UAE | Visa
Cost of visa change
"Welcome to beautiful, visa-free Kish Island": Signboard at the Airport.
- Gulf News
- Published: 00:00 September 24, 2006
"Welcome to beautiful, visa-free Kish Island": Signboard at the Airport.
A 14-day visit visa is stamped on your passport on arrival, by the ominous sounding Foreign Nationals Affairs Management, Department of Disciplinary Force. It can be extended for another six months within 10 days of arrival.
The island is 15 by 9 kilometres. It is flat and arid and very hot and humid in summer. Alcohol is not permitted. You can hire bikes for Dh5 an hour and tour parts of the island. There are special bike tracks.
UAE currency is accepted everywhere. One million Iranian tourists come to this island every year for duty-free shopping.
Ironically, one of the tourist highlights is a 7,000-tonne Greek ship which got marooned on the beach in 1996. It was never refloated as the salvage costs were too high.
Kish Airline return ticket:
Dh530, which includes one night stay at the Farabi Hotel and breakfast of tea, bread roll, butter and jam.
The hotel takes a Dh300 refundable deposit, Dh100 if you have a return reservation.
Accommodation is dormitory style. Take your own soap, towel and bed linen.
Every extra day at the hotel costs Dh35.
Food costs a minimum Dh25 per day.
Total: Dh555. However, most people stay an average of three days, at an average cost of Dh700.
Regional airlines run special flights daily from Dubai to destinations including Muscat, Doha and Bahrain.
Kish Airline nine flights daily to Kish Island from Dubai. It transports about 450 visa change passengers every day.
Qeshm Airlines seven flights daily from Dubai to Qeshm (another Iranian island): Return ticket: Dh510.
Qatar Airways two flights daily to Doha. Fare: Dh780.
Oman Air three flights daily to Muscat. Fare: Dh630.
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