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Aden
Temporary capital of Yemen

Aden

Aden is an ancient port city in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, on the north coast of the Gulf of Aden, positioned near the eastern approach to the Red Sea, and has been the de facto capital of the internationally recognized government of Yemen since 2014.

Plan a trip to Aden→From Sanaa

It is approximately 170 km (110 mi) east of the Strait of Bab al-Mandab. With its strategic location on the coastline, Aden serves as a gateway between the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, making it a crucial maritime hub connecting Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

Get in

Getting to Aden

Access to Aden is available by car, airplane and bus. Airfare from Sana'a on Yemenia, the national carrier, is around 10,000 rials or US$55. Buses are generally comfortable and the journey from Sana'a to Aden takes about 8 hours. A ticket costs about 1500 rials. Be prepared to show a travel permit (Tashrih) on military checkpoints. You can't leave capital Sanaa without it.

  1. 01
    Aden International Airport
See

Worth seeing

Sunsets, lagoons (for bird-watching), the Aden museum, Crater (including a shopping district), people, beach and reservoirs. Sights by neighborhood:

  1. 01
    Big Ben Aden
  2. 02
    St. Francis of Assisi Church
  3. 03
    Queen Victoria Park
  4. 04
    Aden Military Museum
  5. 05
    National Museum
  6. 06
    Central
Do

Things to do

Among activities carried out by the locals that you can easily sample: snooker ("billiard") hanging out at fresh juice bars or small restaurants with kubz (giant pita bread) chewing betel (2 versions: tobacco, sweet). This causes cancer in the long-run, and also stains teeth and gums red. Tobacco version is very strong and spitting regularly is highly recommended.

Eat

Where to eat

Aden is especially known for its fresh fish. Breakfast dishes Foul beans and baguette bread or khobez (round pita bread) Khmir (sweet square doughnuts) and tea with milk Dinner or lunch Moufa or mukbza restaurants have mufa fish, khobez rushwsh, mulwah, rateb (round bread). Zurbian, a mixture of lamb and colored rice. Saiydia, fish steak (tuna or king fish) and rice.

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons (see file page), Wikimedia Commons.