Yemen · 2 PLACES TO EXPLORE

A little more
of Yemen.

Find places to visit in Yemen. See what catches your eye, then save a few favorites for your trip.

Yemen · YE

Utmah Nature Reserve

Utmah Nature Reserve (محمية عتمة) is Yemen's first officially declared protected area, a green highland sanctuary in Dhamar governorate roughly 58 km west of Dhamar city and about 155 km south of Sana'a. Declared in 1999 by prime ministerial decree, it was created to safeguard one of the country's most strikingly verdant mountain landscapes. What makes Utmah special is its contrast with much of arid Arabia: a chain of volcanic mountains and granite cliffs, dropping from about 2,800 m to 920 m toward the western plains, carved by deep valleys and threaded with springs that run year-round. Around four-fifths of the reserve stays under a living green cover, with terraced hillfields, thick shrub forest and high pasture. For visitors drawn to eco-tourism and history alike, Utmah pairs rewarding hill walking through orchards and pasture with a scatter of old forts and castle ruins, two natural hot springs, and wildlife that includes raptors, wolves and rare medicinal plants.

Heritage preservation

Yemen · YE

Barhout Pit

In the empty desert of Al Mahra, far eastern Yemen, the ground simply gives way. The Well of Barhout — a near-perfectly circular sinkhole about 30 metres across and 112 metres deep — opens like a dark, plugged mouth in the sand, and for generations locals have called it the "Well of Hell." It is one of the country's strangest natural wonders: a remote karst hole so deep that sunlight barely reaches the bottom, ringed by folklore about imprisoned jinn and the bad luck that follows even speaking of it. What draws geographers and explorers is the contradiction between its ominous reputation and its ordinary, beautiful reality. When a team of Omani cavers finally descended to the floor in 2021, they found no demons and no gateway to the underworld — instead they found fresh water, hidden waterfalls, glittering cave pearls, stalagmites and a colony of snakes thriving in the gloom. It is a site of raw natural drama wrapped in genuine local legend, and a reminder of how much of the Arabian interior remains barely explored.

A LITTLE INSPIRATION IS ON ITS WAY

Finding your next place…

Loading the guide.

Yemen · 2 PLACES TO EXPLORE

A little more
of Yemen.

Find places to visit in Yemen. See what catches your eye, then save a few favorites for your trip.

Tourist attraction

Yemen · YE

Utmah Nature Reserve

Utmah Nature Reserve (محمية عتمة) is Yemen's first officially declared protected area, a green highland sanctuary in Dhamar governorate roughly 58 km west of Dhamar city and about 155 km south of Sana'a. Declared in 1999 by prime ministerial decree, it was created to safeguard one of the country's most strikingly verdant mountain landscapes. What makes Utmah special is its contrast with much of arid Arabia: a chain of volcanic mountains and granite cliffs, dropping from about 2,800 m to 920 m toward the western plains, carved by deep valleys and threaded with springs that run year-round. Around four-fifths of the reserve stays under a living green cover, with terraced hillfields, thick shrub forest and high pasture. For visitors drawn to eco-tourism and history alike, Utmah pairs rewarding hill walking through orchards and pasture with a scatter of old forts and castle ruins, two natural hot springs, and wildlife that includes raptors, wolves and rare medicinal plants.

Heritage preservation

Yemen · YE

Barhout Pit

In the empty desert of Al Mahra, far eastern Yemen, the ground simply gives way. The Well of Barhout — a near-perfectly circular sinkhole about 30 metres across and 112 metres deep — opens like a dark, plugged mouth in the sand, and for generations locals have called it the "Well of Hell." It is one of the country's strangest natural wonders: a remote karst hole so deep that sunlight barely reaches the bottom, ringed by folklore about imprisoned jinn and the bad luck that follows even speaking of it. What draws geographers and explorers is the contradiction between its ominous reputation and its ordinary, beautiful reality. When a team of Omani cavers finally descended to the floor in 2021, they found no demons and no gateway to the underworld — instead they found fresh water, hidden waterfalls, glittering cave pearls, stalagmites and a colony of snakes thriving in the gloom. It is a site of raw natural drama wrapped in genuine local legend, and a reminder of how much of the Arabian interior remains barely explored.