Understandably, there’s been some confusion among the travel trade and consumers about the rules surrounding travel to and via the Middle East since the outbreak of the conflict with Iran.
While the Foreign Office (FCDO) is advising against holidays to and via the region, Gulf airlines have resumed flights and are currently operating around 90% of their pre-conflict schedules.
Independent travellers are able to take these flights, albeit at their own risk, but package holidays using the same airlines are being cancelled by tour operators.
The inconsistency was highlighted by Advantage CEO Julia Lo-Bue Said at the consortium’s conference in Madrid this week. She said it was ‘illogical’ that independent customers were able to fly to the Middle East while those who’d booked packages cannot.
It’s a difficult message to translate to customers and, due to the complexity of the situation, even some agents aren’t sure if they can – or should – sell travel via the Middle East.
Here, Travel Gossip breaks down the key questions:
What is the current FCDO advice for transit via the Middle East?
The FCDO advises against all but essential travel to and via the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, as well as parts of Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh and the Eastern Province. Despite this, flights through the region continue to operate to and from the UK.
Does this prevent agents selling holidays with flights via Middle East hubs?
There is no legal ban on selling flights or holidays via the Middle East during the conflict, but a combination of the FCDO advice against non-essential travel and the Package Travel Regulations (PTRs), which governs the sale of package holidays, makes this tricky.
Why do the PTRs prevent agents and operators from offering packages?
The PTRs make the tour operator liable if things go wrong, including supplier failure or disruption during travel.
Under normal circumstances, operators take out liability insurance to cover this exposure.
However, when the FCDO advises against non-essential travel, insurers will generally not cover any claims.
This means operators would be left covering claims themselves, which Travel Trade Consultancy Director Martin Alcock warned ‘could be millions’ in the event of a serious incident.
He added that ‘nobody tour operator liability side is doing that yet’ in terms of providing cover where FCDO advice against travel is in place.
If a package covers transit through a country deemed unsafe by the FCDO, this is also likely to be considered a ‘lack of conformity’ under PTRs. In other words, the customer could argue that they were sold a ‘safe holiday’ that became unsafe.
Even where disruption is outside their control, operators may still be required to assist customers, offer alternatives or provide refunds depending on the circumstances.
In practice, this means operators must consider whether they could realistically meet these obligations if FCDO advice changes, flights are cancelled, or travellers are stranded due to regional instability, said Martin.
Industry lawyer, Jo Kolastis, Themis Advisory Director, said these obligations sit within the wider ‘Unavoidable and Extraordinary Circumstances’ provisions in the PTRs, which apply on a case-by-case basis depending on the situation.
Why are independent travellers still able to fly to and via the Middle East?
Independent travellers are still able to fly because the PTRs don’t cover airlines. They are travelling at their own risk.
Julia said: “The same barrier doesn’t apply to flight only or independent travellers, other than travel insurance is unlikely to cover them.”
Martin noted that FCDO advice would ‘generally invalidate the customers’ travel insurance’ although he did note that one consumer policy was offering limited cover for ‘airside transfer up to two hours’.
Agents have reported that some customers are taking out insurance with companies that specialise in travel to danger zones, including travel against FCDO advice.
Can agents get insurance to sell travel via the Middle East?
In theory, agents can sell packages via the Middle East, but they are very unlikely to be able to currently secure the necessary liability insurance when FCDO advice against travel is in place — which is what makes those packages commercially and operationally unworkable for most.
What if agents get customers to sign waivers or disclaimers?
Martin warned that as an agent, ‘you can’t contract out of this [liability], even if someone did sign a waiver’. He reiterated that if something happens, which could be a ‘wide range of things’, the insurance is invalid and the package organiser is still liable.
Jo recommended getting waivers signed anyway, to act as an ‘acknowledgement of risk’ so that ‘at least you can defend your position’. While some agents are using disclaimers to record that customers understand the risks involved, both Martin and Jo cautioned that such documents have ‘clear legal limitations’.
Are the PTRs likely to change?
There has been wider industry discussion since COVID about whether the PTRs remain fully fit for purpose during major disruption events, including geopolitical instability.
However, the upcoming amendments to the PTRs — due to come into force in April 2027 — will not change the current rules around ‘Unavoidable and Extraordinary Circumstances’. The status quo will therefore remain in place.
Looking further ahead, wider EU Package Travel Directive reforms, expected to be fully implemented by March 2029, go further. These changes extend ‘Unavoidable and Extraordinary’ cancellation and refund rights to cover travel to and from both the destination and the point of departure, and explicitly factor in health and safety risks. These reforms also introduce an important defence for travel companies: where a traveller books knowing a risk is already in place at the time of booking and that risk does not materially worsen before departure, they would not automatically be entitled to a full refund.
In practice, this means someone booking a trip to the Middle East in six months’ time, knowing there is a travel advisory in place, will not be entitled to cancel their package with a full refund if the advice is still in place at the time of departure (unless the situation has materially deteriorated).
