Good Time to Visit
Weather
Generally speaking, April to May and September to October are the best time to visit Yemen, wherever you're heading.
If you're going to the semi-desert Tihama region, Aden or Hadhramawt, avoid high summer (July). If you're heading for the highlands, winter nights can be very cold. The capital, Sana'a, has nightly frosts from late November to early January, and in the mountains it's very chilly indeed. From October to February most of the country is dry and dusty. In March, April and August the temperature is pleasant but you'll get very wet.
Visitors are advised to bring lightweight clothes if travelling to the coastal plain all year; warmer clothing will be needed from November to April in the highlands.
Festivals
Festivities are predominantly dictated by the Muslim calendar (see Public Holidays below). Visiting during Ramadan, in particular, can be a trying experience unless you're a frequent traveller in Arab countries.
Public Holidays
The following table shows the public holidays celebrated in Yemen:
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day |
| 1 May | Labour Day |
| 22 May | National Unity Day |
| 26 September | Revolution Day |
| 14 October | National Day |
| 30 November | Independence Day |
| Variable* | Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice) |
| Variable* | Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan) |
| Variable* | Mouloud (Birth of the Prophet) |
| Variable* | Muharram (Islamic New Year) |
* Although Muslim holidays always fall on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date they are celebrated on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year, due to the fact that the Islamic calendar is lunar whilst the Gregorian calendar is solar. Because this lunar year is about 11 days shorter than the solar year, Islamic holy days usually shift 11 days earlier each successive solar year. The method used to determine when each Islamic month begins also varies from country to country.
