365RoadWarrior

I'm headed to the Middle East and will need to fly a number of short hops - Muscat to Abu Dhabi to Sanaa to Doha to Dubai to...

Those relatively short flights get rather expensive, especially priced one-way.

So, the question: are there any airlines (Air Arabia, Oman, Emirates...) that offer 30-day passes or 'fly around' discounts?

I've found such deals elsewhere, especially South America, so I figured I'd ask, even though I don't see anything advertised on the airline websites.

Thanks.

RMC500

Emirates has an Arabian Airpass good through 10/31, which allows you to travel to all of the cities you mentioned, except AUH. (AUH is easily accessible by private car or taxi from DXB.) You can purchase segments in F, C, or Y. The catch is that you have to purchase the airpass in conjunction with international travel on Emirates which originates outside the Gulf and Middle East. The closest places outside of Gulf or M.E. served by Emirates are probably Cyprus, IST, or perhaps something in East Africa. Maybe the Emirates forum would provide more info. I think finding an airpass for the M.E. is going to be tough, altho I'll defer to others who may travel there frequently. Be prepared for HOT and MUGGY weather.

365RoadWarrior

Thanks!

The bad news is that I probably won't be traveling until November/December. Still, I'll watch Emirates for future 'deals', so I very much appreciate the advice.

The good news is that this late travel date should spare me from the worst of the weather.

sammyglobal

I am not new to international travel, and I know that airlines have all sorts of games to maximize revenue but perhaps I have never felt as defrauded as I have by Emirates despite paying normal fares. At least the U.S. carrirs tell you why they are going to try and squeeze more dollars out of you. Emirates U.S. call center is a joke, with a bunch of "yes " men and woman that when asked any questions refuse to answer , transfer you to voicemails, or promise supervisor call backs that never happen.

The crux of my problem is as follows:

A) Purchased one way London-Dubai-Kuala Lumpur ticket with Emirates ticket agent at published C fare. (no discount
B) Ticket had three day stopover in Dubai, and I need to go between Dubai and Muscat during this time
C) The published Emirates J fare for Dubai Muscat Dubai is $764.20
D) But it gets better, Emirates has what they call the 'Arabian AirPass'. Under this program , I am eligible to purchase the same Dubau Muscat Dubai tkt for US $110 each way or $220 round trip plus taxes. You can view this for yourself at


http://www.emirates.com/us/english/d...scover_me.aspx


E) When constructing the original itinerary, I was told that the best way to construct my itinerary was to do a thru tkt for London Dubau Kuala Lumpur, and then use the AirPass for the Dubai Muscat Dubai flights as it would save $500 per person

Here is where it gets interesting

F) About a week before the flight, I receive a call from the agent advising that I need to contact Emirates directly to finalize the Arabian Airpass
. The pointed out that the first bullet under the Terms and Conditions states that the Airpass can only be done through "Emirates Local Offices".


http://www.emirates.com/us/english/d...onditions.aspx


The agent also told that if they attempted to sell me this pass, Emirates had threatened to charge them a several thousand dollar penalty for doing so


G) I then contacted Emirates to finalize the Airpass and for one week straight I had promised of call backs from supervisors, the managing director in New York and the ticket office but no one at this airline (which is supposed to be a world class carrier) addressed the problem


The problem is that their website clearly advertises an offer which I qualify for. I paid the right fare to Dubai, I was making the right number of stopovers and I am entitled to this AirPass.

However, Emirates in their underhanded ways decided it did not want to give me the AirPass , not for a rule violation, but because it had already paid the issuing agency a commission on the full fare ticket sale. Regardless, that is not my problem . There is no disclosure that if the international tkt to Dubai is purchased with a travel agent I would not qualify for this offer

Even more surprising, I spent almost 10 hours of time this week trying to make this right but NOT ONE PERSON AT EMIRATES would address the problem or even put the Dubai Muscat flights in my reservation so that I could connect straight through. In the end , I had no choice but to purchase a straight J fare for Dubai Muscat Dubai and be defrauded out of $500 per person X 2.

it is not the money, it is the principal and the adhering to policy and publicy advertised offers made available to business and first class passengers. Not one person in one week took the time to explain anything, and they could care less that my final destination was not ticketed.

I will not less this go..I intend to report this to the New York State Attorney General, Peter Greenberg, the New York Times, Conde Naste among others.

This is an example of a carrier that may be great in the air, but is lousy on the ground.

Any other FT'ers that had a similar experience with Emirates should PM me

Bondiboy

I am fairly certain that the Arabian Air Pass requires a ROUND TRIP ticket of a minimum value ($250 when I last purchased a pass) issued by EK.

I suggest that you read the fine print on the T&C before you jump into "New York State Attorney General, Peter Greenberg, the New York Times, Conde Naste among others." route.

Keep us informed.

(By the way, there is a bus that will take you from Dubai to Muscat and return for a fraction of the cost - about OMR 6 from memory.