“Yemen”: this word can scare. But a country can never be defined by war or mediatic scare.
The residual pockets of Yemen’s conflict are mainly taking place in the northwest of mainland Yemen, hundreds of kilometers away from Socotra island. Furthermore, as a local tradition, violence is a foreign concept for Socotris people. Thanks to the wind, the miles away from the coast and the difficult climate in the archipelago, Socotra has always been far from the mainland’s troubles. Socotri community is strong and the different tribes and families have a long tradition of avoiding the blood feud through dialogs and compromises. That’s why few weapons are visible on the island among the citizens. Also, that’s why no Socotris ever joined terrorist or militia groups.
By taking the daily flight from Abu Dhabi, the trip from UAE is the best and safest option to reach Socotra. Socotris has welcomed tourists from everywhere since the early 2000’s. So the young generation gets used to meet women and men with different cultures. At the beginning of Arabs spring demonstrations which take place mainly in the mainland, tourism shut down for a while and many local guides and drivers had to quit their jobs. After almost 10 years of a very slowing down of the tourism, Socotris are welcoming back foreigners with passion. There is no hostility against westerners. The island is connected to the outside world since Romans used to trade the dragon blood trees’ sap in the island.
As Yemen is a muslim country, men and women are simply requested to wear decent clothes as a respect for locals. Hijab is not requested for women. As you’ll be with local guides during your trip, they would advise you for any questions regarding the contact with natives.
To sum up, Socotra is very safe. You can sleep everywhere without fear. There are no crimes and foreigners are always welcome very nicely.
Well said ??????
Many Thanks Quentin ??????
I have to mention on my first trip across the Gulf of Aden to Socotra in the year 2000 it was very different to the now seamless means of todays travel. This isolated jewel in the Indian Ocean is a joy to behold for the adventurous explorer in all of us. I’ve been visiting and living in Yemen for years at a time and visiting the Island of Socotra numerous times and it is truly a joy to behold. Safety was never an issue, warm and friendly hospitality was and is everywhere. My only issue was the delicious food, the Yemeni know how to cook….!