Rock-Hewn Churches, Lalibela

The most significant journey I ever took thus far. I was in awe the entire time. We got to attend church on Sunday morning. It was beautiful. I cried on both days. Trip of a lifetime. The Ethiopian people are beautiful and kind. I’m blessed to have been able to share this trip with my beloved mom.

Entrance fee - 100 usd. Worth every penny. An extraordinary place in Ethiopia.

They make you pay 100USD as a foreigner and then you have to get a tour guide. If you don't, they bug you every 2 min. Lowest you can get is for 15USD. Apart from the price the tour guide is actually a religious Orthodox guide. They don't give you any information. The information your receive is usually wrong. They tell you wrong historic dates and events. When asking who built it, they said king lalibela with some saints with an axt and the help of angels. They usually talk about mircales and symbols. While asking where the rain water is flowing into, they say the Lalibela river that flows to the Jordan river in Palestine. The worst thing is, that we went to a religious date there to see the pilgrims and the fest. Almost no locals. Only guides and merchants. Rest were foreigners. It's still an amazing place, but please rate them accordingly to raise awareness to this

World heritage site so worth a visit to be sure. Internal conflicts in Northern Ethiopia have decimated the tourism industry here which means there are no visitors and the economy is suffering. That also means that there are no crowds!! (When I went 12/2023 - there had been no violence for 4 months. Please check before you go to make sure it is still safe.) The churches are beautiful and the people lovely. Tickets are 100$ and my guide was 30$/day.

Amazing and interesting facts we learn from our guide . Now I know everything in Ethiopia has a meaning related to religion . Even we go at sunrise to the church with locals which are celebrating St.George day. Lalibela is magic . Worth it every penny to go and visit that special place especially for Ethiopians .

The entrance price went up to $100 in August 2024 and if you’re not on an organized tour expect to pay another $30 per day for a guide and then be prepared to have scores of people offer to ‘help’ or watch your flip flops when you have to leave them or just plain ask for money. It ruins the experience somewhat but Lalibela is special. Can’t help but wonder at the precision and craftsmanship of each of the rock hewn churches. I could have spent a few days exploring here but best seen during a Sunday service or a pilgrimage.

The place is truly amazing and the churches are absolutely incredible. It is a very authentic place, with many local people coming there to pray. However, the entrance fee of 100 USD is, in my opinion, unreasonable. This is unfortunate, because there are currently very few tourists, and the local economy relies heavily on tourism and farming, and this very high fee does not help improve the situation. Ethiopian people are kind; however, one note regarding the children: please do not give them ANYTHING. The parents instruct the kids to follow tourists and beg, and in Lalibela this becomes overwhelming (unlike other cities, where children tend to be more curious or friendly). This is another factor that makes the overall experience less enjoyable in Lalibela

Beautiful place. The ticket price is $100 per person. I think it's too much. Before entering there, everyone recommended us a guide of 20 dollars per person but eventually we went alone and found the guide inside for 700 bir per person. We saw all the churches in one day. I recommend :)