Bahrain

Manama is Bahrain's capital and largest city, home to nearly half the country's people, on the main island and linked to Muharraq by three causeways. The old souq quarter around Bab Al Bahrain sits below a skyline of glass towers such as the Bahrain World Trade Center, whose twin towers carry wind turbines on the bridges between them, and Adliya is the district for cafés, restaurants and nightlife. Indian restaurants are plentiful, and some serve only vegetarian food.

November to March is the best time to visit, with cool evenings from December to February; May to September is very hot and humid.

Sources: Bahrain Tourism: Manama Souq, Bahrain Tourism: The Shrinathji Temple, Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain National Museum, Bahrain Tourism: Al-Fateh Grand Mosque, Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain Bay, Bahrain Tourism: Travel to Bahrain, Bahrain Tourism: Get Around Bahrain, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Bab al Bahrain, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Al Fateh Mosque, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: About Bahrain National Museum, Bahrain International Airport: Bus, Bahrain International Airport: Taxi, Wikivoyage: Manama, Wikivoyage: Bahrain (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in Manama

1. 1Bab Al Bahrain and Manama SouqPass through the 1949 gateway, which once stood on the seafront, into lanes of gold shops, spice and textile sellers and tailors, and pick up Bahraini halwa, a sweet Bahrain has made for about two hundred years.
2. 2Shrinathji TempleA short walk from Bab Al Bahrain, this temple to Lord Krishna was set up in 1817 by the Thattai Hindu community from Sindh and is still a working place of worship for Bahrain's Hindus.
3. 3Bahrain National MuseumOpened in 1988 on a man-made peninsula looking across to Muharraq, it runs from Dilmun seals and tombs moved from the burial fields to life-size scenes of the souq and its crafts from before oil was found in 1931.
4. 4Al Fateh Grand MosqueBahrain's largest mosque holds up to 7,000 worshippers under one of the world's largest fibreglass domes, and non-Muslim visitors are shown around by guides who speak several languages.
5. 5Bahrain Bay waterfrontStroll the promenade with the skyline behind it, cross the bay by water taxi or go kayaking or paddleboarding, while children use the play areas in the bay's park.

See Manama

Muharraq, Bahrain's former capital, stands on the island next to Manama that also holds the airport, and until the 1930s its wealth came from pearl diving. The Pearling Path, on UNESCO's list since 2012, joins merchants', captains' and divers' houses, the old souq and the shore where the pearling fleets set out, with three offshore oyster beds also part of the listing, and pearl-shaped streetlamps lead you along the lanes; goods shipped from India were landed on this shore, and pearl merchants received traders from India and Europe in their majlis. It is one of Bahrain's most conservative areas, so leave shorts and sleeveless tops for the beach.

The Pearling Path is a long walk outdoors, so go between November and March; May to September is very hot and humid.

Sources: Bahrain Tourism: The Pearling Path, Bahrain Tourism: Muharraq's Architectural Marvels, a walking tour, Bahrain Tourism: Souq Al Qaisariya, Bahrain Tourism: Arad Fort, Pearling Path (Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities): Visitor information, Pearling Path (Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities): The Pearling Path in detail, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Pearling Path Visitors Centre, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Boat trips to Bu Maher Fort, Wikivoyage: Muharraq, Wikivoyage: Bahrain (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in Muharraq and the Pearling Path

1. 1Pearling Path Visitor CentreStart beside Souq Al Qaisariya, where a vast concrete roof cooled by 15 wind towers shelters the ruins of old warehouses and explains the path; Bahrain Tourism suggests three to four hours for a walk through the lanes.
2. 2Boat to Bu Mahir FortBoats run from the National Museum jetty in Manama to Qal'at Bu Mahir, where a surviving tower watched over the shore that the pearling dhows left from for diving seasons of about four months.
3. 3Souq Al QaisariyaThe oldest part of Muharraq's market, from the early 19th century, once dealt in pearls and timber for the boats and now sells spices, perfumes, incense and halwa made in Muharraq.
4. 4Siyadi house, majlis and mosqueA pearl-merchant family's group of buildings, seen from the lane: the majlis is the only four-storey building left from the pearling era, and the small courtyard mosque from 1865 is still in use.
5. 5Arad FortA square fort with a watchtower at each corner and a moat, close to the airport, that the Portuguese and then the Omanis held; walk the coastal path beside it at sunset.

Qal'at al-Bahrain stands on the north coast about 5.5 km from Manama, on top of a 17.5-hectare man-made mound raised by more than 4,000 years of continuous settlement. Danish archaeologists began digging in the 1950s and uncovered the former capital of Dilmun, the towns built over it and a port where ships came in from the Indus Valley, Mesopotamia and Persia. A long path circles the site by the sea, and the modern site museum across from the fort has a café looking over the water.

Visit between November and March, when it is cooler; May to September is very hot and humid.

Sources: Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain Fort, Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain Fort Site Museum, Bahrain Tourism: The House of Basket Weaving, Bahrain Tourism: Barbar Temples, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Qalat al Bahrain site and museum, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Qal'at Al-Bahrain Site Museum, Wikivoyage: Manama, Wikivoyage: Bahrain (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in Qal'at al-Bahrain (Bahrain Fort)

1. 1Look over the ruinsFrom the top of the mound you see the walls of towns stacked one on another, the remains of the fort and palace, and the palm groves and sea beyond.
2. 2Site museumGalleries run from Dilmun to the Portuguese period, with Dilmun seals, cuneiform inscriptions, Greek coins and pottery that shows the island's old trade with India, China and Persia; an audio guide covers the site.
3. 3Sunset on the shoreWalk the path around the site late in the afternoon and finish at the museum café, which looks out over the shore towards the fort.
4. 4House of Basket WeavingIn the village beside the fort, artisans weave palm fronds into baskets, hats and household goods and sell them from a craft area by a palm garden.
5. 5Barbar TemplesIn Barbar village in north-west Bahrain, three temples were built on top of one another from about 2100 BCE, with altars and a freshwater well; finds such as a copper bull's head point to Dilmun's links with Sumerian Mesopotamia, and a visitor centre explains them.

