The essence of travel in Eritrea is highly concentrated in Asmara and along the descent to Massawa. This short trip is arranged in three parts: 'urban area – outskirts – coastal region'. Only the Massawa leg requires a travel permit, making the process shorter.
Start the morning on Independence Avenue: visit the Fiat Tagliero Garage, the Imperial Cinema, view the exterior of the Imperial Palace and the National Museum; in the afternoon, the Holy Mary Cathedral and the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary face each other from east to west. At dusk, head up to the highland edge to watch the city’s sunset, and in the evening, find a 1930s-style café for your final macchiato of the day.
Walk through Art Deco gas stations, Italian-style apartment blocks, and the city market. Have lunch near the market with a traditional Tigrinya meal (injera with spicy stewed vegetables). In the afternoon, join a traditional coffee ceremony: from roasting green beans over charcoal, hand-grinding, to the three rounds of brewing—takes about an hour. The host will keep refilling your cup, as this is a core social scene in Eritrean life. After the ceremony, you can visit nearby craft shops and bring back a small bag of locally roasted coffee beans. In the evening, walk along Harnet Avenue again—the facades look completely different in daylight and at night. Photography enthusiasts may want to bring a tripod.
Set off early in the morning along the historic highway: descend sharply from the 2,300-meter-high plateau down to the shores of the Red Sea, passing what could be called an engineering museum of continuous hairpin turns and remnants of old cableways (once the world’s longest freight cableway, destroyed in war, with bridge piers visible along the way). Along the way, stop at viewpoints to look down on the lowlands of the Eastern Rift Valley and feel the dramatic climate shift from cool highlands to hot coastal areas within an hour. Arrive in Massawa in the afternoon, explore the Old Town’s Three Gates, coral-stone houses, and the Ottoman Mosque. Watch the sunset on the harbor boardwalk in the evening and have dinner with a freshly grilled fish caught that day.
In the morning, choose between near-shore snorkeling or taking sunrise photos at the fishing port. In the afternoon, drive back to Asmara and head to the airport in the evening for departure the next day.