Socotra is an island owned by Yemen which is actually closer to Africa than the Middle East. A unique ecosystem of incredible beauty, the island is really the holy grail of travelling. As it turns out, Young Pioneer Tours are the expert at running tours of Socotra.
While it is owned by Yemen, the situation on the island is extremely different from the mainland. The archipelago is peaceful and its infrastructures are relatively working as it is influenced by a strong military and economic presence from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This makes Socotra and safe and pleasant alternative to visiting mainland Yemen.
Scheduled Group Tours to Socotra
Young Pioneer Tours organises regular tours there throughout the year. It is one of the cheapest way to visit the island
Bespoke Tours to Socotra
If groups really aren’t your thing, it is also possible for us to organise independent tours of Socotra. The travel season (it gets too hot out of this window) is from October to April.
Getting there
At the moment, the easiest way to get to Socotra is through Yemenia Yemen Airways regular flight from Cairo to Socotra, stopping for a quick layover in Seiyun. We’ve discussed this in detail in this blog. The flight happens both ways on Wednesdays, once a week. As it is not possible to book the flight online, YPT will take care of that for you on any tour you book through us.
It would also be possible to reach Seiyun overland from Oman and from there catch the flight to the island. At the current time, this is not something YPT is willing to support or encourage for safety reasons due to the ongoing conflict in mainland Yemen.
We’ve discussed how to get there in more details in this blog.
Visas
Through our extensive contacts in the region. Young Pioneer Tours take care of all the visa procedures for you and you’ll get your visa on arrival in Socotra Airport with us providing you with a proof of approval allowing you to take all your flights. You simply need to get to Egypt!
Things to do in Socotra
It is an ideal place for those who love trekking and camping. It has astounding flora, in the form of the Dragonblood trees and the bottle tree. The best places to spot the Dragon Blood’s Trees are certainly Diksam and Homhil.
The island has great caves and grottoes such as Hoq Cave for adepts of spellunking.
Finally, the coasts are gorgeous and dolphins are sighted regularly on boat trips and the Dihamri Marine Protected Area is sure to offer you great snorkelling opportunities.
All of these activities are part of our tours to Socotra.
While there is accommodation in Hadibo, the provincial capital, the rest of the region is still very wild and you’ll have to be a bit of a camping enthusiast. In collaboration with our Socotri partners, we have brought our own comfortable tents to the island and have found very good cooks who will make sure you do not notice the lack of restaurants at all!
Culturally, the Socotri people have their distinct traditions from the rest of the world. Socotri is its own language. We can organise drum dancing shows as well as singing.
You’ll find a more detailed introduction to Socotra in our Socotra guide.
