RockyMntFlyer

Purchased tickets in business class on EY to travel from New York to Seychelles. This includes a 4 day stop that was intended to be in Abu Dhabi. US citizen here and vaccinated (just for context). With the recent change in the US no longer being on the green list for Abu Dhabi, I have been rethinking if I should cut the stopover in the UAE and just connect through without entering the country. I would very much like to visit the UAE (never visited) and it's possible that the US could be back in the green by the time we travel in the fall. I realize this is during COVID and no travel is simple. Plus I am certainly fortunate to be able to travel to the UAE, Seychelles, etc. Not meaning to complain here, just trying to get other UAE traveler's input on what you might do in this situation...

Ok, so with that all said...I have found several challenges when planning this trip (not just COVID). Issues with personal prescription drug approvals (not fatal flaw, but what a pain this has been), changing flight times, canceled/rescheduled flights, the Al Hosn app (so, how does one set up the app required to enter the country without a unified ID number - when you don't get a unified ID number until you enter the country with visa on arrival?), and now the US not on the green list. Assuming I keep the flights as is, we would simply fly to Abu Dhabi and take a car service up to Dubai for a few days to avoid quarantine in Abu Dhabi. Has this been a smooth process for others? I'm concerned that the rules are constantly changing and unclear. I'm trying to decide the real level of risk here from others with experience.

The other option is to drop the stayover and change the flights to just connect through to Seychelles with a 7-9 hour layover at AUH (likely get a room at the Aerotel).

Curious what other travelers experienced with Abu Dhabi think?

Thanks!

csdf

The process for international visitors to verify their vaccination in advance is detailed here: https://www.adphc.gov.ae/-/media/Pro...accine-Eng.pdf

That said, I'm not sure I would be bothered with it. As with most things here, get the right person at arrivals and it takes 5 minutes. Get the wrong one and it turns into a stress-filled 4 hour buro-fest.

aviators99

Which type do you think is most likely at around 2300h?

csdf

I would say that your experience typically tends to be inversely proportional to your tiredness and directly proportional to the number of people before you in the queue who had not prepared their papers properly.

If you're really intent on entering the country, you can stump up for one of the VIP arrivals services, which basically take you through a completely different VIP terminal with your own immigration, PCR verification and baggage collection. It's expensive but so so worth it. Oh, and Etihad has a Verified to Fly system which (though optional) allows you to send your various PCR docs in advance of your flight and be sure that they meet requirements, thus removing another layer of uncertainty.,

stargold

Going up to Dubai immediately upon arrival isn't an issue and the process was not too painful back in March. Despite all other changes to the rules, not interfering with people's ability to go up to Dubai seems to have been a relatively stable constant ever since it was introduced.

Going into AD will be a non-starter under the current rules when coming from a non-Green country (even if you're vaccinated), as you'll be required to quarantine for the entire time. However, rules for AD change regularly and you may well benefit from further changes prior to your travel.

RockyMntFlyer

Thanks everyone for the feedback.

CSDF, great idea on the VIP services. I had not thought of this. I did a quick search and saw the VIP Terminal services that appear to be specifically provided by the airport (maybe its run by a contractor, but info is on the official airport website). This does seem pricy, but would address my concerns. Could be worth it. Several other private meet and greet services came up as well. These appear to meet you at the gate (arriving) or curb (departing) and take you through all the check in/immigration steps and then to the airline lounge. We would have access to the EY business lounge with our tickets. They did not show any prices, but I'm going to check into it. This may be less expensive than the full VIP Terminal services.

Has anyone used the VIP Terminal services or any of the other meet and greet services? Thoughts and recommendations?

Thank again!

csdf

My wife and kids used the Pearl Assist service last week (for arrival into Abu Dhabi, not departure). She described it as a life-saver. For departure, I wouldn't bother as it's pretty straightforward.

aviators99

Does flying in F get you something similar to the VIP arrivals service anyway, or does it make sense to get this in addition?

RockyMntFlyer

I see the Pearl Assist service offers different levels of service. Looks like this can be reserved through Pearl Assist directly or Etihad (with Pearl Assist providing the service).

Can you describe the service your wife had on arrival at AUH? My primary hope if for assistance with with immigration, customs, COVID testing, and possibly car service to Dubai (to avoid quarantine). Did your wife use the highest end VIP terminal service or one of the lesser options?

Basically, I just want to confirm that the service is more than an escort through the airport. Thanks again for your help.

Dogmatick

You do have another option, I flew in two weeks ago from Germany (a Green list country) all I was asked was where I flew in from and sent down the green channel. No one at any point asked how long I had been in Germany for so could have as easily just deplaned and checked in and on. They only cared from where I had flown (I had been in two green countries the previous three weeks so wasn't gaming the system but could see the faults)

Did my PCR on arrival, no AUH Rolex and off in my Etihad car. Oh and I fly on a UK passport so wasn't as though it was obvious I had come from Germany. A few stickers were applied to my passport on the way and I cannot honestly say where

csdf

1. Met off the plane and escorted to a car
2. Driven to VIP terminal, seated and given drinks
3. Passports taken away to be stamped by immigration
4. Baggage tags taken away, bags collected and delivered straight to car
5. PCR nurse attended and tested
6. Escorted to car and driven back home

I can only see two options for AUH arrivals, and I'm not certain which one she booked but it looks like the more expensive one. She also arranged a car as needed 3 car seats for the children. Obviously, they brought the wrong car seats but that has been a consistent problem every single place we've ever travelled.

By contrast, this is the standard arrival experience:
1. Deplane, potentially long walk to immigration or bus ride depending
2. Queue for immigration, can be 2 minutes, can be 1 hour+
3. Hand luggage x-ray scanned
4. Short walk to baggage area
5. Wait for luggage (can be 5 minutes, can be 1 hour+ - in the "old" days this was always quick but syn-covid times seem to have worsened)
6. Walk to PCR testing tent
7. Queue for PCR tests (can be 5 minutes, can be 2 hours)
8. Walk outside and queue for taxis (never normally much more than 5 minutes)

So on a good day, arrivals is a breeze, but if you happen to arrive in the middle of peak arrivals time, it can be very painful.

RockyMntFlyer

CSDF, thanks so much for the details. It appears she booked the high end service (this is the only one that has car service from the plane to the terminal). This information really helps.

aviators99

Is the "Standard" experience even if you are traveling in F?

csdf

Steps 1-6 will be identical. First get Fast Track Immigration but that is frequently no faster than the pleb line, and in any case always slower than the e-gates if you can use them. I haven't flown First since covid so it may be that you get a fast track PCR pass; and if you have a chauffeur booked there may be a different route.

Dogmatick

Flying into AUH on the 12th of August there was no Fast Track lane just FYI