Israel and the UAE signed a number of agreements today.
The countries will allow for reciprocal visa-free travel, which is pretty incredible. Israelis need to apply for a visa to travel to the US, but they can now fly to the UAE without a visa!
While Israel requires a visa for travel from Bahrain, Egypt, and Jordan, the UAE will be the first in the Middle East without a visa requirement.
The UAE requires a visa for travel from Arab allies like Egypt and Jordan as well, but they won’t require one for Israelis.
While it was previously reported that there would be just 28 weekly flights between the UAE and Israel, the actual agreement allows for:
- 28 weekly round-trip flights between Israel and Dubai from Israel based carriers.
- 28 weekly round-trip flights between Israel and Dubai from UAE based carriers.
- 28 weekly round-trip flights between Israel and Abu Dhabi from Israel based carriers.
- 28 weekly round-trip flights between Israel and Abu Dhabi from UAE based carriers.
On the Israeli side, Arkia, El Al, and Israir all want in on the action. Arkia announced plans to fly daily from Tel Aviv to Dubai starting in January.
On the UAE side, Emirates, Etihad, Fly Dubai, and Wizzair want to fly between the countries.
That is an incredible amount of added capacity in the market!
If there is sufficient demand, the agreement also allows for additional flights starting in August 2021.
On my previous trip to Dubai, the only other Jewish person I bumped into was Chabad Rabbi Levi Duchman and we brought our own food. With 112 weekly round-trip flights, a kosher restaurant, and a kosher catering kitchen in the Dubai airport, It looks like things will be very different when I return!
Do we know how much the round trip flight will cost?
That will vary greatly between the airlines.
Arkia has already announced a January 3 start date with “special” introductory pricing at $300 r/t. With so many flights, incl. LCCs like Wizz, I have a feeling we’ll eventually see well below that.
In fact, it is now bookable on Arkia’s site, making them the first to officially offer true commercial non-stops to Dubai open for booking by the general public!
How does Wizz, a Hungarian airline, fly this route?
Amazing!!
Does an American student in israel need to apply for a visa to travel to UAE from Israel?
No.
When will there be minyanim in UAE?
There are minyanim now. There’s Chabad and another shul in Dubai.
Like shipwrecked castaways washed up on a remote island, even Emiratis have to have two shuls…
It’s a legal requirement 😀
Daily?
Hey Dan, I think you made a typo…the airline should be fly dubai I believe. Great post though!
Yup, thanks.
So is Trump a peace maker or warmonger?
He is more complex than either option.
I wonder how they will handle the security implications. Normally the visa application allows a country to vet visitors.
What a time to be alive! Thank you Jared, Pres. Trump, and of course, the Lord above!
Great for optics but with covid nobody flies anymore
Actually, the UNITED flight from ORD to TLV yesterday was so booked there were no tickets to buy 24 hours before the flight… For any price! (And no, they did not leave empty seats as a COVID precaution).
actually tom planning a trip with entire family iyh on the way to israel
Oh, that’s nice. Sounds pretty exciting. Have a safe one. I don’t get any farther from home than Costco LOL
From when will Israelis be able to arrive in UAE on their Israeli passport?
This remind of the gold rush to snag Cuban slots when they finally opened the market up, and airlines would go drunk scheduling illogical flights for the sake of it.
16 flights a day, at least half of which will rely exclusively on O&D traffic, and many of which will be on widebodies….. I just don’t see it.
But still fantastic news coming out of the middle east
When times are rough they will even take shekels. I if they would have still done this if not for corona.
I hope all the Israelis that go there act normally and give Israel and Jews a positive image. The Emiratis have no idea what is about to (post covid) descend on them
Who would ever believe that there will be more flights direct from Tel Aviv to the united Arab emirates, then from the United States to TLV?
Is it worth it to fly JFK – TLV on Emirates Airlines with a stopover in the UAE?
Israeli media is reporting that there was a direct flight today from Tel Aviv to Sudan and back to Israel!!!