Mukalla, Yemen – Before the sun rises over Mukalla’s beaches, ۱۵‑year‑old Abdulrahman Badr and his friend Tareq are already at their usual spot on the sand.
They’re brewing tea and kneading dough for bakhmari, a traditional fermented flatbread from Hadramout – the vast governorate in eastern Yemen that Mukalla is the capital of.
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Their customers are the thousands of beachgoers gathering along the Arabian Sea shoreline thanks to a yearly climate phenomenon that turns the desperately hot summer cooler for a few weeks.
Al-Baldah, as the climate pattern is known, typically lasts from late July to early August, and draws thousands of visitors from across Yemen and abroad to Mukalla.
Before sunrise, the beaches, normally known for scorching heat and humidity, are packed with men, women and children enjoying the cool waters and refreshing sea breeze.
“Al‑Baldah is a wonderful season. Business is booming and people are coming from everywhere,” Badr told Al Jazeera as he gently pressed and shaped pieces of dough by hand.
Like many others, Badr is taking advantage of the seasonal crowds to earn money. At the start of the season, he and four friends set up a wooden table serving bakhmari, sambusi (a pastry similar to a samosa) and tea to hungry swimmers in search of a hot breakfast.
“I will save what I earn from my work here to buy supplies for the new school year, which is about to begin,” said Badr, a student, his tired face dusted with flour and beach sand.
Happiness and some frustration
For more than a decade, Yemen has been plunged into war between the Iran‑backed Houthis and the Saudi‑backed, internationally recognised government, a conflict that has left thousands dead or wounded and displaced millions.
The war has driven millions into hunger and poverty while destroying vital infrastructure such as schools, roads and power stations. Therefore, for many residents and visitors in Mukalla, Al‑Baldah offers not only a break from their suffering but also a rare opportunity to earn money.
Fuad Hassan, a Mukalla resident originally from Taiz city, retreated to the beach after a swim while his two children carried on playing in the sea. He said he recharges his energy during the dawn swim and loves seeing the beaches filled with happy swimmers.
“We come to the beach after the dawn prayer and swim in the cold water for one or two hours before going back home. I love the fun and the hustle. Everywhere you look, people are playing and enjoying themselves,” said Hassan, who, along with his children, was bare‑chested and dressed in long swimming trunks.
At the bustling beaches, groups of young men played games, snatching friends from behind, tossing them into the sand or burying them with only their heads visible. Women, dressed in full black abayas, headed into the cold sea to swim. Along the beachfront, rows of temporary stalls sold food, drinks and snacks as vendors served the crowds.
But not everyone shared the joy. Hani Abdullah, an unemployed young man with a thin, trimmed black beard who said he had quit college, sat quietly on the seaside despite wearing swimming clothes, annoyed at some of the downsides of the large crowds.
“Al‑Baldah revives the city of Mukalla as people come from everywhere. But we do not benefit from all this traffic,” he said.
And Abdullah said the desperation for people to go to the beach wasn’t all good news – many were escaping homes that had become sweltering due to long power cuts.
For Abdullah, the priority wasn’t for the local authorities to spend money on organising Al-Baldah, as fun as it was, but to instead fix electricity shortages and feed the hungry.
“The state has spent money on activities that are unnecessary while people are hungry. They should take care of the people,” Abdullah said.
Economic boom
The influx of visitors to Mukalla has not only filled the beaches but also hotels, boosting businesses and creating a rare economic boom similar to those seen during Ramadan and Eid.
In the evenings, as people retreat from the beaches, the city experiences traffic jams, with streets, shops, and malls crowded with shoppers.
Official figures from the provincial tourism office told Al Jazeera that roughly ۳۵,۰۰۰ people visited Mukalla during Al‑Baldah this year, compared with ۲۰,۰۰۰ last year and ۳۰,۰۰۰ in ۲۰۲۴.
“The hotel’s occupancy is even higher than in other seasons. The hotel is full most of the time during Al‑Baldah,” said Raid al‑Sewad, a young receptionist at the Mecca Hotel, which overlooks the sea.
Ahmed, a home linens shop owner who preferred to be identified only by his first name, said that despite the official figures, this year’s traffic felt lighter than in previous years, which has affected earnings.
“Business usually picks up during Al‑Baldah, although not as much this year as in previous years. We used to receive many customers from Marib, Shabwa and Wadi Hadramout. This year, however, many visitors from Marib, who generally have greater purchasing power, have not come,” he said.
Entertainment and cultural festivities
Local authorities have made an effort to entertain locals and tourists alike, organising the Al-Baldah Tourism Festival in the second half of July.
The festival offered a packed programme of cultural and sporting events, including traditional musical performances, folk dances, poetry recitals, swimming races, beach volleyball tournaments and a marathon.
Arwa al‑Akbari, deputy head of the tourism ministry office in Hadramout, said visitors also explored exhibitions showcasing homemade products and traditional foods, alongside open‑air musical performances.
“The season represents the peak of annual tourist activity, as Mukalla and coastal cities such as al‑Shihr, Hami and Burum transform into vibrant destinations receiving hundreds of thousands of visitors,” she told Al Jazeera. “This influx revitalises hotels, parks and commercial markets, reviving the city after periods of calm and local economic stagnation.”
Responding to criticism that money spent on Al‑Baldah festivities should instead be directed towards improving electricity and other basic services, Arwa stressed that the events are funded by local businesses rather than public money.
“The funds allocated to the events do not reduce the budget for operating electricity. They are an investment in the local economy. The money spent on organising the season is returned many times over through increased commercial activity, supporting thousands of families and small vendors.”
As the season draws to a close, and after working most of its days, Badr wishes not only for Yemen to recover from its war, but also for basic services to improve.
“I want the country’s situation to get better. I want reliable electricity, and I want oil and gas to be available,” Badr said.
