Exploring the Island Built by the Sea

For Olo, there’s always been something special about the ocean. So when World Ocean Day came around this year, it felt like the perfect moment to spotlight one of the most extraordinary ocean destinations on Earth. Not a beach resort. Not a coastline you’ve seen before. Something far stranger – and far more remote. Some places feel far away. Others make you wonder if you’re still on the same planet. Socotra is one of them.

Welcome to Socotra.

Hundreds of years of isolation here means there are ecosystems in Socotra that can’t be found anywhere else on Earth, while the surrounding waters still shape everyday life – influencing everything from fishing to weather patterns and the changing seasons.

The remarkable Yemeni archipelago feels a world away, floating where the Indian Ocean meets the Arabian Sea. After hundreds of years of isolation, roughly a third of Socotra’s plant species exist only here, and umbrella-shaped dragon blood trees look like they’ve been plucked straight out of science fiction. It’s here that powder-white beaches meet craggy mountains, and caves open into vast, empty landscapes.

And perhaps that’s what makes it feel especially relevant on World Ocean Day – Socotra exists because of the ocean. Its surrounding waters have shaped trade routes, cultural exchange and livelihoods for many generations. Here, the sea is not just nice to look at, it is the very reason the island exists in the form it does today.

For those who share Olo’s obsession with kitesurfing, surfing, and fishing, Socotra is one of the few places that still feels almost untouched. Powerful monsoon winds, dramatic seasonal swells, and waters teeming with marine life come together to create exceptional conditions for all three. At the right time of year, the conditions are world-class, and you’ll often have them almost entirely to yourself.

That combination of wild ocean, extraordinary landscapes, and near-zero-footprint tourism is exactly what Olo Safaris looks for when thinking beyond traditional safaris.

Travelling somewhere as remote and geographically isolated as Socotra means you have to approach travel a little differently. Infrastructure is scarce, and plans can change quickly, but travelling with someone who knows the island well often opens the door to experiences you’d struggle to find on your own – someone like Röam Beyond.

This is why Olo Safaris works exclusively with Röam Beyond as our ground partner in Socotra. They see remote travel much the way we see safari – rooted in local knowledge, shaped by the people who know a place best, and experienced at a slower, more meaningful pace.

Röam Beyond hosts expeditions to some of the world’s most remote destinations. Itineraries move through the island’s varied landscapes – coastlines carved by monsoon winds, beaches fringed by towering dunes, remote fishing villages, and the striking Ḥajhir Mountains rising from the heart of the island. Higher up, plateaus dotted with Dragon’s Blood trees and endemic plant species show why Socotra is often described as one of the most biologically unique places on Earth.

No two journeys are ever the same – rather than repeating the same route, each itinerary is curated around what travellers are most interested in, whether that means hiking remote trails, snorkelling coral-filled waters, fishing with local communities, tracing old camel routes, or venturing further afield to Socotra’s outer islands when the conditions allow. These outer islands are only accessible during certain seasons and are visited far less frequently, offering a chance to experience some of the archipelago's most secluded areas.

Rather than traditional accommodation, Röam Beyond also uses mobile camps that are comfortable and flexible, allowing travellers to stay closer to the landscapes they’ve come to experience.

Röam Beyond was founded by Carissa Western, who grew up in Kenya, surrounded by conservation work, before spending years working in conflict zones.

Her approach to remote travel places an important emphasis on reciprocity, local partnerships and preparedness, and in places that exist beyond traditional tourism, this matters more than ever. It's the same philosophy Olo Safaris applies to every safari we design.

On World Ocean Day, conversations tend to turn to things like coral reefs, marine conservation, rising tides and disappearing ecosystems. But standing on a limestone plateau above the Arabian Sea, Socotra is a breathtaking reminder that oceans shape far more than just coastlines.

World Ocean Day is a reminder of the importance of protecting what is fragile and preserving what makes our oceans so rare.

Because places like this still exist – wild, difficult to access and shaped more by geography than infrastructure. And sometimes, the journeys that stay with you longest are the ones that show you just how different life and landscapes can be.