Shibam

About Shibam

In the desert of the Hadhramaut valley in southeastern Yemen, enclosed within ancient mud-brick walls, stands a city that looks like no other on Earth: Shibam, often described as **'the Manhattan of the desert.'** Its **tower houses — some rising nine storeys or more from the desert floor — were built from mud brick in the 16th century** and represent the oldest and most dramatic example of vertical urban construction in history. The city's architecture was not conceived as grandeur for its own sake but as practical defence: **the enclosed walled city, with its tall houses packed tightly together, offered protection against the Bedouin raids** that periodically threatened settlements in the valley. Each tower house belongs to a single extended family; the ground floor was traditionally used for storage and animals, with living quarters rising up through the floors and the family's most prized possessions kept at the top. Shibam has been **continuously inhabited for approximately 1,700 years**, making it one of the longest-occupied sites in the Arabian Peninsula. The city's position in the Wadi Hadhramaut — a dramatic valley carved by an ancient river through the limestone plateau — gave it strategic importance on the incense trade routes that connected southern Arabia to the Mediterranean world. The Hadhramaut region also has a long tradition of maritime emigration: Hadhrami merchants and sailors spread across the Indian Ocean world from East Africa to Southeast Asia over many centuries, and their remittances helped fund some of the finest mud-brick architecture in the region. **UNESCO inscribed Shibam as a World Heritage Site in 1982**. **Yemen has been in the grip of a devastating civil war since 2015**, and travel to Shibam — and indeed to most of Yemen — is not currently possible for most foreign visitors due to the ongoing conflict and extreme security risks. The Hadhramaut region has seen less fighting than the northwest, but conditions on the ground change rapidly and no travel can be considered safe without thorough and current security assessment. This entry is included for its extraordinary architectural and historical significance, with the hope that conditions will improve and allow visitors to return in future. **The Foreign Office and equivalent authorities in other countries currently advise against all travel to Yemen**.

Highlights

• ✦ 16th-century 'Manhattan of the desert' with mud-brick tower houses
• ✦ Towers rise 5–11 stories, among the world's earliest skyscrapers
• ✦ UNESCO World Heritage Site in Yemen's Hadhramaut Valley

Practical info

Frequently asked questions

Can tourists visit Shibam right now?

Effectively no. Yemen has been in a state of civil conflict since 2014, and virtually every national government issues a blanket advisory against all travel to the country, including the Hadramawt region where Shibam sits. Commercial tourism infrastructure has not operated in any meaningful way for years.

What makes Shibam architecturally significant?

Shibam is known as the 'Manhattan of the desert' for its cluster of mudbrick tower houses, some rising 5 to 11 storeys and dating back roughly 500 years, built as a defensive urban form. It's considered one of the earliest and best examples of vertical urban planning using mud-brick construction anywhere in the world.

Is Shibam under threat from the conflict in Yemen?

Yes — UNESCO has listed the Old Walled City of Shibam as a World Heritage Site in Danger, citing both the general risks of armed conflict and the ongoing threat of erosion and neglect to the mudbrick structures, which require constant maintenance that has been disrupted by the war.

When might it become possible to visit Shibam again?

That depends entirely on a durable political resolution to Yemen's conflict and the rebuilding of basic safety and infrastructure; there is no reliable timeline, and travellers should rely only on official government travel advisories for up-to-date guidance rather than assuming any near-term reopening.

Explore more

• Yemen
• Sana'a

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