The Middle East war has left hundreds of Russian tourists stuck in Dubai. They aren’t happy about it.
After the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday, igniting a major new war in the Middle East, airports across the Persian Gulf suspended operations. Even Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest international hub, ground to a halt. Flights began to resume on Monday, but only partially; thousands of passengers remain stuck, unable to leave. Meduza spoke with a Russian woman stranded in the UAE and gathered accounts from other travelers still trying to get home.
Maria (named changed)
Planned to fly out of Dubai on March 1
I arrived in Dubai on February 22. I took time off work to visit a friend I hadn’t seen in years. I bought my tickets in January, about six weeks before the trip. Of course, I knew the U.S. was moving troops [towards Iran], and my husband and I had talked about it, but I decided to go anyway. My return flight was scheduled for Sunday, March 1. And then everything happened on Saturday.
My friend and I were just walking around, doing our own thing. Gradually, messages about the war started coming in, and by the evening of February 28, we learned that missile debris had fallen near the sea. We panicked. But we were far from the coast, in DIFC (Dubai International Financing Center), so we hardly heard anything. We even went to the movies, thinking we’d be safe if we were under a roof.
That night, we woke up to siren notifications on our phones — two or three within a few minutes. It was terrifying, and it was hard to get any sleep. The alert, which was thankfully duplicated in English, recommended going to a bomb shelter.
My friend hasn’t lived here long, so we didn’t know if the building even had a shelter. We heard a loud boom — apparently a drone hit the airport — and we freaked out. I didn’t know whether to wait it out in the bathroom or the lobby. It took me three hours to calm down, and eventually I went back to sleep.
Nothing else happened overnight. Witnesses said they saw air defense activity in Marina and Palm Jumeirah, but we didn’t notice anything like that. In areas further from the sea, everything was normal. Only water deliveries stopped being available on Saturday, but they were back within an hour or two.
I was supposed to fly with Pobeda on Sunday, but the flight was canceled. On Tuesday, I bought Air Arabia tickets because I had to be in Moscow by Wednesday, but then that flight was removed from the schedule too. On Wednesday, I was supposed to submit a Schengen visa application, because all of my husband’s and my documents were tied to specific dates in April, and now it’s all messed up. We think my husband will probably have to fly alone, and I’ll get there somehow when I can. The next visa appointment isn’t until May. I wrote to the visa center, but they don’t reschedule appointments.
Because of all this, I’m especially angry at Russian media and airlines posting information about evacuation flights. They give the impression that everything is fine and that people can easily just fly home. My friends have been sending me these posts and asking why I can’t buy tickets, as if I’m stranded here by choice!
I assume they’re referring to Aeroflot flights evacuating their passengers, but I didn’t see any on the online departure boards. Otherwise, there are almost no flights from the airport. Tickets for the nearest dates are unavailable, and later flights cost 180,000 rubles ($2,300) and up.
In the end, I bought an Aeroflot ticket for March 10 for 50,000 rubles ($641) — the price of my original Moscow–Dubai round-trip ticket. Pobeda and Air Arabia haven’t refunded anything yet, even though they should. But it’s hard to get a clear answer because their call centers are overwhelmed. Mentally, I’ve already said goodbye to that money.
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I also had to spend extra on housing. When it became clear I wasn’t leaving on Sunday, I contacted the manager of the apartment I had rented. He offered to extend the stay for two days and sent a bill that was higher than my weekly rate. I explained that the political situation was preventing me from leaving and asked him not to overcharge. I didn’t expect him to agree, but he did. I ended up extending my stay another week: $700 for the first week, $178 for two extra days, and $513 for the additional week.
I couldn’t miss work, even though I don’t have a laptop with me. I bought a notebook and a pen and set up a makeshift desk out of whatever I could find. I need to communicate with people a lot [via email], which is difficult on a phone, but there’s nothing I can do.
I didn’t consider going to Oman to fly out from there. That feels like a panicky and irrational move. We’re basically between Israel and Iran. What if I go to Oman and something happens there tomorrow? I think it’s better not to make rash decisions. Plus, transfers to the border are expensive — probably around $500, the same amount I’m paying to stay here.
Besides, the UAE isn’t actually at war with anyone. I don’t believe they’re going to start bombing downtown Dubai out of nowhere.
Daria
Planned to fly out of Dubai on March 2, but flight moved to March 6; quotes from interview with Kommersant
Nobody’s told us how we’re supposed to survive here until [our rescheduled flight on March 6]. Pobeda doesn’t cover any accommodations, and the tour company is unreachable. We submitted a request to Dubai’s tourism department and they said it was accepted, but we haven’t heard anything back. The hotel allows tourists to stay only if a deposit is paid; otherwise, they kick you out.
