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Arabia fantastic Arabia

The range of tours depends on your imagination and your interests, Aden Tours caters for all types of  interests:  Photographic studies, field work for Artists, Trekking in mountains - littered with citadels, Ornithological, fishing, Antiques, Architectural, Archeological, Anthropological, exploratory  Expeditions, Scuba Diving coral reefs, Rock climbing, Bicycling, off road motorcycling, Gastronomic, Educational & Language studies, Tour company groups or design your own itinerary !

You can select any package & you SAVE on your accommodation or you create your own itinerary by yourself or liaise with us over the net on exciting & unique adventures of a life time.

Some Tour Ideas

Your walk through the worlds Oldest living city, like Damascus, it’s memorable! Not only for the aged beauty or bustling throng of shoppers which fill the streets, like colourful waves upon the time worn polished cobble stones, but for the people who naturally greet you with a friendly  “hello - welcome to Yemen ” You will find many tourist spend their whole time in the Old Quarter without venturing outside the old city precinct. For the Artist, Architect or Photographer. Antique jewelry is very popular not to forget the spices, honey, frankincense, coffee, an array of fabrics of every colour imaginable, from pantaloons to pashminas, Gold & Silver, raisins to rugs. Your only limit is your excess baggage, so leave it behind !

You may wish to have radial tours from the charm of the Old City or a Luxurious Hotel, these tours are very affordable and very flexible to suit every need. We leave at 8am and have you back late afternoon (1) Rock Palace, Thulla, with a banquet lunch at the famous Shibam  restaurant then  walk the steps of Kawkaban, through the mountain pass to the breath taking views which the Imam gazed upon during his retreat   (2) Manakah and ridge top villages of Hajarah which take you back to the middle ages (3) Mahweit visit the archeological sites that continue to discover ancient relics  (4) Mareb where we go back in time to Sheba (5) Stay in town, experience the vibrant colour of the timeless suuq or visit a Gallery or Museum

                      

 

The Heritage listed Island which hosts a spectacular array of Botanic wonders, magnificent ocean beaches, mountain ranges with hidden valleys and fresh water pools which reminds you of the age of dinosaurs. Scuba Diving in the clear and clean waters of the Arabian Sea, you may even be able to see the recent discovery of a cave drawing of one of Alexander the Greats’ war ships on their return to Macedonia from Persia approximately 1 mile deep into one of the myriad of cave systems. Fresh fish, friendly people, fine weather and untouched, swim with the 1000s of Dolphins, make it your adventure, make it your dream, live it.

You may have visions of exotic Arabian nights, Rudolf Valentino with colourful silks, tents, hand-made carpets & desert sunsets that illuminate the sky with a hue of colour that almost defies description. Desert life and desert travel can be either with the luxury of a Land cruiser or a Camel, regal or rough it. The trips through the desert cover many options, discover the ancient world of Sheba (Mareb) and the marvel of ancient agricultural achievement,  travel the ancient camel routes which brought the spices, incenses and perfumes from the far East. Discover the area of the world lost to time, where everyday is Sunday & time stands still a colourful wonderland with a friendly atmosphere  

Day Tours from Sana’a ; formerly know as the City of Roses.

Love is a beautiful thing & for those who have experienced it are for the wiser, ‘ for better or worse ’ so it is said. You may wish to consummate that bonding of man & woman in the beauty the land of Sheba provides, with both the serenity & mystic of the Palaces which provide a service for just such an occasion or you are offered a setting deep in the heart of the Desert, with a Bedouin tent and fully catered ‘Rudolf Valentino style’. For all these occasions a DVD is also produced to share with your guests family & friends for your memories. These gatherings are run in the most professional manner with little left to chance, however you must be specific when making your booking. Japanese clients are most welcome. 

Wendell Phillips was an interesting archeologist come adventurer who discovered the wonders left behind in the land of Sheba, now after many years his aging sister carries on his fascinating discovery at Mareb for the ‘American Foundation of Man’. There is also a German archeological team working at the famous Mareb dam, the dam & it’s catchments supported over 25,000 people in the days of  King Solomon. Yufrus also many tombs & shrines, one in particular is that of the famous Mystic Sufi leader Sheikh Ahmed Bin Alwan, which the Alwani Dervish order is named. This country is full of many historic temples & shrines, just let us know what you passion is & we will outline a special program for you,

Throughout history we find artifacts, stories & legends of the people who have gone before us, ‘many roads lead not only to Rome but to the Yemen’. It is unfortunate that in the past many non Islamic relics have been discarded & looted as many throughout the world. It is for that reason people like you & I hope to show there importance for the future generations, by visiting them, discovering them & hopefully assisting in their preservation. There is an interesting story of a ‘well’ in the old city of Sana’a, where it is said that those years of Jesus' mysterious unaccountability, he visited the Yemen, where Noah sent his son Sam, formerly known as the Sam City. Their is a well from where Jesus drank, nowadays this cistern is need of repair, if certainly not a visit. There are many more stories to tell, often found in the aural history & song.

Yemen you will find has a plethora of schools purely dedicated to the study of Arabic, with both school and accommodation provided, many long term students however prefer to stay in the ‘old city ‘ of Sana’a, just to feel the atmosphere, which is still relatively pure in spirit. Aden Tours can not only arrange the course appropriate for you needs based requirements as well as suitable accommodation & educational tours in and around the country. We also can assist you in external based study tours, for those schools and universities who wish to undertake educational study tours, either Architectural, Archeological, Theological, Language, Anthropological, Botanic, Ornithological, Environmental, Historical, Topographical, Geological, Social & Political science or Film production  etc.. 

