YEMENESE LIVEABOARD SCUBA DIVING ITINERARY
11-day tour programme, departures every Saturday with minimum 4 people
DAY 1 / (Saturday): ARRIVAL
International flight to Sana’a. Airport assistance at the arrival. Transfer to hotel for overnight.
DAY 2 / (Sunday): SANA’A – AL-SALIF
In the morning departure from Sana’a in a comfortable air conditioned minibus or Toyota Land Cruiser. Driving through amazing villages and wonderful landscapes, you will leave the incredible scenery of the terraced mountains to reach the coast. Stop for lunch in Hajja or nearby. As soon as you arrive at Al-Salif port, you are welcomed on board of
Boreas of Katharina . Boat orientation, crew introduction and you are ready to weigh anchor. Dinner and overnight aboard.
From DAY 3 to DAY 8 / (Monday to Saturday): FULL DAY CRUISING, SNORKELLING AND DIVING IN THE RED SEA
Exploring the southern Red Sea and the isolated Yemeni islands offers you tranquillity and beauty, both in the sea and on land. An immense variety of life, such as colourful tropical fish, delicate corals, mangrove areas, birds and a handful of men are there to be discovered.
While sailing, enjoy unspoiled islands, clean and immaculate coral beaches and huge volcano cones with multicolour lava flows. The biggest island is Kamaran, the island of Two Moons, the only one inhabited by a small community of hospitable fishermen. It has an amazing mangrove tangled canal where camels have a bath. You can swim in crystal-clear lagoons in the Kamaran group of islands or in salted pools surrounded by twisted rocks in the Zubayr islands, climb a volcano or just relax sunbathing on the deck. In the sky, circles of gannets and flamingos fly low. Underwater, for the joy of divers, ray fish, white fin and nurse sharks, barracudas, turtles, groupers, dolphins and a large number of reef fish swimming around a fabulous mix of corals.
DAY 9 / (Sunday): AL-SALIF – MANAKHA – AL-HAJARAH – SANA’A
Breakfast, disembark and departure from Al-Salif for Sana'a via Wadi Seham all the way up to Haraz region, an area of high mountain ranges where villages and terraces of coffee plantations cling to steep slopes. Its capital Manakha is a large market town full of narrow alleys, suqs and attractive four-story houses. Drive on to visit the fortified medieval villages of Al-Hoteib & Al-Hajarah, an old fortified village where houses are built directly onto rock. You will have a chance to share the local community traditional group dances. After lunch you will continue driving to Sana'a for dinner & overnight at hotel.
DAY 10 / (Monday): SANA’A
Situated in a mountain valley at an altitude of 2,200 m, Sana'a has been inhabited for more than 2,500 years. In the 7th and 8th centuries the city became a major centre for the propagation of Islam. This religious and political heritage can be seen in 103 mosques, 14 hammams and over 6,000 houses, all built before the 11th century.
Breakfast, then a full day exploration of Sana'a covering a visit to the ancient quarter of this fascinating Arabian city, with its intricately decorated mosques, 1000-year-old city walls, the hidden gardens, the old market "suq" and unique multiple-storied tower-houses built of rammed earth (pisé) and greatly decorated. Trip to Wadi Dhahr to visit the Rock Palace (Dar al-Hajar) which stands atop a protruding rock formation and has become a symbol of the country itself. This summer palace built in the 1930s for Imam Yahya is actually a group of palaces famous for its delightful location and its beautiful gypsum ornamentation in the Sana'a style. In the night you will enjoy a farewell dinner in a traditional restaurant. Overnight at hotel.
DAY 11 / (Tuesday): DEPARTURE
Transfer to Sana'a airport for international flight back to home.
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