Welcome to the Newarabia Bahrain Travel Guide

Bahrain Updates

Recent events in Bahrain have cast a shadow over this once peaceful country and due to the ongoing demonstrations and rioting the Bahrain F1 was cancelled resulting in huge financial losses for the Kingdom, which has added to the economic misery caused by the current global recession.

Curfews have damaged the once booming entertainment industry and restrictions on travel between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have also contributed to the problem.

However there is a silver lining and The British Foreign Office has changed its status (As of June 2011) on Bahrain and no longer advises against all but essential travel to Bahrain although it still recommends that visitors should be cautious about travelling round the island on their own and keep away from large crowds or demonstrations.

There is also a strong possibility that provided there is no more trouble the F1 will be reinstated which would bring much needed income to the struggling tourist industry. Despite the current problems that are affecting the area, Bahrain is still a great place to visit.

Bahrain Information

Bahrain may be a small country but each area of Bahrain has its own very distinct character. A lot of Bahrain island is barren desert, as the surface is lime stone covered with saline salt, although with a surprisingly varied wildlife. Bahrain also has a fertile strip along the north coast.

Much of the oil industry in Bahrain is concentrated near the highest point of the main Bahrain island, Jebel ad-Dukhan. The entire country of Bahrain covers an area of only 48km long by 16km wide. Although there are another 32 islands that help to make up Bahrain.

The King Fahad causeway connects Bahrain to Saudi Arabia which is only 25km away from Bahrain. Bahrain is home to more then 600,000 people, about which 30 percent are non-Bahraini immigrants.

Manama, Bahrain's capital is an extremely cosmopolitan city. The official language of Bahrain is Arabic although most people speak English.

Due to an oil boom in the region, Bahrain has become the world’s fastest growing financial center by the City of London’s Global Financial Centres Index. The Index of Economic Freedom published by the Heritage Foundation / Wall Street Journal, also stated in 2006 that Bahrain has the freest economy in the Middle East and is the 25th freest economy in the world.

60% of export receipts come from petroleum production and processing and between them they also accounts for 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP.

The economy of Bahrain has fluctuated and is very dependant on oil prices as not only does Bahrain produce oil, but it also a major tourist attraction for neighboring Arab countries and when these countries boom, so does Bahrain.

Bahrain has a highly developed communication net work with virtually unrestricted Internet access and broad band readily available in most 5 star & 4 star hotels.