Harar: Ethiopia’s walled city
A guide to Harar — the old walled town of Harar Jugol, its mosques and markets, and the famous hyena feeding.
Harar feels unlike anywhere else in Ethiopia. Its walled old town, Harar Jugol, is a dense maze of narrow alleys, brightly painted houses and busy markets, packed with mosques and shrines — a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the east of the country.
The old town
Wandering the Jugol is the main pleasure: colourful lanes, traditional Harari houses, spice and textile markets, and gateways in the old walls. It is a place to slow down and get lost for a few hours.
The hyena men
After dark, just outside the walls, local "hyena men" hand-feed wild hyenas that come in from the hills — a genuinely unusual tradition that visitors can watch and, if brave, join. It is one of Harar’s signature experiences.
Also worth seeing
- The house associated with the French poet Arthur Rimbaud, who lived here in the 1880s.
- Harari coffee — the surrounding region is famous for it.
Markets and food
The Jugol’s markets are a highlight in themselves — spice, textile and basket sellers, and the smoky-sweet Harari coffee the region is known for. Look out for the colourful recessed-shelf interiors of traditional Harari houses, some open to visitors, and the local flatbreads and stews.
Getting there
Most travellers reach Harar via Dire Dawa, about an hour down the escarpment, which has the airport and the electric railway from Addis Ababa. From Dire Dawa it is a short, scenic drive up to the walls. Some people overnight in Dire Dawa either side of a Harar visit.
When to go
The east is warmer and lower than the highlands, so Harar is comfortable for most of the year; the dry months are easiest underfoot, and the hyena feeding happens nightly whatever the season.
Browse places to stay in Harar in or beside the old walled city.