Old City of Sana'a

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Old City Of Sana'A (1986), Inscribed On The List In Danger In 2015. A Highland City Lived In For More Than 2,500 Years, With Over 6,000 Tower Houses Of Baked Brick And White Gypsum Trim, The Great Mosque And The Souq Al Milh. Damaged By Airstrikes And Neglect Since 2015. The Capital Is Held By The Houthi Authorities · Sana'a, Amanat Al Asimah

The Old City of Sana'a sits in the western highlands at about 2,200 m and has been lived in for more than 2,500 years. UNESCO listed it in 1986. Over 6,000 tower houses of baked brick rise six or seven storeys, trimmed with white gypsum designs around the windows and topped with qamariya, half-moon windows of stained glass that throw coloured light into the upper rooms. The Great Mosque is among the oldest in the Muslim world. Souq al-Milh, the salt market, sells spices, honey, raisins, silver and daggers, and chewing qat in the afternoon is a central social habit. Bab al-Yemen is the great gate. The city has been on the in-danger list since 2015 and was damaged by airstrikes and neglect. The capital is held by the Houthi authorities. Most governments advise against all travel to Yemen, and foreigners face detention and kidnapping risk, so no independent travel is possible in practice. The people are warm hosts and the city is deeply loved.

Old City of Sana'a, inside the ancient walls in the centre of the capital, in the western highlands at about 2,200 m, Sana'a, Amanat Al Asimah, Yemen

There is no ticketed site and no single set of opening hours. Streets and the gate area are open at all hours and FREE to enter, though most people stay inside by dark. Souq al-Milh and other markets run from the morning until the early evening and are CLOSED or very quiet on Fridays, especially in the morning around prayers, and shut for the main religious holidays. Many shops pause in the afternoon during the qat session. Mosques and private tower houses are generally CLOSED to non-Muslim visitors and to anyone without an invitation. Whether foreigners may enter the city at all, and under what conditions, is unknown and changing, so read your own government's advice first.

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