Tourists often stop to admire these villages while traveling to the archeoligical sites in Marib. Travel routes are dotted with checkpoints manned by troops or tribesmen with a penchant for kidnapping foreigners. The best way to see Yemen is in a group. Tour operators can take care of the written permits needed to leave the capital, San'a, arrange for transport and make sure there are plenty of tourists heading in the same direction on the same day.
Kidnapping remains a threat.
Tribesmen grab foreigners to pressure the government into providing them with better living conditions. The hostages usually are treated like honored guests. Until less than two years ago, all captives were released unharmed. However, in December 1998, tourists were kidnapped for the first time by a Muslim extremist group, the Aden-Abyan Islamic Army, and not a tribe. Four of the hostages were killed in a botched rescue attempt by Yemeni security forces.