Introduction to Yemen
Turn on the news, and you'll find a Yemen defined by aerial bombardments, political chaos and warring factions. But those headlines only tell part of the story, and arguably the least interesting part at that.
Yemen has a turbulent recent history. But to treat that conflict as the whole of Yemen's story would be to sell the country extraordinarily short.
Because long before any of this, Yemen was one of the most important places on earth. As far back as the 7th century BC, Frankincense, myrrh and spices passed through here on their way to Roman temples and Egyptian courts. That wealth left its mark in ways you can still see today. Take Shibam, in the Hadhramaut Valley - a walled city where a tight cluster of mud-brick towers, some reaching eight stories high, rises from the flat desert floor. The Manhattan of the Desert is its well-earned nickname, and when you see it, the comparison makes immediate sense. It was an architectural achievement that was centuries ahead of its time. And it's still standing.
And then, roughly 240 kilometres off the Horn of Africa, floating in the northwest Indian Ocean, is Socotra.
Yemen and Socotra are connected by lines on a map, but miles apart in every sense of the word.
Read our Socotra Country Profile here.
Yemen History
7th Century BCE, Sabean Kingdom
The land that is now Yemen sat at one of the most strategically valuable positions on the ancient trade map. The Sabean kingdom, at its commercial peak from roughly the 7th century BC, controlled the overland frankincense and spice routes that linked southern Arabia to Egypt, the Mediterranean and, later, Rome.
Arrival of Islam
In 628 AD, the Prophet Mohammed sent messengers to Yemen's rulers. Within a short time, and largely without military coercion, Yemen converted.
1538, Ottoman Arrival
External powers came and went, each drawn by the same logic - whoever controlled Yemen's coastlines and ports controlled some of the most important shipping lanes in the world. They stayed until the collapse of their empire in 1918, when the north became an independent Mutawakkilite Kingdom under the Zaydi Imam.
1839, British Arrival
The South told a different story. Britain seized Aden in 1839, recognising its value as a coaling station on the route to India. The city grew into one of the busiest and most cosmopolitan ports in the world by the mid-20th century, a prosperous colonial hub that sat somewhat incongruously at the edge of some of Arabia's most remote landscapes.
The British Aden Protectorate gradually extended its influence across the surrounding southern tribal territories over the following decades.
1962, Division of Yemen
Both pieces of Yemen fell away from their respective masters within a few years of each other. In the north, a 1962 military coup overthrew the Imamate and established the Yemen Arab Republic. In the south, a Marxist-led independence movement drove the British out in 1967, establishing what became the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen.
1990, Yemen Unification
Unification came on 22 May 1990. Ali Abdullah Saleh, the canny northern leader who had famously described governing Yemen as "dancing on the heads of snakes," became president of the unified country.
Four years later, southern leaders, feeling marginalised by the north, declared independence. A brief civil war followed - the North won decisively.
2011 Arab Spring
The Arab Spring protests of 2011 finally broke his grip on power. He eventually agreed to hand the presidency to his deputy, Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, in 2012.
2015 Onwards
By March 2015, with Houthi forces advancing on Aden, a Saudi-led military coalition intervened to restore the internationally recognised government. The war that followed has resulted in one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of the 21st Century. Today, the Houthis hold the north, including Sana'a. The Presidential Leadership Council controls parts of the south. The Southern Transitional Council holds much of Aden and the surrounding areas.
Against all of this, the ancient cities, the Hadhramaut desert and the extraordinary warmth of the Yemeni people continue to exist in the spaces in between.
Read a more detailed history here.
Travelling in Mainland Yemen
Travelling to mainland Yemen is not for the first-time traveller, in all honesty.
Group travel to specific parts of Yemen is currently operating, and certainly can be safe to do so. And, extremely rewarding.
The primary area accessible to tourist groups is the Hadhramaut, the ancient valley in eastern Yemen that contains some of the most extraordinary desert architecture in the Arab world. Shibam, the walled city of mud-brick towers that the user's draft describes as the Manhattan of the Desert, sits at the valley's heart and delivers on the description in an almost unreasonable way. The surrounding Hadhramaut landscape, with its dramatic wadis, hilltop villages and date-palm valleys, reinforces the sense that you are somewhere the world has not entirely caught up with yet.
Access to the Old City of Sana'a requires entirely separate arrangements. Sana'a is in Houthi-controlled territory and the practical and security considerations are fundamentally different from those in Hadhramaut. It is currently not possible as a tourist to visit Sana'a.
You cannot travel independently. All groups move with a licensed local operator, government-issued permits and a tourist police escort. Checkpoints are frequent. Itineraries are fixed in advance and are not easily changed once you are in the country. Payment is entirely in cash (USD).
Accommodation is in local hotels that are functional rather than comfortable in the conventional sense - but often incredibly gorgeous. And the food is good. Yemen has a distinct culinary tradition of grilled and slow-cooked meats, flatbreads, honey (some of the finest in the world) and strong, cardamom-spiced tea that becomes a genuine pleasure over the course of a week.
Yemen is not a destination for everyone. We do not take people there lightly. But for travellers who are experienced in complex destinations, comfortable with structured itineraries and genuinely curious about a country with a historical and cultural depth that is almost without parallel in the Arab world, it belongs on a very short list.
