VISAS, ENTRY RULES, CUSTOMS REGULATIONS in Ethiopia
Russian citizens need a visa to enter Ethiopia. It can be obtained both at the country’s embassy in Moscow, and upon arrival at the capital’s airport, Bole.
To apply for a visa at the Addis Ababa airport, you must provide: a passport valid for at least 6 months from the end of the planned trip, return tickets and an immigration form filled in English. After that, the consular fee is paid and the visa is pasted into the passport.
In order to apply for an entry visa in advance, you must submit the following documents to the consular section of the Ethiopian Embassy:
– a passport valid for at least 6 months from the end of the planned trip
– one passport-size photograph
– a completed application form personally signed by the applicant
– confirmation of hotel reservation or an invitation from a private person or organization indicating the purpose and duration of the trip
– round-trip air tickets
Visa is issued within 2 working days. Its validity period is 3 months from the date of issue. A tourist visa gives the right to stay in the country for up to 30 days.
The export of the national currency outside Ethiopia is prohibited. The import of foreign currency is not limited, but the entire amount must be declared, and the declaration must be kept until departure. When exchanging currency in Ethiopia, you should keep all receipts, they will allow you to exchange birrs when leaving the country. You can import 200 cigarettes, or 50 cigars, or 227 grams of tobacco, 1 liter of alcoholic beverages, 500 ml of perfume and gifts to the total amount of not more than 500 birr into the country duty-free. The import of small arms, drugs and pornography is prohibited. It is forbidden to export ivory and products from it, rhinoceros horn, as well as the skins of wild animals and antiques without a special permit.
Embassy in Ethiopia
Ethiopia, embassy in Moscow
Metro station Prospekt Mira (Kaluzhsko-Rizhskaya line), Orlovo-Davydovsky lane, 6.
Tel.: 680-16-16, 680-16-76.
Fax: 680-66-08.
Ethiopia, Russian Embassy in the country:
Addis Ababa, POBox 1500, Yeka Kifle-Ketema, Kebele 08, Fikre-Mariam Street.
Tel.: (251-11) 612-060, 611-828.
Fax: (251-11) 613-795.
Communication in Ethiopia
You can call abroad in Ethiopia from hotels or telephone company offices.
In order to call from Russia to Ethiopia, you need to dial 8 – 10 – 251 (country code) – area code – subscriber number. City codes in the country are two-digit, however, if you are calling long distance within the country, then you must dial 0 before the city code.
To call from Ethiopia to Russia, you must dial 00 – 7 – city code – subscriber number.
Emergency Phones in Ethiopia
Ambulance – 92
Police – 91
Fire Department – 93
HOLIDAYS AND WEEKENDS
January 7 – Christmas Day
March 2 – Victory Day near Adua (the battle ended the Italians’ attempts to colonize Ethiopia)
May 1 – Labor Day
May 5 – Patriot Day
May 28 – Day of the fall of the military regime
September 11 – New Year
The country lives according to the Ethiopian calendar, similar to the Julian. The year in the Ethiopian calendar contains 12 months of 30 days each, as well as five or six days at the end of the year allocated to the 13th month. The main religious holidays of Orthodox Ethiopians are Christmas (January 7), Epiphany (January 19) and the finding of the Life-Giving Cross (September 27). The religious holidays of Ethiopian Muslims are celebrated according to the lunar calendar, so their dates vary. The main Muslim holidays include Mawlid (the birthday of the prophet) (March-April), the end of the holy month of Ramadan (Eid al-Fitr) (September-November) and Eid al-Ada (the festival of sacrifice) (December-January).
USEFUL THINGS
In general, Ethiopia is a safe country to travel. But still it is worth observing elementary safety rules. Do not leave personal belongings unattended and do not carry large sums of money and all available documents. The main problem is pickpockets, which are very numerous in Addis Ababa in the market (Mercato). Also, do not travel around Ethiopia and its cities at night, even by car. Tourists are advised to avoid visiting areas bordering Somalia and Eritrea, known for cases of kidnapping of foreign citizens.
All water bodies in Ethiopia except Lake Langano are dangerous for travelers, because swimming in them can be infected with bilharzia (a disease of the urinary tract and intestines caused by parasitism of worms).
SHOPS
According to ehuzhou, shops are open Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 20:00 with a lunch break from 13:00 to 14:00 and Saturday from 9:00 to 19:00 with a lunch break from 13:00 to 15:00.
Tipping
Tipping is not required. In large restaurants, you can leave a tip in the amount of 5-10% of the amount, although usually the tip is already included in the bill.
NATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
Ethiopians are very friendly towards tourists. But you should always remember that you are in a rather religious country with its own norms of behavior, which do not always coincide with European ones. In this regard, you should behave with restraint.
ELECTRICITY
220V, 50Hz;
HEALTH CARE
It is strongly recommended that you take out international health insurance before traveling to Ethiopia. The country has a fairly high risk of contracting yellow fever, cholera and malaria, and there is also a possibility of contracting diphtheria, hepatitis A, B and E, rabies, typhoid, poliomyelitis, tetanus and bilharziasis. Prevention against malaria should be carried out by tourists who are going to visit areas located at altitudes below 2000 m. Prevention is carried out within 2 weeks before the trip, during the trip and within 6 weeks after the trip. In order not to become infected with bilharzia, it is necessary to exclude swimming in all natural water bodies of Ethiopia, except for Lake Langano. People with high blood pressure and suffering from heart disease should remember that Ethiopia is a mountainous country and many cities are located at high altitudes,
Bottled water must be used for drinking, brushing teeth and making ice. Meat and fish should be consumed only after heat treatment, vegetables – thoroughly washed and scalded with boiling water, and fruits – peeled.