Thousands of burial mounds from the Dilmun era (third to first millennium BCE) and the later Tylos period cover the north of Bahrain's main island, and UNESCO listed groups of them in 2019 as the Dilmun Burial Mounds. The village of A'ali, south-west of Manama, has the biggest field, A'ali East, with 4,669 mounds built between about 2050 and 1700 BCE and 17 royal mounds at its northern end. Bahrain's tourism board calls the mound fields the world's largest ancient cemetery, which held about 80,000 graves before the towns spread over many of them.

Sources: Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Aali burial mounds and pottery workshops, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: A'ali East Burial Mound Field, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities: Al Khamis Mosque and Visitor Centre, Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain National Museum, Bahrain Tourism: Pottery classes in A'ali, Bahrain Tourism: Khamis Mosque, Wikivoyage: Manama, Wikivoyage: Bahrain (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in A'ali and the Dilmun Burial Mounds

1. 1Royal moundsThe most impressive and best-preserved mounds, thought to be the tombs of Dilmun's rulers, rise at the northern end of the A'ali East field.
2. 2Pottery workshopsA'ali's potters have built their workshops in among the tombs, some using old burial chambers as kilns, and visitors young and old can try shaping and painting a pot.
3. 3Khamis MosqueCloser to Manama, the ruins of one of the Arab world's oldest mosques stand out for their twin minarets, about 25 m tall, and a visitor centre shows finds from the site.
4. 4Burial hall at the National MuseumPair the visit with the museum in Manama, where real tombs moved from the fields show how the dead were laid in a curled position with food and offerings.

The thinly populated south of the main island takes in the Sakhir desert, and its sights lie some 35 to 40 km from Manama, so hire a car or taxi for the day; no bus goes to the Tree of Life. Bahrain International Circuit, opened in 2004 as the first Formula One track in the Middle East, stands out in the desert, with the Al Areen nature reserve and Bilaj Al Jazayer beach nearby on the south-west side.

Come between November and March; May to September is very hot and humid, and the hot, dry summer wind can whip up sandstorms.

Sources: Bahrain Tourism: Tree of Life, Bahrain Tourism: Bahrain International Circuit, Bahrain Tourism: A day of fun in and around the Bahrain International Circuit, Bahrain Tourism: Mohammed bin Zayed Natural Reserve, Bahrain Tourism: Bilaj Al Jazayer Beach, Bahrain Tourism: Discover four distinct resort experiences in Bahrain, Bahrain International Circuit (official site): About, Bahrain International Circuit (official site): VIP tours, Bahrain International Circuit (official site): Track experiences, Bahrain International Circuit (official site): Arrive and drive karting, Wikivoyage: Southern Governorate, Wikivoyage: Bahrain (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in Sakhir: Tree of Life, Al Areen and the F1 circuit

1. 1Tree of LifeA ghaf tree nearly 10 m tall on a low sandy rise, green for centuries with no water source close by; a visitor centre beside it shows finds from the area; aim to arrive near sunset.
2. 2Behind the scenes at the circuitGuided tours take in Sakhir Tower, Race Control and the track itself, or you can ride as a passenger in a race car or drive a kart.
3. 3Al Areen nature reserveNow the Mohammed bin Zayed Nature Reserve, it has welcomed visitors since 1976 and breeds endangered species such as the Arabian oryx and Bahraini reem, with a public section of native plants, birds and animals.
4. 4Bilaj Al Jazayer beachOne of Bahrain's largest public beaches, with 3 km of white sand and clear, shallow water that suits children, plus loungers, jet skis and family chalets for hire.

Diyar Al Muharraq, on the northern side of Muharraq island, is home to Marassi Beach, where two five-star beach resorts and the Marassi Galleria mall, opened in 2024, sit right on the sand. With water sports, a floating water park and a large aquarium a few steps apart, it suits families who want a beach stay, and it is on the same island as the airport.

Sources: Bahrain Tourism: Marassi Beach, Bahrain Tourism: Marassi Galleria, Bahrain Tourism: Souq Al Baraha, Bahrain Tourism: How to spend a memorable 3-day holiday in Bahrain, Bahrain Tourism: Jarada Island, Bahrain Tourism: Beaches, Wikivoyage: Muharraq (checked 14 Oct)

What to do in Diyar Al Muharraq and Marassi Beach

1. 1Marassi BeachSwim, bounce around the floating water park with its slides and obstacles, or go kayaking, water-skiing and paddleboarding, with volleyball and football on the sand.
2. 2Aquarium and underwater zooInside Marassi Galleria, the kingdom's largest aquarium shows sharks, rays, arapaima and a giant Pacific octopus, and the mall's adventure park suits children over two.
3. 3Souq Al BarahaA modern market built in old Bahraini style, with arches, wooden shop doors and stalls for dates, spices, gold, carpets and crafts, plus an indoor play centre for children.
4. 4Jarada IslandA sandbank off Bahrain's east coast that appears and disappears with the tide, about 45 minutes away by boat; it has no facilities, so bring everything you need.