Schengen visas for UAE and other GCC countries to attract more long-distance tourists, extend their stay – News

Officials and industry insiders point out that with travel now easier and faster, travelers of the future will consider regions rather than individual destinations

The Schengen-style tourist visas being planned by GCC countries will attract more long-distance tourists from European, American and Asian destinations, and the duration of stay will be extended to more than 10 days.

Tourism executives point out that many religious tourists who travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also travel to the UAE, and vice versa.

Officials and industry insiders point out that with travel now easier and faster, future travelers will consider regions rather than individual destinations.

Speaking at the Arabian Tourism Market in Dubai, Bahrain Tourism Minister Fatima Al Sairafi said ministerial discussions among regional countries had been on how to achieve a unified single visa – similar to Schengen style.

“We’re going to see that happen pretty quickly as we see that people who fly into Europe from abroad often spend their time in multiple countries rather than one. The country brings value, and it brings value to all of us,” Al Sairafi said during a panel discussion on ‘The Future of Tourism in the GCC’ held at Dubai’s Arabian Travel Market.

The Schengen visa is the largest visa-free zone in the world, allowing foreign tourists to move freely in 26 countries.

According to Eurostat, residents of EU countries will make approximately 879 million trips in 2021.

“Tourism will definitely benefit as it will increase opportunities for spontaneous travel and will introduce new types of city holidays,” said a Wizz Air Abu Dhabi spokesperson.

Almosafer CEO Muzzammil Ahussain said people from Europe, the US and China would benefit from long-haul flights, which would allow them to visit not just one country, but an entire region.

“Then why are you only coming to one country? Yes, Saudi Arabia is huge and the UAE has a lot to offer tourists. But if you’re really in the region, you want to visit multiple countries. There’s already a lot of work to be done Do, for example, UAE residents can go to Saudi Arabia, and the Saudis have done a good job by providing visas on arrival and e-visas. But a unified visa will make life easier for tourists,” Al Hussein said.

In addition, there will be many people coming to the region from India, Pakistan and other countries. “The former pilgrims can also go to other places in the region,” said the head of Almosafer, who is based in Saudi Arabia.

Sunil Panwar, director of business development at Rayna Tourism, said the unified visa “will definitely increase traffic because it will benefit the entire region.”

“In the past few years, the length of stay has increased from four days to seven days. Once the unified visa is introduced, it may be extended to 15 days. This will definitely increase tourists’ spending as well,” he added.