emperor Haile Selassie for sweeping lake vistas. This gentle, romantic pace is part of the pleasure. Enjoy another relaxed dinner by the lake. Rest well in beautiful Bahir Dar.

Today you travel north to Gondar, Ethiopia's romantic seventeenth-century imperial capital, ringed by mountains and often called the Camelot of Africa, arriving to explore its extraordinary heritage together. At the heart of the city, the walled Fasil Ghebbi encloses a remarkable cluster of stone castles, palaces and towers built by emperors and empresses, blending Ethiopian and foreign influences into something uniquely beautiful. You wander the soaring battlements and banqueting halls hand in hand, imagining the pageantry and royal romances of the imperial court, visit the tree-fringed pool of Fasilides Bath, and admire the famous ceiling of winged angels at Debre Berhan Selassie church. You settle into your hotel, and this evening enjoy a romantic dinner, perhaps with traditional music and dance. Rest well amid the fairy-tale grandeur of imperial Gondar, storybook capital of old Ethiopia.

Today you journey up into the spectacular Simien Mountains, a UNESCO World Heritage range of jagged peaks and sheer escarpments, to a beautiful lodge perched dramatically on the very edge of the cliffs. The scenic drive climbs through highland farmland and villages into ever grander scenery. Arriving at your escarpment lodge, you are met by a view that plunges a thousand metres to the plains below, cloud drifting beneath you and the mountains stretching to the horizon. After settling into your room, with its breathtaking outlook, you might relax on the terrace with the vast landscape before you as the light softens and the sun sets over the escarpment in a blaze of colour. This evening you dine with the star-filled sky above and the great drop below. Rest well together in your spectacular, secluded eyrie in the Simien Mountains.

Today you savour the beauty of the Simien Mountains at a relaxed, romantic pace. On a gentle guided walk along the escarpment you sit quietly among troops of gelada baboons, the endearing grass-grazing primates found nowhere else on Earth, watching them feed, groom and play close by as the dominant males, with their flowing golden manes, keep watch, all against a backdrop of staggering mountain views. You take in famous viewpoints where the land drops away on every side, watch for soaring lammergeier vultures and, perhaps, the rare walia ibex on the crags, and drink in the sense of wild, high grandeur together. Back at your lodge, the afternoon is yours to relax on the terrace, enjoy the spa if available, and simply soak up the extraordinary setting. Enjoy another memorable dinner above the clouds. Rest well in the beautiful Simien Mountains.

This morning you descend from the mountains and fly south to Lalibela, the spiritual heart of Ethiopia, perched high in the rugged Lasta mountains, and settle into a characterful hotel, many enjoying sweeping views over the peaks. In the afternoon you begin to explore the astonishing rock-hewn churches together, eleven monolithic sanctuaries carved downward out of solid red rock in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries to form a New Jerusalem, linked by tunnels and trenches and still alive with pilgrimage, chant and incense after eight centuries. Walking hand in hand as white-robed worshippers pass in the shadows, incense scenting the cool air, is quietly awe-inspiring. As the day ends, you might watch the golden evening light fall on the ancient stone. Enjoy a romantic dinner this evening. Rest well together in sacred Lalibela, amid one of the wonders of the world.

You devote a full, unhurried day to the wonders of Lalibela together, exploring the remaining rock-hewn churches at a contemplative pace. You wander the southern cluster of sanctuaries, linked by shadowy passageways and courtyards and adorned with carved crosses and ancient art, and stand together before the sublime Bete Giyorgis, the Church of Saint George, carved in the perfect shape of a cross and sunk into a deep pit, the most beautiful of them all. You may take a scenic excursion to a dramatically sited outlying church, such as the mountainside monastery of Asheton Maryam with its panoramic views or the cave church of Yemrehanna Krestos, and share a coffee ceremony or a local lunch with a view. As the sun sets over the mountains, savour the peace of this sacred place. Enjoy a special farewell dinner. Rest well on your last night in Lalibela.

After a final Ethiopian breakfast and, perhaps, a last quiet moment at a favourite church or a stroll to buy handwoven cotton or coffee to take home, you bid farewell to Lalibela and transfer to the airport for your flight back to Addis Ababa, where you connect with your onward international departure. You leave having shared an extraordinary and deeply romantic journey through the very best of Ethiopia's historic north, the serene sunsets of Lake Tana, the fairy-tale castles of Gondar, the breathtaking escarpment and geladas of the Simien, and the sacred, living stone of Lalibela, all at an intimate, unhurried pace and wrapped in genuine warmth. These shared memories of natural drama, ancient wonder and quiet magic are a beautiful beginning to your married life together. Depart hand in hand, already dreaming of a return to remarkable Ethiopia.