tacostuff

I'm going to be in Israel on business and I'd like to make a personal stop in Riyadh on the way home. Is this even possible? I'm a US citizen, and I have a second passport. I'll fly from the US into TLV and use my second passport to enter/leave TLV. Here's my questions.

1. Can I even fly from TLV to RUH on one itinerary? E.g., would LH/TK let me book a ticket from TLV to RUH (connecting, of course). Would I have to split the itinerary?

1a. Would it work to drive to AMM from TLV and fly from AMM to RUH?

2. Even if I can do #1/1a, when I enter RUH, will they start to question me about where I came from? I would use my 1st passport to enter RUH, so there would be no evidence that I came from TLV. There's also a number of other middle eastern stamps in my first passport too, FWIW.

3. If the TLV/RUH immigration (somehow) becomes aware that I have two passports, will this cause problems?

Thanks!

johndadevski

#1 Where is the other passport from?

#2 I know that US citizens or almost any other passport holder have to get a visa from embassy prior to a visit.
I know that if Saudi sees any Israeli stamp on any Passport they will deny entry.

I also have 2 passports and on my third visit for Umrah they searched carry on and found other passport and flipped thru all pages.

#3 If they search your belongings and find other passport with Israeli stamp they will hold you and question you even more.

Good luck

RSonny2010

I would like to know your source about the following statement"...any Israeli stamp on any Passport they will deny entry." Thank you!

johndadevski

http://igoogledisrael.com/2009/09/can-i-visit-arab-countries-with-an-israeli-visa-stamp-in-my-passport/

Arab/Muslim countries that accept visitors with Israeli stamped passports:

United Arab Emirates
Egypt
Jordan
Oman
Morocco

Arab/Muslim countries that DO NOT accept visitors with Israeli stamped passports:

Syria
Lebanon
Libya
Kuwait
Iran
Iraq
Pakistan
Saudi Arabia
Sudan
Yemen
For those of you with Israeli passports, the following list might be of interest.

Arab/Muslim countries that ALLOW entry for Israeli citizens:

Bahrain
Egypt
Tunisia
Jordan
Qatar
Oman
Morocco

Also:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/middle-east/909184-passport-stamps-hindering-israel-visits-israel-visa-hindering-other-country-entry.html

And:
http://www.themadtraveleronline.com/travel-tips/i-dont-want-israel-to-stamp-my-passport/

tacostuff

Sorry, I should have clarified this. I have a second US passport that I only use for trips to Israel.

typical

If you can solve the issue of getting a Saudi visa in the first place, this will be a pain in the neck but not impossible.

You'd want to split it for your own peace of mind, I'm pretty sure.

Risky - the Saudi immigration officer might want to see your stamp to enter Jordan, which would state the crossing you entered from...

They might, it probably depends on your visa, but unless you're very unlucky (or they can't easily verify your story), it should be fine just giving your previous destination.

Can't speak about TLV, but the Saudis will only care if they've already reason to.

dunk

How will you get a visa for KSA ? They don't issue individual tourist visas. Do you have family/friends there ?

I managed to get a visa for a friend by pretending they were coming to do some work for my company and arranging an invitation for a business visa. Even then it's an administrative pain and will likely cost several hundred $$.

I'd encourage you to investigate further as it would be a 'cultural adventure' with bragging rights if you're that kind of traveller.

From Timatic:

- Visitors holding passports containing any Israeli visa or stamp could be refused entry.

hth

tacostuff

Interesting. Honestly, I hadn't thought about the visa part yet. I figured it would be a pain, but that I could just pay a company to do it for me (e.g., like China, India, Russia). I thought the flight logistics would be the hard part. I guess I won't be going to KSA on this trip.

I like to travel to see and experience the world first hand and not just rely on what is fed to me from others. Too bad I won't be able to do this in Saudi Arabia. Here's to hoping that someday someday I'll be able to.

dunk

It may be worth a PM to the author of this post http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...a-jl-rj-j.html, who managed to get a transit visa for KSA.

hth

csdf

Unless you're Muslim and going on Hajj or Umrah, or a business person with a letter of invitation, or an employee of a company with a registered office in KSA, you won't get a visa unless you have a serious amount of wasta

allan21bornales

Hi,,, i am overseas worker with a philippine passport holder,,, i wanna visit israel after end of my contract, i will be from saudi arabia, is there any problem if the immigration will knew that i will be going in israel for tour,,, please give me some advice please

Thanks,

typical

Why would you tell Saudi immigration, if you're leaving the country?

If you would return to Saudi Arabia after visiting Israel, then yes, it could be a pretty big problem.

Otherwise, fly into Jordan (or cheaper, fly to Gurayat and drive the rest) first, and the Saudis will neither know nor particularly care where you go after that. It'd be wise to have Jordan-Israel travel on a different itinerary to your Saudi-Jordan travel, just in case.

srdshelly

Currently Israel does not stamp passports at TLV. You get a slip of paper when you enter, and turn it in when you leave. There will be nothing in your passport to show you were in Israel, except if you use a land crossing.

SEAskyrider

However it's possible to get a Personal Visit visa in much the same way as you'd get a Business visa to KSA (invitation letter/sponsorship needed). However that doesn't mean it's easy to get...

Palal

Unless you have multiple passports, be prepared for lengthy questioning at your point of entry into Israel.