Job Discussion Forums

trapezius · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:20 pm Post subject:

At the end of it all, your comment that "Saudi Arabia does give out tourist visas" is still only about -- if it could be quantified -- 2% correct.

otuzbirci · Joined: 20 Oct 2009 Posts: 28

trapezius · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:26 pm Post subject:

With a million conditions and restrictions.

One of my friends in America would like to apply for a tourist visa to SA. Could you please give me what steps she should take and how she should apply? Thanks.

otuzbirci · Joined: 20 Oct 2009 Posts: 28

trapezius · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:37 pm Post subject:

Ha, I meant SA, of course.

So, could you please help me now? Thanks.

otuzbirci · Joined: 20 Oct 2009 Posts: 28

usa_in_gulf · Joined: 10 Aug 2009 Posts: 133 Location: Gulf

Prior to obtaining my Kuwaiti passport, I applied for a tourist visa to SA directly at the Saudi embassy in Kuwait. (I held just an American passport at the time.)

trapezius · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:52 pm Post subject:

Nice story, but perhaps you could finish it?

So did you get the visa or not?

johnslat · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:55 pm Post subject:

Dear trap,

That's easy - just apply to one of the "approved tour groups":

"Visas for tourism are issued only for approved tour groups following organized itineraries."

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1012.html

Where can you find a list? Why right here:

"Issued under the sponsorship of Saudia (under its �Discover Saudi Arabia� program), you can find the list of approved international and local Saudi tour companies who can arrange the visas at: www.saudiairlines.com/tours/discoversaudia rabia.jsp. It takes 14 days from the date of request to issue a tourist visa."

http://74.125.155.132/search?q=cache:OYoYHTPSaSoJ:www.lonelyplanet.com/saudi-arabia/practical-information/visas+Saudi+Arabia+tourist+visa+tour+groups&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Ooops, I'm sorry -that link takes you only here:

"This page is no longer available"

But don't despair:

"BY TIMESONLINE.CO.UK | FEB 01, 2009

"At the offices of the Supreme Commission for Tourism in Riyadh, Abdullah al-Jehani, a senior marketing official, admitted: �Saudi Arabia has been a closed country to the outside world. People know about Saudi Arabia what they see on TV - violence and problems with the regime. But we now have a 20-year tourism programme and soon we should be issuing tourist visas.

Cultural tours specialist The Traveller (020-7436 9343, www.the-traveller.co.uk). Its next tour runs November 7-19 and costs �4,635 including flights and full board (single supplement, �395).

Red tape

Obtaining a tourist visa is tricky (though The Traveller, above, organises them for its customers). Groups of four travellers or more can obtain a tourist visa through one of the licensed tour operators in Saudi Arabia.

We used Jeddah-based Sadd al-Samallaghi (00 966 2 668 5054, www.samallaghi.com). Contact Ahmed Ali Mostafa at [email protected]. Women under 30 must travel with either their husband, father or brother. A week's tour, excluding international flights, costs approx �1,750pp based on four travelling together."

There you go - unfortunately, your friend in the US would seem to be out of luck, unless s/he wished to go to London first.

But wait, here's the Saudi Government page:

http://www.scta.gov.sa/sites/english/Pages/Tourism_Accommodation.aspx

Lots of luck.

Regards,
John

Grendal · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 6:35 am Post subject:

This is a true story.

Once upon a time in a land far far away there was an EFL instructor. One day he decided to go for a journey through this land. It was his first ever journey there and he didn't know the roads and customs of the land, so he decided to hire a driver. This driver came from the region north of India and his country is in the nuclear bomb club. The procurement of this driver took a very short time. He asked one person for a quote and received a far too expensive first price which he haggled down to what he thought was a reasonable offer. The day came and the arrangede hour came and passed and there was still no driver. He rang the person he first spoke with and they gave him another number to call and a person there sent his friend to drive said EFL instructor.

The journey took 8 hours one way and as the night came the driver started to swerve and fall asleep at the wheel. The Instructor made him stop the car and he drove the rest of the way because he found out that the highways were not as difficult to navigate as he imagined. That night they rested and stayed at a hotel, which the instructor paid for and later it would be deducted from the agreed amount (which was with another person). The driver was never asked to pay for anything due to the humanitarian nature of the instructor, even pit stops were provided for by the instructor.

When they returned to their original point of departure the next day, after the instructor drove half the way because again the driver was driving erratically, the instructor found out that the car was a rental and the total cost for the whole trip including petrol was half the quoted amount there was a problem. He told the driver that he would only give 75% of what was agreed upon. The expat driver quoted some Saudi verbal agreement law and demanded full payment. Yes he agreed and said the verbal agreement was with a person that he first phoned and then was told to phone a second person who eventually contacted this driver, who wasn't really a driver, maybe a tractor driver on the farm back home, but not a real driver. The instructor gave the money and prayed to Allah that the money would be haram money and that no good thing would come from it. Nothing was compensated for not even the hotel.

The moral of this story is that it does not pay to be a humanitarian in the Kingdom of Humanity. The Instructor should have told the driver to sleep on the street and not payed for anything at pitstops.

Grendal

Citizenkane · Joined: 14 Jun 2009 Posts: 234 Location: Xanadu

The Lathe of Heaven · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 7:28 am Post subject:

I think what is being conveyed here is that whatever country this happens in, Allah will know and they will not prosper in life.

TLOH

Kalima Shahada · Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 8:14 am Post subject:

desultude · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 614

My advice is that when you live in the Tragic Kingdom, you need to be very mindful, lest you leave a goodly portion of your soul behind.

When the lesson is "screw them first", then it is time to leave the Kingdom. Your humanity is at risk, and that is too valuable to lose for a few dollars.