The average loss per person is about US$8,000! Flights canceled four times for Chinese stranded in Dubai

This article is reproduced from the WeChat public account: Chinese Life Network

The recent tensions in the Middle East have affected the operations of some international flights. Many Chinese tourists from San Marino in Southern California are currently stranded in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Their scheduled return or transfer flights have been canceled one after another, and many passengers are waiting for new departure arrangements.

Leilei, a Chinese resident living in San Marino, Los Angeles County, said in an interview with the media on the 4th that she and her friends are still staying in a hotel in Dubai and continue to try to buy return tickets online. “We had been booking flights home but didn’t know if they would be canceled again,” she said.

Leilei said that the flights she had booked in the past few days had been canceled four times in a row. Three of them were originally planned to fly to India to continue their itinerary, and the latest one was changed to return directly to Los Angeles. However, they were informed by the airline that the flight was canceled the day before departure.

It is understood that there are 11 people in Leilei’s party, most of whom are residents of San Marino. The group originally planned to carry out a multi-stop tour of the Middle East and South Asia. It has previously visited Egypt and Jordan and is currently staying in Dubai. According to the original arrangement, the team was scheduled to fly to India on March 1 to meet up with seven or eight other friends. Local tour guides, vehicles, hotels and other itineraries had all been booked in advance.

However, the situation in the Middle East suddenly changed on February 28. Dubai Airport once tightened control, and some flights were affected. Leilei said that the overall operation of the airport will be stricter after that day, but it will not be completely grounded. “Only a small number of flights are allowed to take off and land, and priority is given to passengers who have checked in their luggage and are stranded at the airport,” she said.

Due to constant flight changes, the team’s planned flight to India was also canceled. “We booked three flights in a row, but received cancellation notices the day before and had to rebook.” She said that the current online check-in and other processes have become more stringent than before.

On March 3, local time, Leilei also received a security reminder from the US government. According to the notice, the U.S. government raised travel warnings for parts of the Middle East to the highest level and advised U.S. citizens in about 15 countries to leave the country as soon as possible, including the United Arab Emirates. After receiving the reminder, Leilei and her friends decided to purchase tickets directly back to Los Angeles, but the new flight was also cancelled.

As the trip was forced to be interrupted, the plans of the 11 people traveling with him also began to be scattered and adjusted. Leilei said that most people plan to return to Los Angeles as soon as possible, while a few friends still hope to fly to India to visit their families, while others are considering flying to Vietnam instead.

Flight cancellations have also caused considerable economic losses. Leilei estimates,The trip cost approximately US$8,000 per person, including air tickets, hotels, tour guides and transportation booked in advance.“Many items are no longer refundable,” she said. In addition, travel insurance cannot cover related losses because the policy terms usually do not cover emergencies such as war.

At the same time, news on social media about “surge in air tickets to the Middle East” has also attracted attention. There are posts claiming that airfares to China from the Middle East have soared to hundreds of thousands of dollars. In this regard, Leilei expressed her doubts about this information. “What we see in Dubai is different from what is said online.”

Although flights were blocked, she said local life was basically normal. “Everyone went shopping, ate, and got massages as usual, and we didn’t see the so-called ‘war-torn’ situation.” She said that she believes that many of the tense scenes that have been circulated on many social media platforms may be exaggerated or even untrue.

Leilei and her group have been in Dubai for about a week. She said she did not witness the attack on the airport or any missile activity over the city. “Only on the night of February 29, my friend saw a bright light flying across the sky, but he was not sure what it was,” she said.

As for air ticket prices, she said that the recently queried flight fares from Dubai to India have indeed increased, about two to three times the usual price. Although the economy class air ticket from Dubai to Los Angeles has increased, it is still within an acceptable range. It is currently about more than 1,000 US dollars one way; if flying to San Francisco, the ticket price is about 2,000 US dollars, but the price is still fluctuating.

As the regional situation continues to change, many international travelers are still paying attention to the resumption of flights, hoping to leave the country and return to their original destination as soon as possible.

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