7 hours ago
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SINGAPORE: When news broke of airspace closures across the Middle East after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran over the weekend, travel agencies in Singapore scrambled to field enquiries from customers worried about their upcoming transits or trips.
EU Holidays, for example, had been prepared to send about 750 Singaporeans in 30 tour groups on holiday to destinations mainly in Europe this month.
Instead, it is now processing full refunds for some travellers, including 20 passengers who were set to fly to Egypt on Tuesday (Mar 3).
“We are also trying to get refunds from airlines, hotels and land operators. But (even) before we get confirmation, (as we want to) make sure that our customers feel very secure and taken care of, we do a full refund back to the customers first,” said Mr Ong Hanjie, director of EU Holidays.
For those affected by the airspace closures and flight cancellations, and unable to make it back home for now, Mr Ong said the agency is making sure they have a place to stay and a way to return as soon as possible.
It currently has three tour groups of about 25 customers each who are stuck in Dubai, Buenos Aires and Chile. They were meant to return at the start of this week.
They have been given a choice of returning on the next available flight, or on alternative routes if they are not willing to travel through Dubai or the United Arab Emirates (UAE) airspace. They will not need to pay extra for this, said Mr Ong.
“We are assisting them with all their travelling needs and requirements … The extension of hotel stays is covered at the cost of EU Holidays,” he added.
“Our tour leaders are well trained to answer their questions. At the same time, we have our emergency response team to speak to the tour managers and to update them on the situation and what's going to happen next, and get them prepared mentally.”
On Monday evening, some airlines resumed a limited number of flights to and from the Middle East – including Dubai and Abu Dhabi – after three days of uncertainty.
MORE EXPENSIVE FLIGHTS
Another agency, Super Travels, is helping about 180 customers with bookings over the next two weeks, as their travel plans remain uncertain.
The agency is offering affected customers the option to cancel their trips with charges, postpone their holidays, or switch to a different destination.
It issued an advisory for tours scheduled to depart on Emirates or Qatar Airways before Mar 15, including waiving administrative fees for those who want to postpone or travel to another region. The agency is monitoring the situation for those scheduled to fly from Mar 15 onwards.
However, making alternative arrangements has proven challenging.
Flights that avoid the Middle East can cost up to four times more, and refunds for destinations outside the Middle East are not guaranteed.
“The difficulty is that a lot of carriers at this point in time are already fully booked,” said Super Travels Group vice-president and director William Huang, who is also a member of the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS)’s outbound committee.
“Maybe I can get one or two tickets on Singapore Airlines; maybe I can get one or two tickets on Finnair. But if you want me to get a group of 20 tickets, I think that's quite impossible at this point,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Association of Muslim Travel Agents Singapore has urged its members to review and postpone affected trips, and to closely monitor the latest developments.
The situation comes during the holy month of Ramadan – a peak period for the Umrah pilgrimage.
Some agencies have cancelled scheduled bookings, while others are monitoring developments in the hope that trips later this month can still proceed.
