UAE | General

Left high and dry in summer rush

A rush for flights back to Dubai has left some residents stranded after their summer vacations.

  • By Alice Johnson and Nadia Saleem, Staff Reporters
  • Published: 23:46 August 13, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • A family at the Dubai airport after returning from their summer vacation.
  • Image Credit: Vazhisojan/Gulf News

Dubai: A rush for flights back to Dubai has left some residents stranded after their summer vacations.

Many flights from Beirut, India and some European destinations are fully-booked, airline officials confirmed.

Nader Shammas, 29, a Lebanese working in Dubai's publishing industry, said he had planned to return to Dubai this week but all flights were fully booked from Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport to Dubai.

"Economy class seats were all fully booked. I was able to find seats only in business and first class. I had to postpone my flight for another seven days," Shammas told Gulf News from Beirut.

"I have to report back to work because it will start to get busy by the end of the month and I have lots to prepare for," he said.

However, he said postponing his flight has given him an unexpected bonus, in having more time to spend with his friends and family in Lebanon.

Another Lebanese Dubai resident, who did not wish to be named, also faced trouble finding a flight back after he extended his vacation.

Not only were the flights full for a week, but the price difference was "huge". He eventually had his ticket reissued from Dubai, which saved him paying a price difference of Dh800.

Other residents expressed concern that return flights from India and Pakistan would be full.

Many airlines regularly overbook flights, to compensate for passengers who don't actually turn up. This can lead to problems when all passengers who bought tickets do arrive to board the flight.

Hussam Raydan, corporate communications manager of Air Arabia, told Gulf News the summer season always has a rush on both inbound and outbound flights.

"Due to increased demand we have added flights on certain routes, such as between Sharjah and Khartoum, Beirut, Amman and Mumbai," he said. "We will be increasing flights to Saudi Arabia soon, to cope with demand."

Raydan expects the summer rush to continue through September.

A travel agency official said certain routes will probably remain busy until the first week of September.

Waseem Rahmany, sales and marketing manager at Al Rais travel, told Gulf News flights coming in from the Far and Middle East are fully booked.

He said this year people from the UAE travelled to the Far and Middle East, as it was cheaper and now, as holidaymakers are returning, traffic is very high.

Flights from Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, cities in Thailand, Australia, Jordan and India are fully booked.

"A lot of workers are returning from India, which has caused flights to be over-booked," he said.

Rahmany said there are plenty of seats available for people coming from Pakistan, as there are flying options with various airlines. Inbound flights from Bangladesh also have seats available, he said.

However, Mohammad Waseem, a businessman who was due to visit Dubai for important business meetings, said he could not find any flights from Lahore to the emirate until September. "I am afraid I will miss my meetings," he said.

Compared to last year, there has been a slight decrease in holidaymakers, Rahmany said. He said less people went to Europe.

An Emirates spokesperson said: "Emirates has experienced a growth in demand for tickets in all classes during the current summer season. Increased leisure travel and people and visiting friends and relatives , as well as expatriates returning to their home countries for the holidays, has pushed up the demand."

Jayaram Iyar, general manager of Sharaf Travel, told Gulf News demand for seats this year was less when compared to last year. "We still get seats, it's not all that full. Seats are available from all locations. Maybe for Amman seats will be available in a few days. Last year we had more people travelling, especially families," he said

- With inputs from Maysam Ali

When travelling do you usually buy a return ticket or book one way? Do you know anybody who has faced a problem to get a return ticket to the UAE in the past week? Tell us at letter2editor@gulfnews.com or fill in the form bellow to send your comments.

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