1° day – Friday
ASMARA
On your arrival at the Asmara International Airport, after processing custom formalities you will be transferred at your hotel.
The day will continue with the discovery of Asmara. A guided tour will lead you to the most interesting and unusual places that Asmara, UNESCO World Heritage Site, offers. From October to March Asmara is an explosion of jacarande, ibiscus and cascades of buganville. The beauty of Asmara is not finished here …………. you’ll realize it in person.
Overnight in Asmara Albergo Italia or similar
Bed & Breakfast
2° day Saturday
ASMARA – MASSAWA
Departure to Massawa, in just 100 km the road, that from Asmara brings to the beach of Massawa, descend to 2450 metres.
We will use the classic one: the “Road of the Italians”, because the Italians owe the credit in the modernization starting from 1936, of the main road artery of the town, which was a masterpiece of civil engineering. It is not the only one, all it takes is thinking about the railway that still runs, in several places, parallel to the road, and the cableway built for the transport of goods from the port of Massawa to Asmara, the largest ever created in the world, unfortunately dismantled by English Army. The road climbed from 1,220 meters in Keren to 2,356 in Asmara and then down, in just 115 kilometers, to the harbor city of Massawa.
Along the way you will meet the towns of Nefasit, Embatcalla, Ghinda, Dongollo Alto and lastly Dongollo Basso famous for its mineral waters.
In those two days you are free to organize yourself, visiting the city, going to Gurgusum Beach or Green island beach or you can go further for a day excursion to Madote or Dissei, the nearest islands to Massawa. (all those excursions are optional, not included in your program, and must be paid locally).
Finally, we arrive in sight of the sea! The two attractive islands that make up Massawa are called Taulud and Massawa, and both are connected to the mainland by earthworks that act as bridges. Overnight in Massawa, Grand Dahlak Hotel or similar.
Only overnight stay
3° day – Sunday
MASSAWA –ASMARA
In the afternoon return to Asmara.
Free evening for a last walk to discover "Asmara by night"
Located on a highland plateau at the centre of Eritrea, Asmara, a modernist city of Africa is the capital of the country and is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a colonial planned city, which resulted from the subsequent phases of planning between 1893 and 1941, under the Italian colonial occupation. Asmara’s urban character and strong urban form exhibits a human dimensions in the relationship between buildings, streets, open spaces, and related activities adapted to the local conditions, which embodies both colonial and post-colonial African life, with its public spaces, mixed-use fabric and place-based material culture. These spaces and use patterns also bear witness to interchange and cultural assimilation of successive encounters with different cultures as well as to the role played by Asmara in building a collective identity that was later instrumental in motivating early efforts for its preservation.
Overnight in Asmara, Albergo Italia or similar
Bed & Breakfast
4° day – Monday
ASMARA – DEPARTURE
This is a free day dedicated to visit Asmara on your own.
Asmara is a jewel suspended almost 2400 meters high on the Eritrean plateau, a colonial town of amazing beauty that has managed to safeguard its precious architecture. The most significant and well-known modernist building in Asmara is the futuristic service station of Fiat Tagliero, considered by many critics to be the most beautiful in the world: it is an impressive concrete building that resembles an airplane, with two wings 30 meters long eoach and an aspect that the Guardian defines «worthy of a Fellini film poster». The Cinema Impero, designed by Mario Messina, is still in use with original furniture, while the Opera is a condensate of Art Deco, with Roman columns, lion heads and a ceiling frescoed with antelopes, pineapples and dancing girls. Some buildings are neo-Romanesque style, such as the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, while some villas are built in late Victorian style. Consecrated in 1923, Our Lady of the Rosary is considered one of the most beautiful Lombard Romanesque churches outside of Italy. The interior of the cathedral is magnificent: the altar is in Carrara marble, while the baptistery, the confessionals and the pulpit are in Italian walnut wood. The interior is completely frescoed.
Also of considerable interest is the Orthodox Enda Mariam church, built (project by the architect E. Gallo, 1920) on the area of ​​the ancient one, is preceded by two square towers, which serve as sacristy and warehouse. It is a curious combination of Italian and Eritrean architecture. From the square in front of the church, you can see the Coptic crosses, the minaret of the Great Mosque and the bell tower of the Catholic Cathedral.
Strategically located, the Al Khulafa Al Rashiudin Mosque dominates the city of Asmara with its magnificent minaret. Completed in 1938 by Guido Ferrazza, this grandiose complex combines rationalistic, classical and Islamic elements. The symmetry of the mosque is accentuated by the minaret, which rises on one side like a fluted Roman column above typically Islamic domes and arches. Inside, the "mihrab" (the niche that indicates the direction of Mecca) is embellished with mosaics and columns in Carrara marble.
At a suitable time for your flight, you will be transferred to the airport.
Asmara, the city that boasts one of the world’s finest collections of early 20th-century architecture – with UNESCO awarding it World Heritage Site status.
Sturdy and tenacious, like Eritreans themselves, Massawa City has survived throughout the centuries, this old port city preserves an ensemble of wonderful Ottoman architecture and gorgeous colonial building.
every friday from Asmara
B&B in Asmara, full board, overnight in igloo tent with camp beds in Dahlak islands
Minimum 4 maximum 10 guests
Price include:
Two nights in Asmara, B&B accomodation, Albergo Italia or similar.
One night in Massawa, Grand Dahlak Hotel or similar, overnight only.
Private transfer from Asmara to Massawa and return
Welcome at arrival and farewell at departure
Guided tour of Asmara.
Local taxes, tourist permits, entrance fees and Dahlak tax
Price do not include:
Entry visa
Meals and drinks in Asmara and Massawa
Tips and gratuities
Travel insurance: is a MUST to have a comprehensive travel insurance covering cancellation, curtailment, medical, emergency travel and assistance, as this is compulsory on all our trips. Personal expenses
