Visit Lalibela – Ethiopia’s Rock Hewn Churches
Hewn From the Living Rock
When planning our trip to Ethiopia it was Lalibela’s rock churches that were top of our ‘must-see’ list. We had high expectations and we weren’t disappointed. The remarkable churches of Lalibela are unusual because they have been constructed underground. We are surprised that these amazing churches didn’t make the cut in the ‘seven wonders of the modern world’ listing because the architecture is astonishing. Here’s our guide on how to visit Lalibela and its rock churches.
Getting To Lalibela
Lalibela is located in northern Ethiopia and its location is quite remote. Most people fly in: you can fly direct from its capital Addis Ababa, although we had spent some time exploring Gondar and the wonderful Simien mountains beforehand, so we flew in from Gondar. There are flights into Lalibela from all over Ethiopia.
It is possible to catch a bus from Addis Ababa but the journey will take a couple of days.
It’s around a 25km drive from the airport into town on a well-made open road. We used an excellent tour company to arrange our trip, so our guide Marco was waiting for us at the airport to take us into town and to our hotel. Taxis are available if you are travelling independently.
The town itself is lively and friendly and has lots of markets. It was probably the most touristy of the towns we visited in Ethiopia.
History of Lalibela
The town is named after the late-12th/early-13th century King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela of the Zagwe Dynasty, who was highly revered and was reputed to have commissioned the construction of the churches. It is likely that they were built over several centuries although the devout claim that holy angels played a part as well.
The churches, which were designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1978, date from the 7th to the 13th centuries. They are remarkable because rather than being constructed from the ground up, they have been hewn from within the rock, using basic tools such as chisels and hammers. Built from the top down they were then carved from within.
These are very much living churches, highly revered by Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, and a place for pilgrims to visit. We were welcome to join the services.
The site will be very busy during certain Christian festivals:
7th January is Genna – Christmas in Ethiopia
20th January is Timkat – Orthodox Christian celebration
27th/28th September is Meskel – Ethiopian religious holiday
Visiting The Lalibela Churches – Practicalities
There are three main groups of churches: northern, eastern and western. It will take more than a day to explore them thoroughly so make sure you factor in enough time. We recommend at least two days here.
You need to purchase a ticket at the main office – this is valid for five days. It’s not cheap but is definitely worth the price. We recommend paying in Birr. You need to make sure that you keep your ticket as you may need to produce it when you enter each church.
It’s generally okay to take photos but keep an eye out for signs indicating if photography is prohibited in certain places. If you are taking photos of people – and many of the priests encouraged us to do so – it is polite to tip them.
We also recommend having a guide as they will be able to tell you the history of each of the churches as well as point out some of the more interesting features.
The churches are open from 8am-5.30pm, but are closed for two hours at lunchtime, around midday.
There isn’t a dress code at Lalibela but we suggest that you wear modest clothing as these are religious sites.
We explored each cluster of churches in turn. Many of the churches within each group are linked by subterranean passages.
Visit Lalibela: The Northern Group Of Churches
Biete Medhane Alem, believed to be the largest monolithic church in the world, at approx 33 metres long, 23 metres wide, and 10 metres deep, is home to the Lalibela Cross. It has five aisles and its name means ‘Saviour of the World’.
Biete Maryam may be the oldest of the churches, named for Mary.
It has an incredibly deep pool outside which is believed to grant fertility to any woman who bathes in it.
Biete Golgotha Mikael is said to contain the tomb of King Lalibela himself.
Visit Lalibela: The Eastern Group Of Churches
It is thought that some of the Eastern Group may have been used as royal chapels or palaces.
Biete Amanuel (House of Immanuel), possibly the former royal chapel.
At Biete Abba Libanos you can see how the church was carved downwards from inside the rock.
Biete Lehem is the house of bread.
Visit Lalibela: The Western Group Of Churches
Last, but by no means least, Biete Ghiorgis, the church of St George, takes a cruciform shape, and is the most beautiful of the churches.
You cannot see it on your approach, so well is it concealed within the hillside. Actually you have to be careful not to fall into the courtyard – there are no barriers.
It appears to be totally inaccessible but there is a passageway carved into the rock behind the church and you walk through a tunnel to arrive at the main entrance.
Day Trip from Lalibela
While you’re in the area, it’s also possible to visit Yemrehanna Kristos which is located around 20km from Lalibela. This makes for a pleasant morning or afternoon trip. You walk along a pleasant mountain path to a cave.
The church is built inside a large cave on Mount Abuna Yosef. The church is named for Ethiopian king Yemrehana Krestos who reigned in the 11th Century.
Lalibela for Foodies
The area is famous for its honey. There is a legend that Gebre Mesqel Lalibela was surrounded by a swarm of bees shortly after his birth. Apparently his mother believed it to be a sign of his future greatness. Whether the legend is true or not, make sure you get to taste the local honey, it is absolutely delicious.
And if you want a tip for a good restaurant at the end of the day’s sightseeing you can’t go wrong with Ben Abeba. The building has a highly unusual design and you can either sit indoors or outside. The food on offer is slightly unusual – of course you can have Ethiopian food, but somewhat surprisingly there are a number of Scottish dishes on the menu! The restaurant is run by a very friendly Scots lady who now lives in Lalibela.
