Selam
Head of house and chief coffee ceremony officer. Knows every shortcut in Addis and half the city's grandmothers by name.
Our Story
Two friends, one cheeky monkey, and a mission to make East Africa feel like home.
How a Backpacking Trip Became a Hostel
It started with a missed bus and ended with a family.
Two Friends, Zero Plan
Mad Vervet began the way most good travel stories do: two friends, one backpack each, and a bus out of Addis Ababa that left without them. Stranded for the night, they were taken in by a local family who fed them, laughed at their Amharic, and refused to take a single birr. Somewhere between the second and third round of coffee, an idea landed — what if every traveller in East Africa could feel this welcome?
Years of dorm rooms, night buses and borrowed couches later, they came back and opened the hostel they had always wished existed: loud enough to make friends in, calm enough to actually sleep in, and cheap enough to stay longer than planned.
And the Monkey?
The vervet is East Africa's most social animal — it travels in troops, shares everything, and never passes up a party. It moved into our logo, then onto our walls, and now it's basically the third founder. Cheeky, loyal, always up for one more story: that's the spirit we hire for, cook for, and build every Mad Vervet night around.
What We Stand For
Four rules that never bend, no matter how loud the night gets.
- Community First
- Budget Friendly
- Local & Real
- Safe & Sound
Shared dinners over private TV screens. Fair prices over fine print. Neighbourhood guides over guidebook clichés. And lockers, night staff and well-lit paths home — because fun only works when everyone feels safe.
Meet the Troop
The humans behind the monkey. Say hi at the front desk — they love that.
Brian
Events lead, pub crawl navigator, and the reason Thursday open mic exists. Will absolutely beat you at table football.
Hanna
Kitchen chief. Her injera nights feed forty backpackers and somehow there are never leftovers.
Where the Magic Happens
The bar, the kitchen, the garden, the lounge — the four corners of every Mad Vervet night.
Come Meet the Family
Beds fill fast on event nights — grab yours and we'll keep a seat at the table.
Book Your Bed