The bad part about vacationing on Socotra, a four-island archipelago off the coast of the Horn of Africa: pirates. The good part about vacationing on Socotra: now that it has an airport, the island's freaky deaky biodiversity is accessible to tourists year-round.
Today there are over 700 endangered plants and animals on the island, a full 1/3 of them found nowhere else in the world. The island is a UNESCO recognized world heritage site. You can check out their Conservation Programme for more background.
Although the airport allows you to access the island throughout the year, tourists are still advised to avoid the monsoon season that goes from May to September. The cloudy choppy waters of those months will prevent you from enjoying the island's fabulous snorkeling and diving, plus there's the whole risk of death thing. You're better off traveling in March or April, when the waters are tranquil and the weather is perfect.
Socotra is part of the Republic of Yemen so American tourists will need visas. There are two flights a week, both operated by Yemen Airways. The native language is Soqotri so hiring an English-speaking guide is pretty much mandatory. That's one of the many, many services you're going to have to haggle over during your stay so be wary. Don't let them the guide talk you into anything more than about $350/wk.
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