We recommend dining outside to enjoy the views of the stunning mountains.
And why not enjoy a few beers or cocktails as the sun sets. The perfect sundowner!
You can explore the Lalibela churches online via The Zamani Project who can offer several digital tours, including maps, photos, panoramas and 3D models of the site.
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That looks amazing. Also I never thought about a virtual visit. Great post as usual.
Thank you so much. We loved the The Zamani Project initiative – so good to be able to visit virtually.
I didn’t know you could go inside some of these churches – that moves these further up my list of places to explore. I have wanted to go here ever since I saw a programme about them last year on TV – I think it was Ben Fogle’s programme. He also did a mini-docu on the Scottish lady restauranteur of Ben Abeba. The buildings are so unique, unlike anything I’ve seen before and that restaurant is equally unique.
Until the recent war in the north of country (especially around here) Ethiopia an emerging tourist destination. I hope they can resolve the war and peace is restored to the area,
Ethiopia is a fantastic tourist destination and we were very sad when we heard that war had broken out. We really hope that peace can be restored as soon as possible. The churches are some of the most remarkable constructions we have ever seen – we learned of them many years ago and had always wanted to visit. The Ben Abeba restaurant was fantastic – the construction was so unusual and the food was really tasty as well.
Those are fascinating! I’ve never heard of them before (or if I have don’t remember anyways). Great picture. Any theories on why they built them like that? Lack of resources? Some divine purpose?
Thank you. They really are remarkable. One theory we learned about why they were built downwards was so that if you looked across the landscape you would not be able to see any of the churches from a distance – a means of keeping their location secret. The Church of St George is so well hidden that you could easily fall into its courtyard – you really don’t see anything other than hillside until you are right next to it.
I used to represent the country’s airline inflight magazine before when I was based in Malaysia but never actually visited Ethiopia. I have heard and was told about Ethiopia’s incredible churches and dreamed of seeing them. The Church of St. George surely takes one’s imagination to a height of adventure and divinity #flyingbaguette
Jan – https://flyingbaguette.com/
It was these churches that drew us to Ethiopia but we discovered so there was much more to this amazing country when we visited. It was lovely to have high expectations of the churches and still be dazzled by them. The Church of St George is truly stunning, a marvel of architecture.
Oh an architecture post, I am all ears! It’s fascinating how people created these long lasting structures with the simplest of techniques and materials. They would not be able to build anything like this today. The eastern churches stood out to me as they showed more carvings and details than the northern and western churches. I also wondered why most of these religious places were build downwards and I ca see from your reply comment that this was done to keep the churches’ location secret. Thanks for providing more context to these impressive structures.
Carolin | Solo Travel Story
Thank you! We love exploring architecture when we visit a country and the construction of these churches is truly amazing particularly, as you say, because they used such basic tools and techniques.
wow! These rock churches are amazing. Thank you for introducing them to me. I am totally fascinated by the architecture and construction methods. It makes sense that they were built underground for security but what a tremendous undertaking!
Ethiopa is emerging as a tourist destination and it seems like a country I need to put on my list!
Lyn | http://www.ramblynjazz.com
The churches really are fascinating and the architecture astonishing, especially the construction. We definitely recommend seeing them in person if possible as the photos don’t give justice to the sheer scale. Hope you get to Ethiopia one day, it is a brilliant country to visit – it has interesting history, remarkable architecture, gorgeous landscapes and wonderful wildlife
Ethiopia grows more intriguing the more I read about it. Thanks for a wonderful introduction to these fascinating churches, and with such an interesting history. Finding your way in seems like a challenge but what a sight once you do. It looks like it might be a challenge to get to Lalibela but I can see why it was high on your list, and it certainly appears to have been worth the effort
Thank you for your kind words. The churches really are remarkable – we were so excited to see them and to be able to view the interiors as well. Lalibela is a bit of an effort to get to but most definitely worth it.
I really do not know much about Ethiopia so this was a fascinating read. I’m curious as to what put Ethiopia on your list to visit. These churches look incredible though – I’d love to learn how they were able to stay up with the limited technology (at the time) that they had. I’m also so intrigued as to why they felt like they needed to hide the churches so well.
It was actually some people we met in Armenia, when we were visiting the rock hewn monastery of Geghard, who told us about the Lalibela churches. So we did some research and decided we had to make the trip. What was lovely was how brilliant all of Ethiopia was, there were so many other things to see.
Sometimes the universe has funny things, and I’m reading this post a few weeks before traveling to Ethiopia and exploring Lalibela.
I’m really fascinated and curious about visiting the churches in Lalibela, their history and architecture. I can imagine myself walking through the tunnels to the inside of the buildings 🙂
One of the places I have on my list in Lalibela is Ben Abeba 🙂 thanks for all the tips in the post!
I can’t wait to go!
I’m so excited that you will be visiting Ethiopia soon. It’s an amazing country and we are sure you will love the Lalibela churches. Have a great time!