Damascus OWE, anyone?
 

Thanks to the kindness of the thread's oracles, one sees that DAM is an inexpensive place to start an AONE3. BA operates out of there to LON with a stop in BEY, in the guise of BMED, and Emirates makes the trudge between a trip ending in CMB and DAM for a relative pittance. Via DXB, of course.

Any general comments on that plan, and suggestions re an agent on the ground would be appreciated.

Definitely an SSSS magnet, of course. I'd be inclined to buy myself a rubber stamp and stamp my own boarding passes just in case they ever forgot. Maybe there's even an SSSSS category I've yet to learn about.

Help re starting OWE from Damascus, Syria?
 

Did I use a misleading title last time? Any input at all re starting an AONE3 in DAM would be appreciated. It's attractively cheap for a -3 and quite accessible from previously-popular places where one might end up, e.g. CMB.

Given your location at LAX, chances are you have an American passport. I've heard that for Americans Syrian visas have been difficult to get in recent months.

Citizens of most EU countries can now even get visas on arrival along the Lebanese border, but this is not offered to those travelling on American passports.

Thanks for the heads-up on that one. That's one of the challenges I hadn't thought to check. I suppose there's a possibility of doing the deal while remaining in transit, although the connection I was looking at -from EK inbound from home - would entail plenty of time to become intimately familiar with every aspect of the airport.

In posts 22 and 33 of this thread Guy Betsy states that there is no OWE fare offered from Syria and bases that on his access to AA's CRS. The current starfiles list a fare ex Syria so I guess I don't know if there is one or not anymore.

The ex-Syria fares in the present *file are reasonable, and not particularly bargains except for AONE3. That's unlike the fares from places with no service, that are *really* cheap but unobtainable. Assuming BMED is allowed, there's actually OW service out of DAM. So I'd guess it's do-able.

BMED is allowed. The RTW desk quoted me a fare from Syria early last year but Guy Betsy was pretty sure there was no fare.

TO everyone here.. my apologies...

I found the fare from Syria. It would have helped if that person who programmed RTW fares into AA's computers would place Syria under alphabetical order!

Fares as follows:
AONE3 SYR 293,960...AONE4 SYR 340,160...AONE5 SYR 403,160...AONE6 SYR445,160

DONE3 SYR 209,960...DONE4 SYR 251,960...DONE5 SYR 293,960...DONE6 SYR 335,960

LONE3 SYR 104,960...LONE4 SYR 121,760...LONE5 SYR 142,760...LONE6 SYR 167,960

Prices correct as of 24 JAN 2006.

Please note that it is quite difficult for Western nationals to obtain Syrian visa .

BTW, for an extra $700 more, it may save you the trouble and grief by flying out of CAI instead. At least you won't have the visa situation where I hear it's hard for americans to get visas into Syria.

ex-CAI AONE3: US$6168 vs ex-DAM AONE3: US$5466

State doesn't mention problems getting visas on their generally comprehensive Consular Information Sheet for Syria. Lots of warnings about prior travel to Israel, and the likelihood that you'll be conscripted into the military if you happen to have a distant relative who was Syrian. Apparently if you wish not to join the army instead of continuing your travels, that can be arranged for something between USD2000 and USD15000, although I read elsewhere that it was now a fixed-price system. Maybe two-tier, depending on whether or not you voted for George.

But the whole thing merits a lot of attention - I don't particularly look forward to deplaning anywhere where the guns are pointed at me, even figuratively.

On the positive side, a company that once called itself British Mediterranean still has no problem operating out of there. The name is now officially BMED and you're probably not supposed to remember what it stood for, of course. Are the planes still flying BA colors?

The $700 extra to start from CAI comes with some extra burdens - CAI is one of the places that you can only have one of in your European itinerary, requiring a tedious escape via Spain to avoid, and if you happen to be ending a prior trip in CMB, it seems that getting to DAM was much cheaper, too. EK has a USD195 fare DXB-DAM, and CMB-DXB is similarly reasonable, even in J. I emailed the BMED office yesterday to see if there's a ball to roll.

Thanks to everyone for the inputs, and I look forward to any other tidbits that may pop up.
(Actually, email was to a TA who's their handling agent - Sanadiki Travel Services )

In my experience, and of others that I know, you have that backwards... I have had no problems getting visas on two seperate ocasions at the Syrian / Lebanese border on an American passport. While the rule is to have one ahead of time, generally it seems anyone from a european or western country can pick it up upon arrival. Having said that, I have heard that things are different at the airports.

Have you experienced this recently?

No...not personally. I have only 'heard' from the grapevine. I'll know when I try going there myself maybe in the fall.

But I will never know how difficult it is to get a visa in advance.... I just happen to hold a passport that allows me to obtain a visa for a short stay of less than 15days at the airport.

:)

Just to clarify, Syria also fits in that list and you can't get there from anywhere but London. The IB flight is a codeshare with Syrian Air. Also, although I have never taken a BMED flight, I believe someone here has said that it's like fliying in intra-europe biz.

Thanks for that, Darren. Sloppy assuming on my part. I hadn't considered IB since I didn't think I cared, but as you pointed out, that's not an option.

FWIW some BMED flights stop at BEY but apparently they have no LTR on that segment since the CX planner doesn't show DAM-BEY if asked.

No reply to email yet. If their computer is working I suppose everyone is standing around staring at each other and asking "What's OneWorld?" Or perhaps CIA hasn't forwarded it to them yet.