Qishn

Qishn is a coastal town in Al Mahrah Governorate, on the Arabian Sea west of Al Ghaydah. It was the historic capital of the Mahra Sultanate and remains a cultural center for the Mahri people, a non-Arabic-speaking population distinct from the rest of Yemen. In the 2004 census, Qishn had a population of about 7,600. Historically the town was a major frankincense-exporting port — the explorer Freya Stark recorded roughly 200 to 250 tons shipped annually from Qishn in earlier centuries — and the East India Company knew the settlement as "Kisseen." Today the town's economy centers on fishing, small-scale farming, and livestock.

By Plane

The nearest airport is Al Ghaydah Airport (AAY), to the east on the coast road.

By Train

Yemen has no operating railway network.

By Car / Road

Qishn lies on the coastal road linking Al Ghaydah with Sayhut and, further west, Mukalla.

• Al Ghaydah — governorate capital, east along the coast
• Sayhut — coastal settlement further west
• Mukalla — Hadramawt's coastal capital, west along the coast road