Holiday travel to Syria requires a few more steps in obtaining proper visas and paperwork. If you have a flight to Damascus in your itinerary, here is what you need to know to have a safe and enjoyable trip.
Flights to Damascus land at the Damascus International Airport, which is located 35 km south east of the capital city. The airports are served by Syrian Arab Airlines, with British Airways and bmi being the two major airlines from European countries.
Citizens of Arab countries are not required to have visas; however, almost every other traveller must have an entry visa. The process of obtaining a visa can be expensive and time-consuming. The most efficient way is to visit the Syrian embassy in your home country. Some individuals may wait and hope that they can get a valid visa by travelling first to Turkey and applying for one there.
To enter Syria, you will need a letter from your consulate stating that your home country has no objection to your travel to Syria. This correspondence is referred to as a “letter of recommendation”. Your visa must have a signature and two stamps, or else it will be declared invalid and the traveller will not be allowed to disembark. It must also be in its original blue arrival form.
There can be no evidence of travel to Israel, whether it is a passport stamp, packaging with Hebrew labelling, or if the flight to Damascus comes from any country bordering Israel. These travellers are denied entry into Syria.