Visiting Ethiopia in December and January: weather, festivals and what to expect

December and January are the easiest months of the year to visit Ethiopia. It is the middle of the dry season: Addis Ababa has sunny, mild days of about 23–24°C, hardly any rain and cold nights. January also brings the two great Orthodox festivals, Genna (Ethiopian Christmas) on 7 January 2027 and Timkat (Epiphany) on 19 January 2027, both celebrated on a huge scale in Addis Ababa. The catch is that everyone else knows this too, so it is the busiest time of year for flights and hotels.

Ethiopia Driver is a family-run private driver service in Addis Ababa. In December and January we meet travellers at Bole, book their hotels in birr, and drive them to church services and festival grounds at hours when finding a taxi is hard work. This guide covers what to expect, month by month and festival by festival.

What is the weather like in December and January?

Dry, sunny and cool at night. Addis Ababa sits on a high plateau, so it never gets hot. Long-term averages put December's daytime high at about 23°C and January's at about 24°C, with lows of about 7–8°C. December usually sees rain on just one day, January on about three. Mornings and evenings feel chilly, then the sun warms the afternoon quickly.

The Rift Valley south of Addis is lower and warmer. In Hawassa, December and January afternoons average around 28°C and nights about 10°C, with rain on a handful of days. A trip south is a good way to warm up after a few days in the highlands. For every month of the year, see our Addis Ababa weather by month guide.

When are Genna and Timkat in 2027?

Both festivals have fixed dates in the Gregorian calendar most years, which makes them easy to plan around:

• Wednesday 6 January 2027, evening: Christmas Eve services begin and run through the night.
• Thursday 7 January 2027: Genna, Ethiopian Christmas, a public holiday.
• Monday 18 January 2027: Ketera, the eve of Timkat, when churches carry their tabots to water or open ground and pray through the night.
• Tuesday 19 January 2027: Timkat, Epiphany, a public holiday.

25 December is an ordinary working day in Ethiopia, and so is 1 January. If you land in late December expecting Christmas lights, you will find a normal week instead, with the build-up happening quietly in the churches. Our list of Ethiopia's public holidays has the full year.

What happens at Genna, and where can you see it?

Genna ends a 43-day fast. From late November, many Orthodox Christians eat no meat, dairy or eggs, which is why vegan fasting dishes are easy to find in December. On the evening of 6 January, people dressed in white fill the churches for a service that lasts into the early hours. In January 2026, thousands gathered at Meskel Square in Addis Ababa for a candlelit ceremony before the all-night services.

Christmas Day itself is about family: a big meal, usually doro wat, the slow-cooked chicken stew, and visits to relatives. If you go to a night service, dress modestly, bring a warm layer and stay quietly at the back or outside. Our guide to Genna explains the fast, the service and the food in more detail.

Where can you see Timkat right now?

In Addis Ababa, at Jan Meda. On Ketera, priests carry each church's tabot, a replica of the Ark of the Covenant wrapped in rich cloth, to the field, and crowds stay through the night for prayers and hymns. Early on Timkat morning the water is blessed and sprinkled over the crowd; in 2026 it was sprayed with a hose. Then the tabots are escorted back to their churches with singing and dancing. Smaller celebrations happen all over the city, and a neighbourhood procession can be easier to follow than the main event.

Expect huge crowds and security checks at the entrances: in 2026 police searched people before they went into Jan Meda. UNESCO added the Ethiopian Epiphany to its list of the world's intangible cultural heritage in 2019. Our Timkat guide has practical tips for the day.

Gondar and Lalibela are the most famous places for Timkat, but both are in Amhara, where official travel advice currently warns against all travel. Addis Ababa is the realistic choice for January 2027.

How busy is it, and what should you book early?

December to February is peak season, and January is the busiest month of all. The best hotels fill up well ahead, prices rise around the festivals, and in our experience driving in Addis, roads near the big churches and Jan Meda get very slow on festival nights. Book flights and hotels early and plan your festival transport in advance rather than hoping to find a taxi at 2 am.

That is the part we take off your hands. Tell us your dates and we book your hotels and domestic flights in birr; you pay us one amount in US dollars or your own currency. Your driver meets you outside Bole arrivals with a name sign, and you get the driver's name and plate number the evening before.

Can you leave Addis Ababa in December and January?

Yes, and the dry weather makes it a good time to do it. Bishoftu's crater lakes are an easy day trip, and we drive to Hawassa and the south regularly. On the Hawassa road we drive in daylight only: we leave early and are not on the road after about 3 pm. The dry season is also the easiest time for walking in the Bale Mountains.

Before every trip outside Addis we do our own security check, using reports from our drivers across the country, and plan the route and departure time with you. Check your own government's travel advice before you go too. For the full picture across the year, see when is the best time to visit Ethiopia.

Is December or January better?

• Come in December for dry weather with fewer crowds and the quiet build-up to Christmas, when fasting food is everywhere.
• Come in January for the festivals: arrive by 6 January for Genna and stay to 19 January for Timkat, or pick one.
• Come for both if you can spare two weeks: Genna and Timkat are twelve days apart, with room for a lake trip in between.

What should you pack?

1. A warm layer. A fleece or jacket for evenings, early starts and night services. Standing outside a church at 2 am in Addis is properly cold.
2. Sun protection. A hat, sunglasses and sunscreen. The sun is strong at this altitude even when the air feels cool.
3. Clothes for church. Long trousers or skirts and tops that cover the shoulders. A white scarf fits in well at festivals, and women often cover their hair in church.
4. Comfortable shoes. You will stand for hours in crowds and walk the last stretch to Jan Meda, so leave the new shoes at home.
5. A light rain jacket if you are heading south this year, because of El Niño.
6. A small cross-body bag. Festival crowds are huge; keep your phone and cash in front of you.