GCC citizens are looking elsewhere for their cooler summer vacations in 2022 due to Schengen visa processing delays that can last up to two months. Departures to Azerbaijan and Armenia are far ahead of their 2021 figures, increasing 1499 percent and 49 percent, respectively.
Many people typically use Schengen travel, a single visa that allows citizens of Asian, Middle Eastern, and African countries access to destinations in 26 European states, during the summer vacation when GCC residents travel to cooler climates.
UAE citizens do not need Schengen visas, but other GCC nationals and many GCC residents, including Indians, Pakistani, Lebanese, Filipinos, and Africans, do. As a result of visa delays, some people were unable to visit Schengen countries this summer.
Despite an increase over the previous year, departures from the GCC to nations east of the Schengen zone are all still significantly below pre-pandemic levels, even more so than in Schengen countries, according to flight passenger data from ForwardKeys.
Azerbaijan departures from the GGC are up by 1499 percent in June, July, and August 2022 compared with 2021, although they are still 63 percent behind what they were in 2019.
Departures to Armenia are up by 49 percent on 2021, but 9 percent behind pre-pandemic levels, while those to Georgia, popular with UAE residents due to its short flight time of three and a half hours, were up by 11 percent on last year, but still 49 percent down on pre-pandemic levels.
The Baltic state of Croatia, which is expected to join the Schengen visa scheme in 2023, is up 11 percent on 2021 but still 76 percent behind 2019 levels.
Summer Schengen country departures overall from the GCC are up 141 percent on 2021 and 26 percent below 2019.
Greece, which, unlike many countries, did not require a period of quarantine on arrival in the summer of 2021, is 8 percent behind pre-pandemic levels this year, and down 1 percent on 2021.
