Chencha / Dorze Village
Photo: Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia / CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
Ethiopia SNNPR — Gamo Gofa 2 tours

Chencha / Dorze Village

Traditional weaving village at 2,900 m — 12-metre-tall bamboo beehive homes and the false-banana (enset) culture.

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Country

Ethiopia

Region

SNNPR — Gamo Gofa

Best time

Year-round

About Chencha / Dorze Village

Chencha is the main town of the Dorze people, perched at 2,900 m in the Gamo Highlands above Arba Minch. The Dorze are famous for two things: their astonishing 12-metre-tall woven-bamboo homes shaped like elephants, and their cultivation of enset (false banana), a staple crop that takes 4–7 years to mature and feeds the household. A working village visit covers home interiors, enset processing into 'kocho' bread, and the back-strap weaving of traditional shemma cloth.

Highlights

  • 12-metre 'elephant' bamboo houses
  • Enset (false banana) processing
  • Kocho flatbread tasting
  • Traditional shemma weaving
  • Gamo highland panorama

Best time to visit

Year-round

Itineraries

Tours that visit Chencha / Dorze Village

Choose a curated departure or use any of these as a starting point — we'll tailor the itinerary, dates and pace to you.

South Ethiopia: Rift Lakes + Konso + Dorze — 6 Days
Photo: JosepMGracia / CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
Ethiopia
From
$1890/pp
6 days / 5 nights
Cultural & Heritage Easy

South Ethiopia: Rift Lakes + Konso + Dorze — 6 Days

Flamingos at Abijatta, Crocodile Market at Chamo, Konso terraces and Dorze bamboo homes.

  • ✓Private 4x4 vehicle with English-speaking guide/driver for all transfers and game drives
  • ✓5 nights accommodation on full-board basis (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
  • ✓All national park and conservation area entry fees
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