Visa-free travel for Russians to five new countries: tour operators named features

The fact that by the end of the year, citizens of the Russian Federation should expect “visa-free travel” from Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, which is under “active study”, is being actively discussed in the Russian Foreign Ministry and in the domestic tourism industry, although an official statement should be expected only after the end of the year. negotiations and signing of the relevant document.

“Visa-free travel will be mutual,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains, so far in an unofficial field. – And we are very much looking forward to it, including in domestic tourism. The Middle Eastern states with which agreements are being prepared will be able to provide Russia with premium class tourists.

Domestic travel agencies specializing in inbound tourism also see some advantages.

“Previously, if Arabs came to us, they came from Iraq, Libya, Syria and other countries where life is very difficult,” says Elena, manager of the Middle East department. – Therefore, in the understanding of a Russian, the most “prosperous Arab” is an Egyptian. Since, even while vacationing in the UAE, ordinary tourists do not see truly rich locals, they do not walk the streets and public places. And those we see are migrant workers from neighboring poor Arab countries, and at best they are tourists like you. Now imagine that oil sheikhs from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia will pour into Russia! With their harems and wallets.

– Is our luxury segment developed enough to receive such guests?

– In the capitals and in the cities of the Golden Ring it is developed, in the periphery not so much, but this does not matter. For them, Russia is exotic. Just as in the early 90s all of Europe and America came to us, now it’s the same. The same mass foreign tourist, but with a different face.

– Will our people go there? There are also strict Muslim rules – no walking in the open, women’s and men’s beaches, prohibition.

– Yes, it is. But not everywhere. 100% applies only to Saudi Arabia. And in Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait there are concessions for foreigners. I’m not even talking about Malaysia, it is a multinational and multi-religious country where everyone coexists peacefully, but this is Southeast Asia.

That is, it is far away and, accordingly, long and expensive to fly; there is no season there for six months, and there are no direct flights from the Russian Federation. And the listed Middle Eastern countries in the Persian Gulf have resorts with all the infrastructure in the Indian Ocean Gulf. Everything is within a 4-hour flight, in terms of comfort it is better than Egypt, and at prices lower than the UAE. We count and hope that our people will go. Especially if they organize an “all inclusive” experience for foreigners, so that they don’t offend the religious feelings of the locals, and so that the local believers don’t hang over their souls.

– Is there a war between Palestine and Israel right next door?

– By the time this is all signed and launched, everything will calm down there. We hope so anyway.

Now, according to reviews from the local Russian-speaking diaspora, the number of Russian tourists in the small but rich oil powers of the Middle East can be counted on one hand. But literally in recent days, Israelis, including Russian-speaking ones, have appeared in these countries. We ask them how the situation is, whether they feel hostility in these very strict Islamic oases?

Karina, a young mother from the Moscow region. For the last two years, she and her husband lived in Netanya, where they gave birth to their first child. But now she is very, very scared.

“My husband told me to take my son and fly to Russia to see his mother and father,” says Karina. – My mother, a day after the start of this horror, was no longer herself, she was about to fly out to us herself, but they barely stopped her. They bought me and my child a ticket to Antalya for $3 thousand for Thursday. And then the Turks canceled this flight for an indefinite period.

So I would sit at the airport with crowds of people from canceled flights. But I took the risk of changing my ticket from Antalya to Muscat and flew here to Oman. Here the sky is the same as above Israel, only quiet, less than a week has passed, and it already seems strange to me. I did not observe any hostility towards the people who got off the Israeli plane.

They love children here, everyone smiles at the sight of a baby and tries to help in some way. The hotels are good, clean. So far so good. But I’m only here for a couple of days, and then on to Moscow to see my mother.

Similarly, but only in Manama, the capital of Bahrain, found the family of Ibrahim, a Palestinian from Gaza.

“Fortunately, we had savings and friends on the Israeli side, and we were put on a plane to Manama,” says Ibrahim. “My sons remained, and I took their young children, my grandchildren and their mothers, and my wife to look after them. And maybe I’ll return to my homeland. My wife, however, won’t let me. On Friday evening we were invited to the mosque for a special mass prayer for the Palestinians. We will all go, even the youngest grandchildren.