Travel to the Middle East: Yes or No

[Sashan]

I would recommend Jordan, Turkey and the UAE which would be more pricey.

I intend to do Jordan and Israel together. Flying into Tel Aviv - see places in Israel and crossing into Jordan, see couple of places including Petra and back to Israel. Is there an issue with border crossings between Jordan and Israel?

 

[-SINAN-]

You can have all kind of holidays. It depends on what you prefer, what you can accept and what you are looking for.

I wanna party with Russian girls....

 

[al-Hasani]

All of the over 20 Arab countries are worth visiting. Abudance of ancient history and heritage, natural beauty, diversity, great weather, amazing beaches, over thousand tropical islands (in the case of KSA alone), all kind of landscapes (mountains, desert, steppe, hills, tropical areas, forests, lakes, rivers, thousand km long coastlines, ancient cities, villages, World Unesco Heritage sites, untouched nature etc. List is very long. I suggest you take a look at those two threads below for a start.

https://defence.pk/threads/saudi-arabia-in-pictures.222471/page-50#post-4898622

https://defence.pk/threads/the-arabian-peninsula-arab-world.280918/

You can have all kind of holidays. It depends on what you prefer, what you can accept and what you are looking for.

I mean you are talking about a region spanning from Morocco in the West (Atlantic Ocean) to Oman in the East (Arabian Sea).

Of course some countries/regions are less secure than others. You have to take that into account.

What the hell is happening with PDF? Posts disappearing etc.

 

[Yzd Khalifa]

I intend to do Jordan and Israel together. Flying into Tel Aviv - see places in Israel and crossing into Jordan, see couple of places including Petra and back to Israel. Is there an issue with border crossings between Jordan and Israel?

Yes, I doubt that you can make it to both countries at once unless you stop by Trukey or Cyprus

 

[Battle of Kursk]

I intend to do Jordan and Israel together. Flying into Tel Aviv - see places in Israel and crossing into Jordan, see couple of places including Petra and back to Israel. Is there an issue with border crossings between Jordan and Israel?

Yzd Khalifa is wrong, with all due respect. There is no problem crossing there both ways if you have the adequate visa to enter the other country.
If you are looking for recommendation of places in Israel I can try and help you, as well as in case you need help to plan transportation if you are relying on public one etc. Last time I was in Spain it was a headache to plan until a friend speaking the native tongue stepped in, though I was traveling to pretty remote locations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Israel–Jordan_border_crossings

 

[Battle of Kursk]

Nowadays, travel to the Middle East has become more dangerous than ever due to the complicated political situations in this area
Tourism is among the highest money earning industries the Middle East. As the place of the most significant civilisations in the ancient and medieval worlds, the Middle East is definitely one of the world's most fascinating and extraordinary travel destinations. Moreover, this area owns some of the world’s most cities Jerusalem, Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad and İstanbul. The Middle East is also home to several world religions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Bahai. The ethnically mixed region that could help to attract more tourists may lead the local tourist into the worsening situation. Arabs, Jews, Persians and Turks are the largest groups, although other groups still live in.


FNOTW: Travel to the Middle East: Yes or No (Part 1)

Each country is different, trying to paint the whole ME with the same brush here is meaningless. like asking " should I go to a ski vacation in EU though I heard there is no place to ski in the UK?"

As others have obliged there are many areas in the ME which are safe, like the GCC for example, or Israel and most of the WB though I guess people prefer not to usher Israel's name.

 

[Yzd Khalifa]

Yzd Khalifa is wrong, with all due respect. There is no problem crossing there both ways if you have the adequate visa to enter the other country.
If you are looking for recommendation of places in Israel I can try and help you, as well as in case you need help to plan transportation if you are relying on public one etc. Last time I was in Spain it was a headache to plan until a friend speaking the native tongue stepped in, though I was traveling to pretty remote locations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Israel–Jordan_border_crossings

I was in Jordan not that long ago, I asked the secuirty department in there and that was the same response I was given.

 

[humanfirst]

Mate forgive my ignorance but is Jordan a Islamic State ?

Wiki says, The Jordanian legal system is derived from the Napoleonic Code and Sharia. You know both Germans and Russians like to drink and party. Can they drink alcohol in your country ?

 

[Battle of Kursk]

I was in Jordan not that long ago, I asked the secuirty department in there and that was the same response I was given.

I have no idea why would he say that. Maybe he was addressing you specifically because you lacked an Israeli visa?
Perhaps it is different for citizens of countries who have no relations with Israel, I am not sure how it works. The same way I cannot enter KSA with my Israeli passport (right?).

