Let me just start out by saying that Socotra Island is one of the most intense adventures I’ve had in my ten years of traveling solo, but absolutely worth it. This relatively small island has drastic and stunning landscapes, plus a lot of endemic plants, like the famous Dragon’s Blood Trees.
This post is mostly to give you an idea of what you can expect to see on a well-planned tour of Socotra Island. By that I mean that you need a good tour company, because some don’t take you to all of these places!
I had the pleasure of doing a collaboration with Eye of Socotra — founded, run, and operated all by local Soqotrians, and I would absolutely recommend them. However, I can’t fully say I’d recommend going solo like I did. There’s a lot of down time while driving and camping, and it would have been nice to have others to pass the time by with, especially since reception is limited.
That being said, here’s a low key promo to join my limited size group trip in February of 2025: Click here to get notified about it!
And now why you clicked this page, here’s the top things to see in Socotra!
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Diksam/Firmhin Reserve (Dragon’s Blood Trees)
This is the location that most people travel all the way to Socotra Island for! It’s the Diksam area which has the Firmhin Reserve, where the famous Dragon Blood Trees have the greatest population.
You’ll see Dragon Blood Trees here and there in other parts of Socotra, but it’s nothing like seeing hundreds of them everywhere!
Camping at Firmhin Campsite was interesting. It was of course beautiful, but for some reason also slightly creepy. And cold and wet at night. Oh and my tour leader also accidentally got us lost in the Dragon Blood Tree forest for almost two hours, so that probably contributed to my creepy feelings about it.
Anyway! Be sure to only hike through the forest with one of the local guides that live there! You can also buy Dragon Blood resin powder that is used as a face mask, from the little kids in the village below.
Arher Beaches
Arher is just a few hours from the main city of Hodiboh, and the beach we camped at there was probably my favorite out of all the ones I went to. You’ll have this incredible view of bold sheer cliffs with massive white sand dunes blown up against them, and then across from them is the powdery white sand beaches with bright blue water.
There are a few wadi run-offs with fresh water as well, and one of them even makes a mini waterfall that runs off into the sea! If you’re camping, these will be your shower for the night!
Hoq Cave
If you’re super into huge caves with stalactites and stalagmites, and also scenic yet difficult hikes, you’ll love Hoq cave! If you don’t love those things, you may want to opt out of this little adventure, because it’s a bit intense.
That being said, let me re-iterate that this hike is pretty intense. It took me (an avid hiker) about an hour up and an hour down, and the terrain is mostly rocky, with some areas that require a bit of climbing.
The view at the top is breathtaking though, and I really enoying hiking along all of the beautiufl plants and trees! Inside the cave was…cavey. Definitely impressive if you’re into caves.
Homhil Pool
There are two freshwater natural pools you’ll see on a typical Socotra Isand tour, and Homhil was my favorite of the two. It requires some pretty intense four wheel driving to get to, and then a 20-30 minute hike on rock surfaces to get to, but it is hella worth it!
The hike is beautiful itself, and you’ll be guided by one of the local young men who live there. At the end, your breath will be taken away as you see the stunning, clear, pool of water that the wadi you’ve been walking along empties out into.
Best of all, is that since the pool is at the top of the mountain, you get a sweeping birdseye view of the valley below and the beautiful sea in the distance! Talk about a priceless infinity pool with sea view!
Desert Rose Trees (AKA “Bottle Trees”)
This isn’t necessarily a destination, because you can see the Desert Rose trees, which locals call “Bottle Trees” because of their shape, in most places on the east side of the island.
I personally found them really cool and beautiful, and I liked them as much as the Dragon’s Blood Trees. Also, I found they bloom with beautiful pink flowers in late February-March, so I only got to see a few, but it’s also a lot hotter in those months!
SIDENOTE: I know none of you would ever do this, but just in case: please DO NOT carve anything in the trunks of these trees! Many of them have markings on them from people and it’s really sad!
Dihamri Beach and Marine Reserve
One of the nights on your Socotra Island camping trip, you’ll stay at Dihamri, which I refer to as the red rock and coral beach. It’s a completely different look and vibe as Arher, and beautiful in its own way.
The entire beach is made of mostly hardened white coral pieces, and specks of red rocks. In the distance there are two stunning red rock formations as well. This area is also a marine reserve, and you can pay one of the locals to rent a mask and snorkel. The coral underwater is mostly bleached or dead unfortunately due to global warming, but you can see some pretty large and beautiful fish!
Oh! And there are actual toilets here, plus a nice outdoor shower on the beach (with no privacy, so bring a swimsuit).
Kalysan Natural Pools
One of the most famous places to see in Socotra is Kalysan. It requires a very bumpy drive up another mountain, followed by a 30-ish minute hike down into the canyon. Definitely wear sneakers or water shoes, and bring biodegradable sunscreen.
At the bottom you’ll be rewarded with a long canyon that has clear-ish fresh water in it! It’s really deep, so “the thing” to do here is jump off the white rock cliffs into it. You’ll likely see many local kids doing it, and you can feel free to join them!
Zahek Sand Dunes
You’ve probably seen photos of massive, endless white sand dunes in Socotra, and that would be in the Zahek area. They really are stunning to see, and fun to walk and climb on. We went for sunset and it was absolutely magical.
We also camped nearby, and it was a pretty nice beach camping spot. The water was nice to swim in, but if you want to shower afterwards, be prepared to do so in a stall that also doubles as a squat-toilet.
Dagub Cave
Now this cave was easily worth stopping at. It didn’t require much of a drive, or hike. It took maybe ten minutes to walk to and ten back.
Unlike Hoq, it’s not very big, and doesn’t have a ton of stalagies, but it does look like a scene straight out of Avatar or something!
Qalansyia / Detwah Lagoon
Qalansyia and Detwah are a the farthest point on the west side of Socotra Island. Everything else on this list is on the east and middle-east side.
Detwah is where you will camp for one or two nights, and it’s a pretty nice spot. The sand portion of the beach is vast, and also mostly squishy and ladden with little crabs. It’s also mostly shallow water here, and it requires about a 20-30 minute walk through the shallows to get to deep enough water to actually swim in.
There’s a stunning viewpoint on the cliffs above the camp, and also a great view of the mountians to the right of the camp, especially from the water. Allegedly there is a “Cave man” who lives in a cave there too, and I’m pretty sure I saw him and his friends, but they waved at me when I was solo, and I got scared and walked back to the camp.
OH! This is also a prime spot to get delicious seafood like lobster and crab!
Shoab Beach
From the camp at Detwah, you can take a short ride through a quaint village bustling with locals. Here you’ll find a small fishing port (a beach with fishing boats), which is now also used to transport tourists to the secluded Shoab Beach.
It’s a one hour scenic ride there and back, and the perfection of Shoab Beach is absolutely worth it! Sometimes you can even spot dolphins jumping along the way!
If you get sea sick, take meds, because there’s a good chance the ride back is very bumpy!
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xx, Alyssa
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