You may be a visiting NGO officer or on business, in any event, it is a perfect time to see some of the splendid features our history has left for us to share with you. Take a look at some of the examples and ideas in these few web pages provided to encourage your imagination. Perhaps you just wish to relax, visit the numerous ‘ hot springs & spas ‘ that are dot throughout the land, Wadi Al Hammam is just a short distance from Sana’a (day trip). As with all trips of this nature, some can capitalize on them and others have just a few days, nevertheless, you are assured of being motivated to come again, hopefully out of working hours.

You must realize by now, that a surfs a surf, no matter where you find it, this Yemeni coast is subject to the monsoonal variances of the Arabian Sea between India & the Arabian coastline. If you know the ‘surf coast’ down Torquay way, it is an easy run from Jan Juc to Southside & often get a wave along the way. Here there is no ‘Priest of Sauna’ or Illawatu, reporting daily swell & wind conditions, no internet connection to make it easy, not like Hawaii, Cape St Francis, your Grace Town, Margaret River or Hawaii, try your skill as the those who have gone before you. Here it is a lot different, it is new, unspoiled, unknown, unpredictable, wild & hard, an adventure to say the least, let alone getting a surf in, however, you might be lucky to discover you’re your own never ridden, glassy hollow tube.

The whole country is littered with the magnificent splendor of ancient building techniques which are either in mud or stone. Your interest may well be limited, however you can not stop marveling at the achievements of this mysterious paradise, land locked between sea, desert & time. These palaces built with the ingenuity and local materials, you will find Royal Palaces with all the stories that accompany the ‘Tales of Arabian Nights’,  romantic, colourful and awe inspiring from every corner of the land, if you visit this land once, it is not enough. As it happens the old & the modern seem to have a nexus & synergy that seem to overlap, take a look for yourself or bring your study group, meet the craftsmen &  engineers who seem to fuse the two together.               

Adventure, Adventure, whether it be on foot or bicycle, the mountain treks are truly breath taking, they take the form of guided tours half-day to ten days from top to bottom, some yet to be discovered amongst  the 40,000 villages throughout the High Yemen. Some villages have never seen a foreigner as yet. We also consider expeditions for those who wish to tailor their holiday in the for of discovering the unexplored. Search for the Arabian Leopard which still stalks the remote mountain rainforests. You will discover the many Shangri-La that dot this timeless wonderland  Arabia Felix. Rock climbers paradise.

From the charm of your Old City Palace or a Luxurious Hotel, these tours are very affordable and very flexible to suit every need, providing you stipulate them. When your imagination wanders the back streets of your mind, & then  feel the exotic stories & fables envelope you, such are the moments that many customers share with us, they all seem to have an uplifting emotional experience when visiting the old quarter of Sana’a lets hope that when you visit you understand what I mean. You may wish to sleep under a canopy of stars in a Bedouin tent or boudoir in a Sultans’ Palace. Many young lovers or those young at heart should consider indulging themselves, ‘most of us make this journey but once’, so enjoy it whilst you’re here.  

                      

 

This type of tour is a favorite for those who love antiquity, you may be interested in designing your own as many have done. We have assisted those well prepared, to locate, with the assistance of the Sana’a University to document and film the discovery of a ‘mummy culture’ ‘here in Yemen. Recently I was in a shared taxi when a fellow passenger said ‘we have many in our remote village cemetery, however there is not much interest in them’. Well he is certainly wrong in my case, perhaps you may wish to discover them with us in the future. There are 40,000 villages in Yemen & many very remote, with stories to tell, you must be aware, we wish to preserve history & culture, so bear in mind these are rare adventures, limited to a few. Any scholarly expedition from a school or university is most welcome to discuss a program to suit your needs.

The Heritage listed Island which hosts a spectacular array of botanic wonders, magnificent ocean beaches, mountain ranges with hidden valleys and fresh water pools which reminds you of the age of dinosaurs. Scuba Diving in the clear and clean waters of the Arabian Sea, you may even be able to see the recent discovery of a clay model of one of Alexander’s war ships on their return to Macedonia from Persia approximately 2 kilometers  deep into one of the myriad of cave systems. Fresh fish, handmade pottery friendly people, fine weather and few people, make it your adventure, make it your dream. Ornithologists  will enjoy the experience of feasting their eyes on many endemic local & migratory birds.

Throughout the diverse mixture of people living in this timeless land you will notice the variation of costumes and clothing worn by both gender, colour being most notable, even with the women, though you may not see it openly. For example in the Hadhramaut you will notice the ladies with an exotic display of hats, some of which have brilliant coloured tips which coordinate with their footwear, especially in the Wadi Do’an, with the Shepard's, known as ‘Ra’ajh’. It is advised to refrain from taking photographs of the women, it is not something they like at anytime. From the mountains to the sea the sight is a special treat.

All our Japanese visitors love to visit the mountainous regions of Shahara with it’s rugged & precipitous accent, truly a journey for the adventurous at heart. This magnificent structure approximately 300 years old, recently restored by our friend Atik, who may be persuaded to give you a first hand guided tour amongst the other splendid restorations of mosques & historic buildings throughout the Yemen he restores. A really special treat for the engineer or architecturally inclined visitor. This tour requires both a guide and escort and can only be reached by 4X4 vehicles, 2 in fact, the second being supplied by the Bedouin locals.