Is it Safe to Travel to Yemen?
originally published in Wanderlust, January 2010
The Arabian nation boasts incredible desert scenery and UNESCO-listed cities, but also has a disturbing history of kidnapping and terrorism. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office continues to advise against all travel to the Governorate of Sa'ada, and all but essential travel to the rest of the country, rendering many travel insurance policies void. We asked a reader, a writer and an insider for their perspective.
Daniel McLaughlin is author of the Bradt travel guide to Yemen
Although Yemen faces a civil war between rebels in the north and a separatist movement in the south, the main concern for tourists is not war but terrorism. Since 2006, when senior Al-Qaeda operatives escaped – Shawshank Redemption-style – from a maximum-security prison in Yemen, the splintered terrorist organisation has regrouped and carried out attacks against both Western and Yemeni targets. Tourists have been killed in a handful of suicide-bomber attacks. Ironically, as Al-Qaeda grows stronger in Yemen, attacks there may decrease as the group maintains a low profile to plan attacks against Saudi Arabia. The decline in terrorist attacks in Yemen after March 2009 suggest that this trend is already underway. Still, caution is a must.
Wanderlust reader Nigel Branscombe travelled to Yemen in November 2009
Yemen is a fascinating country full of friendly people but it is sorely in need of tourist dollars. In the capital, Sana'a, there was no perceived security threat, but travelling about an hour's drive away to Wadi Dhahr, Kowkabam and Thula we did encounter military road blocks – easily passed with our paperwork. In the more ‘dodgy' areas in the east (specifically around Shibam) groups on an organised itinerary were accompanied by armed guards. In addition, if you wanted to go for a walk from outside the hotel you were expected to pay extra for a guard waving a Kalashnikov. Some of the hotels and tourist sites had concrete bollards and slaloms outside to discourage car bombers. The authorities are trying to make travel as safe as possible.
Benjamin Carey of Dunira Strategy represents Yemen Tourism in the UK
With sensible planning all of Yemen's important tourism sites remain accessible, especially since the authorities have introduced new security arrangements for visitor protection on every permitted itinerary. Fully comprehensive travel insurance can be arranged for a small additional premium (around £40) to any UK or Irish resident that chooses to travel against official FCO travel advice. While many insurers don't actively promote these policies, they do recognise that there are many experienced travellers that want to travel to some of the world's more unique destinations with a responsible tour operator: at least eight British operators are currently running tours to Yemen. It is obviously better to support these travellers with decent insurance.