One of the most famous ports of Yemen on the Red Sea was al-Mukhā, or Mocha, that gave its name to a coffee drink. The Dutch first gained permission to set up their presence in the port and to trade in the 17th century. It rose to prominence in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but by the 1930s it was in decline. Flieringa did not visit Mocha during his time in Yemen.

Another, equally old and venerable port in the region was Hodeidah (al-Ḥudayda). Unlike Mocha, that had always been open to Westerners, Hodeidah historically was oriented towards local Muslim traders. Because Europeans did not have access to this port for a long

time, we know much less about its history. One thing is clear – much of its importance derived from Ottoman presence, especially in the nineteenth century.

Aden was of course another famous port in Yemen, however, Imam Yaḥyā Ḥamīd al-Dīn did not control it, Aden was in the hands of the British. Therefore, the Imam concentrated on redeveloping Hodeidah, and it is for this purpose that he invited Western experts to visit in the 1930s. Flieringa, on the request of the imam, investigated possibilities for renovation of the port and ways to develop infrastructure in and around it.