7 Most Instagrammable Spots in Ethiopia's Danakil Depression

The Danakil Depression sits in Ethiopia's Afar region, a below-sea-level basin that extends toward Djibouti and Eritrea but holds its best-known sights on the Ethiopian side. It ranks among the hottest and lowest inhabited places on Earth, with average annual temperatures around 35°C, and is reachable only on organised multi-day 4x4 expeditions out of Mekele.

1. Dallol's sulphur springs

Dallol's hydrothermal field is the Danakil's signature image: bright yellow, green and red mineral pools, fissures and small geysers created by sulphur and iron deposits, set within one of the lowest and hottest terrains on the continent.

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2. The salt flats of Lake Karum

Also known as Lake Asale, this vast hyper-saline lake dries into blinding white salt flats that turn mirror-flat after rain, among the most striking flat-landscape shots the region offers.

3. Camel caravans crossing the salt pans

Afar salt miners still cut slabs of salt by hand from the Karum flats and load them onto camel caravans for the journey out, a centuries-old trade that continues largely unchanged and often crosses paths with visiting tour groups.

4. Erta Ale's lava lake

Erta Ale is one of the few volcanoes on Earth with a persistent, actively churning lava lake, reached by a night hike to the crater rim where visitors typically camp to see it glow after dark.

5. Dallol's outer hydrothermal fields

Beyond the main terraces, the wider field around Dallol holds smaller, equally vivid pools and salt formations that shift in colour and shape as mineral deposits build and erode.

6. Lake Afrera's turquoise shallows

The Danakil's second hypersaline lake, also known as Lake Afdera, offers a calmer, bluer contrast to Karum's stark white flats and is a common stop on longer Danakil circuits.

7. The star-filled sky over the salt camps

With almost no light pollution across the depression, overnight camps beneath the stars, often set up near the salt flats or Erta Ale's slopes, round out most itineraries with a very different kind of shot.

Traveller tips

• The Danakil Depression is reachable only with an organised multi-day tour departing from Mekele, typically three to four days; independent travel is not permitted in parts of the area.
• Daytime temperatures regularly exceed 40°C even outside summer; carry more water than seems necessary and expect basic camping conditions throughout.
• Visiting Erta Ale's lava lake involves a night hike to the crater rim, so a reasonable level of fitness is required.
• Check current official travel advisories for Ethiopia's Afar region, which borders Eritrea, before booking a tour.