Ma’rib Getting there & around

Getting there & away

The situation changes constantly, but for the past few years a police escort for all tourist cars has been compulsory on the San’a to Ma’rib road. If you are travelling with a tour company, you needn’t concern yourself with the logistics of this. But if you are travelling by public transport and are granted a travel permit for Ma’rib (which is normally not allowed), you have to pay a fee of around YR500 at every roadblock, for which the police will then escort you to the next checkpoint. Whatever the case, all vehicles are expected to line up punctually at a police checkpoint to the east of San’a by 9am on the day of travel. If there are sufficient tourist cars, you will travel onwards in a tight convoy to Ma’rib. More often, though, there will only be one or two vehicles, in which case the police will either follow you in their own jeep or they’ll pile in beside you.

Travelling eastward to Sayun you have two possible routes – both of which are thrilling desert adventures. The easiest and cheapest route is along the new surfaced road, which takes you through spectacular scenery, past some of the Yemeni oil installations and up towards the Saudi border. Taxis and buses run this route daily (YR1400), but foreigners are unlikely to be granted permission to travel this way. The only exception to this rule might be if you take a bus direct from San’a to Sayun. Once again, an escort is required, and these boys don’t mess about; don’t be surprised if you’re trailed by a couple of cannon-mounted jeeps full of armed soldiers.

The second option takes you, via Shabwa, straight across the middle of the Ramlat as-Sab’atayn desert. To say this is an impressive journey is a major understatement. Streaming for hours with armed Bedouin escorts over cathedral-sized dunes to the ruined city of Shabwa is something that will live with you forever. En route, you’ll get to jeep surf down the side of huge dunes and stop at Bedouin encampments to take tea under their woven, goat-hair tents. The Bedouin are currently charging US$250 per group to take you all the way to Sayun. Yes, it’s expensive but as it’s one of the most exciting desert crossings in all Arabia, it’s worth every penny. To organise this crossing, it’s best to either go through one of the San’a tour agencies or call Hassan Mubarak (he only speaks Arabic) at the Land of Two Paradises Hotel. You will need to give at least a day’s notice, and remember, the above price does not include the cost of a car and driver.