[2] Nearby attractions include Mount Wenchi to the south with its crater lake, and the Guder, Teltele and Huluka Falls.

[5] By 1933, Ambo had started to be a recreation place with the construction of some bath cabins with cisterns of concrete, and a couple of European-type hotels, as well as simple villas for the Emperor and important persons.

described improvements to Ambo which included a post office, telephone service, a clinic for outpatients, restaurants, and a projected hotel.

[6][7] When the Allies reached Ambo with a South African armored car patrol in early 1941, they had to evacuate 140 "utterly panicked Italians".

[6] At least as early as 1955, there was a 170 kW hydro-electric power station in the town; by 1965 the installed electrical capacity was 210 kVA, with annual production of 132,000 kWh.

[8] This was part of their strategy to avoid a direct assault on the capital, Addis Ababa, and instead surround the city and isolate it from the rest of the country.

[9] A prominent Oromo businessman, Daraaraa Kafani, was murdered in front of his home; eyewitnesses said he was slain by a man wearing a military uniform.

[14] On 18 December 2006, the Oromia Region government signed an agreement with Henan in China to establish a sister city program with Xuchang.