Located in the East of Ethiopia about 500km from Addis and under 100km from the Djibouti border, Harar, or otherwise known as “the city of saints” is one of the most historical cities to visit in Ethiopia – UNESCO World Heritage Site. The best time to visit would be between October & March, with a daily average temperature of 20 degrees. It has a wonderful hilltop location, and is home to approximately 128,000 people.
Seventy-two successive Imams have ruled Harar since its formation during the 700s to 1900s through which a unique, strong and authentic Muslim tradition was created. UNESCO considers it as being the fourth holist city of Islam. Three out of the 82 mosques were built in the 10th century.
Hara has a vast territory outside of the city with many friendly tribes such as Adare, Somali, Oromo and Argoba. These tribes are the main settlers all of Muslim ethnicity. Hyena night feeding has become quite a popular tourist attraction in a few of these tribes and has turned into a rather exciting night show. You can also visit the Harar Brewery for all of our beer enthusiasts out there, where taste testing and purchasing the local brew is possible.
Surrounding the ancient town, Harar has developed into quite the metropolis & remains the capital city for the Eastern parts of Ethiopia.