Yemen Solo Female Travel Safety Tips and Advice

On this page you will find first-hand, unbiased, and real safety tips, advice and reviews from women traveling solo, submitted directly from their personal experiences in the country.

Their opinions are unfiltered and submitted independently as part of the Solo Female Travel Safety Index, a ranking of 210 countries and regions based on how safe they are for women traveling solo.

The safety scores range from 1 to 4 with 1 being the safest and 4 being the most dangerous for solo female travelers.

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Yemen Country data

We have compiled a few data points below that can help you better understand Yemen and have more context when thinking about travel safety.

Official country name: Republic of Yemen.

Etymology: Name derivation remains unclear but may come from the Arab term "yumn" (happiness) and be related to the region's classical name "Arabia Felix" (Fertile or Happy Arabia). The Romans referred to the rest of the peninsula as "Arabia Deserta" (Deserted Arabia).

Capital: Sanaa.

Independence / foundation: The Kingdom of Yemen (colloquially known as North Yemen) became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918 and in 1962 became the Yemen Arab Republic.

The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became the People's Republic of Southern Yemen (colloquially known as South Yemen). Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation and changed the country's name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen.

The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990.

Population: 32 million.

Currency: Yemeni Rial (YER)
1 USD = 250.38 YER
1 EUR = 268.91 - 274.11 YER

Time zone: UTC+3

Languages spoken: Arabic (official) Note - a distinct Socotri language is widely used on Socotra Island and Archipelago; Mahri is still fairly widely spoken in eastern Yemen.

Religions: Muslim 99% (official; virtually all are citizens, an estimated 65% are Sunni and 35% are Shia), other <1% (includes Jewish, Baha'i, Hindu, and Christian; many are refugees or temporary foreign residents).

Climate: Mostly desert. Hot and humid weather along west coast, temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon and extraordinarily hot, dry and harsh desert conditions in the east.

Real GDP (ppp – purchasing power parity): $73.63 billion.

Real GDP per capita (ppp): $2,500.

Main airports: Sana'a International Airport, Aden International Airport, Hodeidah International Airport.

World heritage sites in Yemen

There are over 1,100 world heritage sites spread across more than 165 countries. New ones are added every year, and some may be removed from the list for various reasons.

Number of UNESCO listed sites: 5.

Top world heritage sites:

- Historic Town of Zabid.
- Old City of Sana'a.
- Old Walled City of Shibam.
- Socotra Archipelago.
- Landmarks of the Ancient Kingdom of Saba, Marib.

Interesting facts about Yemen

- Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, was founded by Shem, according to the legend. Shem was one of the three sons of Noah from the flood story in the Old Testament book of the Bible.

- The People’s Republic of South Yemen was the Arab world’s first and only Marxist state.

- Yemenis are known for chewing a mild amphetamine-like drug called khat on a daily basis. The buds and leaves of the khat plant are chewed for stimulant and euphoric effects, and traditionally have been used for medicinal purposes as well as recreationally. Khat is also chewed in Somalia and other countries.

- The mocha coffee name comes from Yemen. The port city of Mocha was once a major coffee marketplace and is considered the birthplace of the coffee trade.

Further reading: N/A.

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Yemen Travel tips

More about Yemen on Solo Female Travelers

Coming soon.

Did you spot any errors? We do our best to keep this information updated and accurate, but things change. If you saw anything that is not right, let us know so we can fix it: [email protected].

About the Solo Female Travel Safety Index

Safety matters to solo female travelers, you told us so in our annual Solo Female Travel Survey, where year after year, women prove that this is their most important concern when traveling solo.

We wanted to do something about it, so we built these country-specific pages where you can find reviews and scores for 7 key variables affecting the safety of women traveling solo.

How to use the Safety Index

On this page, you will find the country score and the personal opinions on safety of other women traveling solo.

You can sort the comments by:

• The level of experience traveling solo of the reviewer (beginner = <5 trips solo, Intermediate = 5 to 10 trips solo, Experienced = >10 trips solo).
• The age of the traveler.
• Whether they are a visitor or local.
• The date they were posted.

The safety scores range from 1 to 4 with 1 being the safest and 4 being the most dangerous for solo female travelers. 

Thus, the lower the score, the safer the country.

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Looking for more safety resources?

This entire website is devoted to helping women travel solo. Check out the links below to learn more:

Solo Female Travel Stats: Results from the the largest, most comprehensive and only global research study on solo female travel trends, preferences and behaviors published.

Thanks to Jacobo Vilella for creating the Solo Female Travelers Safety Index ❤️