There are millions of border crossings a year iirc:

http://www.goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Tourist Information/Planning your trip/Getting There/Pages/Travel by Land.aspx

 

[Sashan]

Yzd Khalifa is wrong, with all due respect. There is no problem crossing there both ways if you have the adequate visa to enter the other country.
If you are looking for recommendation of places in Israel I can try and help you, as well as in case you need help to plan transportation if you are relying on public one etc. Last time I was in Spain it was a headache to plan until a friend speaking the native tongue stepped in, though I was traveling to pretty remote locations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Israel–Jordan_border_crossings

Thanks a lot mate. Will ping you when I start to plan the trip.

 

[Tanja]

Here we go. Continue, happy reading
Evaluating a Travel Advisory

1. Is the entire country affected?
In many cases, the threats are just restricted to a particular region in one country while the rest is still remanding safe. Please always put your safety on the top of priority and bear in mind that the fallout from an isolated act of violence can affect an entire country's tourist industry.

2. What's the danger?
For travel warning that is dealing with violence or terrorism, pay attention to what kind of attacks are taking place and who the targets are. And pay more attention to the assaults that specifically target foreign tourists than civil unrest among locals.

3. How long ago was the warning posted, and when was it last updated?
A warning may be old, for example, issued a few months ago. The author would suggest the traveler to do a little research about the current situation. The Web sites of international newspapers could be the best resources.

4. Is the warning corroborated by other governments?
To have a full picture of what's happening in a particular country, check travel warnings from multiple sources such as a U.S. advisory, a Canadian or an Australian one because sometimes the advisories are excessively influenced by politics.

5. Is there a safety net?
Check out whether your home country has an embassy or consulate in the place you want to visit, and make sure it's fully staffed and functioning.

6. Is travel insurance an option?
Travel insurance is not always valid in all countries or circumstances. Other limitation may apply too. Therefore, reading the travel insurance’s policy carefully before purchasing.

http://www.fnotw.org/Article/Full/5945

 

[Falcon29]

Egypt is fine, but while the MB was in power the western media kept using their fear tactics to scare tourists from going to hurt the economy to blame the MB.

It's safe though. And affordable.

Most of the Middle East is not as dangerous as the media makes it. Like Libya, Egypt or Lebanon. They are safe.

Even Arabs can go in and out of Syria and be safe. I wouldn't recommend that foreigners though.

 

[Tanja]

Is it true?? Hopefully

http://www.fnotw.org/Article/Full/5949

To tell the truth, the aforementioned travel alerts and warnings do not cover the reality of being on the ground in these places such as: Are the airports open? Are hotels accepting guests? Does public transportation work? Are businesses open as usual?

These questions are very necessary to ask though you could not find it on the State Department's website. In fact, there are many services that still operate as normal such as tourism agencies, national airlines and even individual hotels.

Let’s go to Middle East if you dare

As we know from previous series about the Middle East’s travel, the Middle East is quite extraordinary, among one of the world's most fascinating and rewarding travel destinations. Most of the Middle East countries are listed in the US Current Travel Warnings. Still, there are some countries out of the list such as Jordan, Israel and Turkey. Let’s find out how the situation it is in those places.

Jordan
Although, Jordan shares a wide border with Syria and involve in the unrest by hosting hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees; multiple flights daily from the U.S to Jordan are still operated by Royal Jordanian. Its regular schedule is continuing, and a representative from the airline explained that travelers on the ground in Amman would have no reason to alter their plans. Although, Jordan shares a wide border with Syria and involve in the unrest by hosting hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.

Israel
Israel also shares sensitive border areas with Syria in the north. While the situation in Syria remains so volatile, a growth in tourist numbers has been recorded along the summer compared to similar periods in 2010 and 2011.

Turkey
Turkey is the world's sixth most-visited tourist destination. And currently, Turkey, too, shows no signs of disruption in travel plans. Daily, the bulk of tourists usually head to Istanbul and Antalya, in the west, which are nowhere near the Syrian border.

 

[Aamna14]

I always have had the desire to visit Egypt it somehow holds a lot of attraction for me.

 

[Falcon29]

Yes it is true Tanja, whomever wants to go Egypt it is largely safe. Obviously just stay away from demonstrations which most likely you won't even have a clue where they are occurring and you won't notice it in the atmosphere.

Don't go to the Sinai if you're an non Arab foreigner because you won't know how to get around well. And there is a military curfew I believe at about 6 p.m.

Kidnappings aren't that common there and if you're Arabic and knowledgable on how to get around even if I was stopped for example by militants or bedioun I would know how to speak with them and with my physique they would see me as one of them and it will be fine.

The resorts in Egypt are safe and nice, such as Sharm al Shiek.

Cairo has many nice historical sites to check out and nice antiques. Just be vary of prices so you don't get laughed at paying more than you should. For example, when shopping for clothes you see something at a stand and ask of the price, if it is 25 shekels, I say nope bring it down or work with me that's too much then I declare my price point at 15 shekels. If he says I can't sorry I say okay and walk away most likely he will call you back and say done deal.

And I can go on if you want me to give insight on a specific thing.