Hotels and Accommodation in Harar

Harar Jugol — the walled old city of Harar — is one of Islam's holiest cities, ranked fourth after Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem in the tradition of the Harari people. The compact maze of whitewashed and painted houses, 82 mosques, hundreds of shrines and a network of lanes barely wide enough for two people is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most atmospheric urban environments in Africa.

Harar is also the birthplace of the Ethiopian coffee trade and was a major caravan terminus connecting the Ethiopian interior to the Gulf of Aden ports. Arthur Rimbaud — the French poet who abandoned poetry for commerce — lived in Harar for nearly a decade and his house is now a museum.

The most famous experience in Harar is the Hyena Men — families who have fed wild spotted hyenas by hand at the city walls every night for generations. Visitors can watch (and participate in) this extraordinary ritual at dusk.

Accommodation in Harar is concentrated both in the old walled city (Jugol) and in the modern city of Harar outside the walls. Heritage guesthouses within the walls offer the most atmospheric experience.