Mukalla Waterfront

About this place

Mukalla is a port on the Gulf of Aden and capital of Hadramawt, Yemen's largest governorate, about 480 km east of Aden. It is the most important town on the Hadrami coast, its white houses spread between the sea and a high rocky mountain behind them. Its name is said to come from a verb meaning to keep and to nurture, a nod to its role as a safe harbour for ships and trade. It was the capital of the Qu'aiti sultanate of Hadramawt, and the white palace of the Qu'aiti sultan still stands on the waterfront, now a museum showing items from that era. One of its old roads is named after Yaqoub, a holy man who settled here in the 12th century and whose shrine is in the town. You walk along a long seafront corniche and then the banks of Khor al-Mukalla, a channel cutting through the town centre lined by paths, bridges and buildings. A small fort stands on a rock at the town's entrance, and a tall rock pinnacle rises on the shore. The finest views come early in the morning or at sunset, when the white houses glow under the mountain. Aden is about 480 km away in a straight line. The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to the whole of Yemen and tells anyone there to leave, so check official guidance before making any plans.