Manuhie Backpackers Lodge — Hotel in Bahir Dar Special Zone

Very noisy day and night due to mainly local guests. Structure with no noise protection. Mosquitos in room, no mosquito net, wifi not working. Overprized for foreigners (sgl. 350 ETB /night with bath for 6 nights). Very basic room interior (bed, chair, small table). Long lasting voltage drops on power net. Good renewed ensuite bathroom on *-level.

Due to lack of tourists the guesthouse hosted local workers who misused the green courtyard as carpark for a commercial pick-up. When they loaded the car at 5 am on several days they run the diesel motor for all time loading, longer than 20 minutes. It's local tradition. You felt like sleeping directly on the parking lot. All children of hosted families woke up and stayed awake. Since there is no noise-protection in the building, you hear every word in the neighbour rooms and the courtyard.

My room was filled with dozzens of mosquitos when I arrived. Mosquito protection is difficult to find in Bahir Dar, they don't care. Finally I could purchase a strong spray and I sprayed the room extensively with good success. They then wanted me to move to another room. There was no mosquito net or a suspension for your own. For the night I used coils. Lake Tana is malaria endemic, despite what they say. Take care!

The renewed bathroom with very good hot shower was the best I had since month. It is possible to wash clothes and hang outside.

The high farangi-prize is not reflecting the lack of quality, especially the noise issues from other guests. If you are looking for a calm place for a longer stay to relax and work intellectually, I recommend you to spend a little more birr and bargain a several nights stay at the...

I spent about 5 weeks in Bahar Dar because of a research project I was doing there. ||When I was looking for accommodation at the start, I wanted to find something cheap (as I'm still a student) but comfortable and clean (as it would be my home for more than a month). Besides that, I wanted to find a place with some personality, where I would know the personnel and owner (instead of living for 5 weeks alone in a big hotel). At Manuhie, all of those elements were present. Interesting price/quality of the rooms, clean and OK comfort. In addition, from the day I arrived, the owner, Nati, was extremely open and friendly and took me to all sorts of places to eat, have a drink or watch football. The people who work at the hostel were all very friendly as well and I had good relationship with them. The neighbourhood where Manuhie is located is as well very peaceful and safe.||I can conclude that I am very happy I stayed at Manuhie and would recommend this place to anyone!||Thank you for everything Nati & co, you guys made me feel at home in Ethiopia :)||||One last thing I would like to mention... Yes it is true that Nati asks his guests whether they want to participate to the tours he organises. That is normal, because that is his job and that is one way for him to earn his living. He does not at all impose this on his guests and does not bother them with it. Me, for example, I only did one tour arranged by him. I asked it myself, he gave a fair price and the tour turned out...

Nati is an excellent host annd manager, and he goes above and beyond to help guests plan their trip and enjoy their time in Bahir Dar. Manuhie is a great place to stay on a budget. Central location and east walk to other places in town. It is a backpackers style hostel, so check your expectations. Plus, this place (and many accommodations in this region) are recovering from years of covid, conflict, and no tourism, so they are slowly getting back on their feet. Regardless, we (3 ladies) felt very comfortable and safe during our time, and we’d encourage anyone to go and enjoy Bahir Dar and the surrounding area! We planned our logistics and two trips through Nati, including a day trip to Blue Nile Falls and a day spent on Lake Tana. The tours were planned perfectly and we enjoyed every minute! Nati showed us around the local fish market and acquainted us to the delicious local food. Even if you don’t stay at Manuhie, I’d encourage you to plan your trips...