Traveling to the Middle East will be the easiest thing to do Business and Economic News

Although the coronavirus pandemic has halted travel and closed international borders, unprecedented reforms in the Middle East will make it easier than ever to cross the region when the world reopens.

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the growing international arrival before the pandemic and attracting more visitors to the region, which doubled the world average, are assured by calm visa requirements, changing policies and new transport connections.

Due to the pandemic and fragmented development of the country, this huge change in the Middle East has largely gone unnoticed.

Saudi Arabia has launched its first tourist visas

Saudi Arabia was a challenging place to visit for ordinary travelers, but in September 2019 the country began issuing tourist visas for the first time. Previously, only Muslim pilgrims, neighboring workers and business travelers could enter Saudi Arabia, but now tourists from 49 countries in North America, Europe and Asia can apply for a visa online to get or arrive at 440 Saudi Riyals ($ 120).

Saudi State television reported the country It received 24,000 visitors in the first 10 days of the tourist visa launch, and aims to attract 100 million tourists each year by 2030.

Saudi Arabia makes up 80 percent of the Arabian Peninsula by land masses and borders seven countries. He makes the journey between the regions of the earth, say between the Hegra and Petra sites of Nabata, for the first time possible.

The BAC and Bahrain agree to normalize with Israel

In September 2020, it was signed by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain Agreements with Abraham with Israel, Marks the first public normalization of relations between Israel and an Arab country since the 1990s.

This move has allowed passengers to take direct flights between countries, which was previously impossible. Sharon Bershadsky, director of the UK Tourist Office in Israel, said 67,000 Israeli tourists had visited Dubai after direct flights in late November, although a larger number of coronavirus cases have now been canceled.

“Today more than ever, the Middle East is a safe place for international tourists,” Bershadsky said. “The agreements signed with the United Arab Emirates and Israel will provide a unique combination of two destinations at an affordable price.”

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the Basque Country, is among the airlines that are already flying or expecting these routes; El Al, the Israeli flag carrier; and Emirates, all of which have extensive global networks. Budget airlines are also at stake, with new takeoff flights to flydubai, Israir and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi.

Another development is that Israeli planes allow them to pass through Saudi airspace, shortening travel time.

The blockade of Qatar is over

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the Basque Country, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic relations with Qatar, closing the only land border and blocking Qatari-registered flights and ships from using their airspace and sea routes. More than three and a half years later, the countries agreed to a recovery full diplomatic and trade relations.

Saudi Arabia he reopened the border with Qatar, and direct flights have resumed between Doha and Dubai, Riyadh, Cairo and other cities.

Oman eliminates tourist visas for travelers from more than 100 countries

Visitors from 103 countries, including the United Kingdom, the European Union and the United States, no longer need a visa to visit Oman for two weeks, making the country more accessible, especially for those on short trips. Oman’s previous policy required tourists to apply for a visa online for 5 Omani towns (about $ 13).

“This new change places Oman on the global map and opens up many opportunities to reach a wider public in Oman,” said Haitham al-Ghassani, acting director of Oman’s General Tourism Promotion. “Exempting entry visas will boost the entire tourism industry. Tourists from all over the world can now visit Oman without the hassle of a long visa process. ”

Although the number of international tourism in Oman remains part of the number of neighboring BACs, transport connections between the two countries are increasing. The Dubai Road and Transportation Authority launched a public bus route in 2019 between Dubai and Muscat, and has three services a day at Dubai metro stations and Dubai International Airport, as well as several towns at Oman and Muscat International Airport.

More tour operators are starting to offer visits to the island of Socotra

380 km (236 miles) from the coast of Yemen, the island of Socotra is one of the largest biodiversity sites on Earth and its most famous icon is the blood-shaped dragon-shaped tree. Although the political situation in Yemen remains unstable, more tourists have started coming to Socotra.

Lupine Travel, a UK tour operator specializing in unusual destinations, began visiting Socotra in 2019 and became the company’s second most popular tour.

“Socotra has so much potential, and it could easily become a tourist destination if it develops in the right way to compete with the Galapagos,” said Dylan Harris, founder of Lupine Travel. “They’ve never done massive tourism here, but caring for passengers seems to be in their blood.”

Socotra has almost zero tourist infrastructure, basic accommodation is available in the island’s capital Hadiboh but camping is needed elsewhere. Harris said one of the biggest challenges in running the race is getting to Socotra: weekly flights to the Yemeni national airline, Yemeni, depart from Cairo but are no longer in operation.

Felix, another Yemeni operator, was flying from Dubai but stopped after a few weeks. Now Air Arabia is the only option to fly from Abu Dhabi, but it is not clear how long these flights will last.

Shortly afterwards, a coronavirus pandemic struck travelers in the spring of June 2020 he saw the coup in which the Southern Transitional Council, backed by the BAC, “weakened the provincial state institutions,” according to the official Yemeni news agency. Despite the ongoing conflict and logistical challenges, “before the pandemic happened, it seemed like there were new operators offering weekly trips to Socotra,” Harris said.

Socotra has recently updated guidebook now made by longtime travel writers Hilary Bradt and Janice Booth, she raised £ 7,500 ($ 10,360) over three weeks thanks to a crowdfunding campaign. Bradt is one of the founders of Bradt Travel Guides, an independent publication that is not well known.

“There was no doubt that crowdfunding made Socotra known – that’s why we got so many donations,” Bradt said. “The book continues to sell pretty well, despite the inability to get there at the moment. It’s the book we wanted when we went there. “

However, domestic and international political struggles have left Socotra with a secure future.

“Initially, the benefit of tourism would be to put more into Socotra,” Booth said. “Then, and we have seen this many times in other countries, when tourism begins to prove that the natural assets of a place can be a source of foreign funds, a much greater effort is made to protect them. Socotrik themselves know very well the value of their heritage and but they need the support of a stable government. “

Why are these changes happening now?

Although these tourism developments appear to be happening at the same time, they have been working for several decades, mainly because Gulf countries are beginning to actively move away from their economies since they are less reliable with oil.

“Many countries in the Middle East and North Africa are putting tourism at the core of their long-term strategic vision,” said Siam Seyfi, an assistant professor of tourism geography at Oulu University in Finland. “All countries in the region are aware of the importance of tourism as an agent for economic diversification.”

Tourism is also an important national brand and marketing tool, allowing it to show positive images internationally while exploring internal and regional conflicts.

“These stories are being promoted and often promoted for broader purposes,” said Waleed Hazbun, a professor of international relations at the University of Alabama and author of Beaches, Ruins, Resorts: The Politics of Tourism in the Arab World.

“A lot of stories are there to sell an idea, ‘there will be a lot of visitors’ instead of reflecting. When you think about these trends, see how much is really behind the policy.”