No foreign services take Russian cards. [Russian travel companies] Ostrovok and Ozon Travel will accept a Russian card, but at three times the normal price. No one is stepping in or offering any solutions. The result is that people are unable to pay; we’re running out of cash. No one knows when we’ll be able to leave.
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Anonymous tourist
Planned to fly out of Dubai on March 2; quotes from interview with Vot Tak
Nobody’s providing free accommodation. Hotels are asking for a $100 deposit per night and saying they’ll return it if the authorities reimburse them. If not, we have to pay the full room rate, which is 20,000 rubles a night (about $258). We went to the front desk and spoke with other Russians in the same situation — they’re all being told the same thing. It’s clear we won’t be getting out of here anytime soon.
Yulia
Arrived in Dubai just before the airport closed and planned to leave on March 20; quotes from interview with Business Online
On February 28, we spent the whole day until 8:00 p.m. at Dubai Mall and didn’t follow the news. It was calm and crowded, but the shops closed early, so we went back to the hotel. When we read the news, we started to worry. At night, around 12:30 a.m., it began. Our phones — and everyone else’s in neighboring rooms — started going off with alerts. People left their rooms and gathered in the lobby. We were told that in an emergency, we should go down to the underground parking because the hotel has no bomb shelter.
We were lucky we hadn’t booked a hotel by the beach for our first few days. For two or three hours, everyone stayed downstairs and went outside to look at the sky. There were a lot of booms and the sound of planes. It was very tense; people were panicking, and I was shaking too.
On March 1, we stayed in and around the hotel all day, trying not to go out. Later, we went to a store, and directly above us there were three loud bangs and the smell of smoke. We were told it was safer to return to the hotel. That night was calm, and we finally got some sleep.
Today, March 2, we checked out of the hotel and are trying to move into another one in the same area, but there are some problems with the booking. Our flight is on March 20. The air defenses seem to be working fine overall, but it’s still scary to go toward the coast or downtown. The vacation is definitely ruined. We’re hoping things will normalize.
We met a couple from Belarus who were supposed to fly out on February 28. They were even boarded on a plane, but then got off and were told the flight had been postponed: “Wait for further information.” And that was it. Now they’re staying at the hotel we’re trying to check into. Their flight has been rescheduled for March 3. They were told they have to pay for the hotel themselves, and only afterward, if they want, they can request reimbursement from the Dubai government.
Valentina
Unable to fly to Moscow from Abu Dhabi; quotes from interview with Rambler
On the afternoon of February 28, I was at the beach and saw traces in the sky from the air defense system. […] After a while, back in my hotel room, I heard loud bangs and emergency alerts on my smartphone. The message was in both Arabic and English. It instructed people to take shelter in a safe place and wait for further instructions.
Eventually, I got a message that my flight had been canceled. The airline offered a refund, but I replied that I would wait for an alternative flight option.
Gradually, the booms and smoke increased, and news channels on Telegram began reporting explosions in various areas of Abu Dhabi. Later, around 5 p.m., news came that the authorities in Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah would cover the cost of extending hotel stays for tourists. I went to the hotel reception for more information, but they said they had no instructions regarding free extensions. After that, I decided to move to a rented apartment by taxi.
When I arrived, I saw numerous plumes of smoke from recent explosions. The acrid smell made me anxious — I didn’t feel safe. By that time, news outlets had published another update saying that Abu Dhabi authorities had sent local hotels an order to extend guests’ stays. I then decided to return to a hotel further from the city center, the Radisson Blu Collection, and ask again for a free extension, citing that message.
This time, the hotel staff were aware of the extensions. To check me in, they asked for a list of documents: a scanned passport, the hotel booking number, airline tickets, and a letter from the airline confirming the flight cancellation. I sent everything by email and waited. After they verified the information, they extended my stay in a standard room with three meals included — but only for one night. The entire verification and approval process took about three hours.
Extending the room for a longer period didn’t work because the staff said flights might resume. However, they told me that if necessary, I could resend the documents by email and extend for another night.
On the afternoon of March 2, news came of the first flights out of Abu Dhabi. But I wasn’t able to buy a direct ticket to Moscow. The airline offered a return flight only on March 7. To get home sooner, I also purchased a ticket to Armenia. Shortly after, I received a notification that this flight would operate. I breathed a sigh of relief and decided to request a refund for my canceled tickets. However, the next morning I was informed that the flight to Armenia had been canceled.
Now, I’m just continuing to follow the news and hoping to return home as soon as possible.
Story by Timur Khairutdinov