How Travel Advisors Helped Clients Get Out of the Middle East When the Government Couldn't

The U.S. Department of State was heavily criticized during the start of the Iran conflict by stranded Americans who complained that their government did not adequately warn them to evacuate — and then encouraged them to “not rely on the government for help.”

Fortunately, in those first few days of airspace closures and flight cancellations, some American travelers were able to evacuate thanks to travel advisors whose insider connections, on-the-ground relationships and crisis experience proved indispensable. Here are some of those stories.

The Experienced Advisor Who Didn't Wait

Melanie Rodriguez, the Washington, D.C.-based advisor behind Life Is Better Traveling, counts many ex and current military members as part of her clientele, and had two clients traveling in the region when the war began. Even though she had not booked these particular trips, both clients reached out to her to see if she could help.

One client who was visiting Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, contacted Rodriguez on Sunday for evacuation assistance. This client had previously been stationed in Riyadh, but the government was “under no obligation to get her out,” since she was just visiting, Rodriguez says.

Rodriguez, who has experience assisting clients in high-risk destinations, said early alerts from her industry network prompted her to urge the traveler to leave the country before the airspace closed.

While she was able to get on a commercial flight to Paris, another client has not been so lucky, Rodriguez says. This client was traveling solo from the Philippines to her layover in Doha, Qatar, as the conflict began. When she landed in Doha, she was told that the airline would put her up at a hotel.

Repatriation is expensive, but my hope is that there are plans we haven’t seen.

Rodriguez suggested transferring her client to Riyadh, about a 2.5-hour drive, to catch a private plane. If Riyadh closed — as it eventually did — her plan B was to arrange a 16-hour drive to Jordan. Her client, however, chose to stay put and is now stranded.

A former American Airlines employee, Rodriguez says that she hopes the government arranges more repatriation flights, like they did during the pandemic.

“I worked ground operations then and we had so many repatriation flights,” she said. “They have the capability to do it. I would hope to see that when the airspace is closed, they are positioning aircraft, so they are ready to get people out. Repatriation is expensive, but my hope is that there are plans we haven’t seen.”

One Advisor's Oman Option

Urvshi Marwah, the New Jersey-based CEO and founder of The Suite Sojourn, has nearly 100 clients who have the UAE Golden Visa, a residence permit that allows foreign nationals to live in Dubai. Only five client groups have been able to evacuate the city — including two Canadians and two Americans.

When the situation began to unfold, Marwah proactively informed her clients about cancellations and delays from local carriers, as well as information about an aviation jet partner that was offering evacuation services from Muscat, Oman — about 4.5 hours away from Dubai by car.

But Marwah said even for those willing to pay north of six figures for a charter flight, the process was not straightforward or guaranteed. Some of the challenges Marwah’s clients faced included lengthy delays at Oman’s border and waits for charter permit approvals, which could vary widely from eight hours to 24 hours. Clients also had to verify that they had the correct entry visas and current passports. The biggest challenge, though, is that clients had to pay in full for their entire jet — even if only needing a few seats — with no guarantees that their permit would be approved. 

"Many charter partners are not matchmaking in such a short period of time, so even if they just need one or two seats, [the clients] are paying for the full plane,” she said. “The supply and demand are just through the roof. The clients really had to plan this appropriately and then move very quickly.”

Charter prices per jet ranged from $150,000 to more than $350,000, dependent on departure destination, jet type, number of passengers and the plane owner's discretion.  

Many charter partners are not matchmaking in such a short period of time, so even if they just need one or two seats, [the clients] are paying for the full plane.

According to Marwah, carriers from Europe are not servicing these flights, leading to opportunistic pricing. She saw a quote as high as $810,000. 

"We did not share this quote with any client because of how atrocious it was," she said. "In short, clients should know what a reasonable quote is. Anything under $150,000 is likely a scam."  

Because most of Marwah’s clients were not traveling with a DMC at the time of evacuation, she relied on local taxi operators and the jet charter company, who filed fees, permits, war risk insurance and extensive paperwork.

While her clients paid large sums to evacuate, Marwah isn’t sure when or if she will see payment for these efforts — and it’s not top of mind.

“This charter company is not a preferred supplier through Virtuoso, but it’s someone I know personally, and he’s got a great success record in these situations,” she said. “He’s a provider for security firms and has worked with royal families, as well, so I just chose to work with him.”

If this was my family, I would hope that someone would be willing to help them.

And as for service fees, she doesn’t feel like it’s the right time to charge them, since her clients are already spending double or more on travel costs.

"If this was my family, I would hope that someone would be willing to help them,” she said.

As for Rodriguez, she is hopeful that American travelers stranded in the Middle East will eventually make their way out. It's the service members in the region who she worries about most.

"They had plans to go on summer vacation with their kids, but now they are going to spend the time on a base somewhere, and that’s what makes me sad," she said.