This is our third trip to Addis; we always enjoy staying at the Ethio-Comfort Guest House. Now, there are two different guest houses. The first two visits, we stayed in the original guest house; this time we stayed in the new house. The newer house is very nice, and the upstairs bedroom is very roomy. It had a double bed (very firm), a sofa, chair, dresser with mirror, and room for a cot. It also had a large dressing area with 2 walls of storage cabinets. The bathroom was clean, although I always wipe everything down with bleach wipes. Take your own toiletries. The water pressure was adequate--- much better than the older home with sometimes zero water pressure. The power did go off twice, and the guest home is ready with candles. I always take a flashlight, as I don't like mixing kids and candles! The dogs do bark all night. So if you're a light sleeper, take earplugs. The guest house has cable, and the manager allows you to use her laptop for internet.
The food was very American-friendly. Rice and vegetable, pasta with either meat or vegetables, hamburgers, Traditional Ethiopian food, and soups. Breakfast is typically eggs, toast with peanut butter or jelly, firfur (delicious injera with tomato and onions), waffles, coffee or tea, and oatmeal upon request. One recommendation, take plenty of snacks with you, as ordering food does take anywhere from 1-2 hours. Breakfast was always ready and on time, but not other meals. Be prepared, and plan ahead. Ethiopia is definitely the place you need to learn to "go with the flow."
Both guest homes have a small area for kids to play in. But beware of not attending your children. In the newer guest house, if a child walks behind the parked van, the staff is cooking outside--- using open flame units on the ground.
A nice benefit this time around was that the staff gives adoptive families an Ethiopian cell phone for use. This is great, and allows better communication between family and agency.
We did not use the driver at the hotel, although he was very kind and loved to play with our new son.

I stayed here exactly a year ago, and I waited this long because I wanted to see if my opinion might soften over time. It has not.

I asked to stay there a set number of days and of course was out the money when I opted to move out early. I hadn't paid ahead, but she argued she had reserved it for me. The place was empty except for one family from Germany, so I doubt it would have been rented, but that was fine. It was worth it to just pay the extra night and move out. However, I would warn that you keep track of all amounts you owe to the owner. While staying here, I did just that in a notebook, but then I wasn't outspoken enough to demand that amount. When it came time for me to move out, she quoted a fee which was much higher than I expected. I have no idea how she got that amount, but being in a strange place I hesitated to argue and look like a "cheap" American. I regrettably paid it and told myself that at least I was moving on to another place. Then I asked her to produce a receipt detailing the expenses (I ate no food there.). She asked if I had time for her to run home (a house or two away) so she could write the receipt. My taxi arrived about 30 minutes later, and she never returned.. which did not surprise me. The interesting thing is that I paid her the money (which if I remember was about $40usd too much), and after she walked away, a German family staying there said quietly to me, "We don't think we paid the correct amount the other night either." My advice is to keep track of what you owe there. Also, I would get my own taxi. While the gentleman was nice, the owner arranged it for a set price, and she insisted it was fine. I kept asking if they knew where they were going. They had absolutely no idea where I was going and we drove forever. However, they did not want to take me back and let me get my own taxi. I used it one time.

If you want a really nice hotel in Addis Ababa, I recommend the Hotel Astara. Unfortunately, I cannot find contact information for that hotel, but I have recommended it to others who were not disappointed. They knew someone in Addis who was able to go and get them reservations in person since I didn't have a phone number for it.

The Ethiocomfort guesthouse was a great first place to stay in Addis Ababa. I stayed in Addis while waiting for my newly adopted daughter's visa, we lived in Addis for 10 weeks. We stayed at Ethiocomfort for the first 4.5 weeks. It was reasonably clean and the staff were very friendly. The woman who runs the guesthouse is definitely a business woman. Although very friendly at first, I left Ethiocomfort with a different opinion. The staff really made the guesthouse - so warm and friendly. The food was good too. The security guard at the gate was very helpful and friendly.
The neighbourhood was safe and I enjoyed walking around getting to know the area. There are little stores nearby where you can buy most things. There are also some restaurants within walking distance where you can eat in or get food to go.
Downfalls:
The road the guesthouse is on is a washout when it rains. You would not want to walk on the road when it rained as the mud would REALLY stick to your shoes.
The owner of the guesthouse was a business woman. She did try to go back on a deal by attempting to move my friend from her room. This room was booked for 2 months and pre paid. As I was staying for a long stay, I learned the ins and outs of the area - where to eat for cheap, what taxi drivers were least expensive, where to buy water.... The owner and her husband sat me down and lectured me about giving tips to fellow guests. They did not want to doing this as it too money away from them. Although I see their point, tourists need to stick together. I know who much I appreciated any help I could get especially when it came to saving money!
I checked out 4 weeks early and had pre paid for the room. The owner never offered to give me back any of my money although she did rent out my room within 2 days of my leaving it!
I was on the 1st floor of rooms in a room with it's own bathroom. Although fairly clean, I ended up cleaning it myself as my daughter was on the floor to play. The bathroom did not have a shower curtain, the sink did not always work and the toilet seat was not attached to the toilet. I did mention these things and although the security guard (also maintenance man) tried to repair the sink, it was never really repaired.
There are lots of dogs in the area the tend to bark at night. Earplugs were helpful!
Would I stay there again: No but I do not regret staying there the first time. I miss the friendly staff and business people in the area (Pharez, Olive Mart).

We were worried about finding our way around on our trip to Ethiopia, not speaking Amharic well. EthioComfort rented us a sim card for our telephone, made us 3 meals a day when we requested, and helped us see the city, museums, and do some shopping! We had a wonderful time with their family, and the children were so much fun.

We'll definitely be back.