Hundreds of Irish travellers have been stranded on stopovers for almost a week in Middle East hubs. They have been scrambling to book flights or playing a waiting game for airspace to reopen since the US attacks on Iran at the weekend. The Government has meanwhile chartered flights home for some of its citizens. We hear from some of those Irish passengers who are stuck abroad on layovers or on holiday.
Kailey Aston in Dubai
Backpacker Kailey Aston spent the night sheltering in her hotel room bathtub last weekend as the large windows of the building shook. During the first “terrifying” 48 hours in Dubai, she could see explosions and missiles intercepted in the sky.
Aston (23) had set off on her big adventure last week, having quit her job to travel solo on a two-month trip around Asia.
But the Monkstown, Co Dublin native decided to surprise two of her Irish friends living in Dubai. She booked a stop-off with Emirates in the United Arab Emirates on her way to the Philippines.
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Aston says she decided to extend her stay by one day because she was having such a great time in the city. “I didn’t realise that small decision would mean I’d end up caught in the brink of war”.
Aston is trying to get out, either back to Ireland or across to southeast Asia, “whichever comes first”.
But it’s not straightforward. Getting though to the airline can be difficult. Flight prices to Dublin have skyrocketed (€6,500 is one price she has seen). But she says the Irish Embassy has been great. She has rebooked her Philippines flight for Saturday and is hopeful it will go.
For now she feels “safe” as much of the city has reopened and people are a lot less nervous. Although she is aware of the image management by the authorities, especially to expats and tourists.
She spoke to The Irish Times from her friend’s apartment on the top floor of an eight-storey building, noting that at least the skyscrapers around were higher and there were a lot less missiles in the sky right now.
John Burnett in Doha
Flaming debris has damaged the tiles of the swimming pool at the Doha hotel where John Burnett (83) has been staying since the war extended his stopover in the Qatari capital en-route from Perth to Heathrow.
“There were explosions at midday near the hotel,” says Burnett, who lives in Carrigaline, Co Cork, and describes himself as a “grey backpacker”. It was the seasoned traveller’s first time in the Middle East – he had been on his way home from visiting his brother in Australia.
He is staying in an international hotel, where they’ve been told to “stay put”, but Burnett has been taking walks around the block.
The pensioner has run out of blood pressure medicine, but is managing without. “We’re being well taken care of, I’m in as good a place as I can be,” says Burnett. But with air space still closed, he says “who knows after another week in this place”.
Rosie Gowran in Doha
Also stuck in Doha is Rosie Gowran, who describes the experience as the “twilight zone”.
“I’ve no idea when I’ll get home and I’m not the only one.”
The University of Limerick occupational therapy lecturer was on her way home from a conference in Kathmandu, Nepal, when the war broke out.
Although she is being very well taken care of, by both Qatar Airways and the “fantastic” hotel staff, she carries the feeling of being stuck.
“I feel a sense of paralysis and exhaustion,” she says. “The feeling that you have no control over the situation, of not knowing what’s going to happen or where you are going”.
Gowran, who was travelling alone, met a gang of fellow travellers at the airport (where she was stuck for 24 hours) and they meet daily for breakfast. “It’s almost like a film, people coming with their different stories.”
While she feels safe, she asked to move from the 30th floor, and now she is on the 9th it is easier to sleep. “At night time there is more activity,” she says of the missile attacks.
Gowran, who has a daughter (19) and elderly mother in Ireland, says all she can tell people asking for news is “we wait”.
She had been hopeful of getting a flight soon but further attacks on the city have dashed her hopes for now. She does not want to see the Irish in Doha forgotten.
Michael Duffy in Thailand
Although being stuck in Thailand as a retiree in no particular rush may almost sound fun, for Michael Duffy, it is not relaxing.
“It’s not an extension of our holiday, every hour or so we are checking for updates.”
Duffy and his wife, Margaret, were at Bangkok airport for their Qatar Airways flight back to Dublin last week when it was officially cancelled. He describes the situation in the airport as “chaotic”. They are left unsure of their rights for expenses, or when they can travel back home and are uncertain if their insurance will cover them due to the war.
Some fellow Qatar passengers they had met and formed a WhatsApp group have managed to get flights back to Europe via Beijing. But Duffy is hoping the situation will evolve over the next few days.
The couple had treated themselves to the “privilege” of first-class tickets home as part of the holiday. “It’s becoming wasted money, I can’t even buy a ticket home.”
For now they wait, hoping they will be rerouted home soon.
Citizens with queries or concerns can contact the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade consular team in Dublin at +353 1 4082000. To register go to citizensregistration.dfa.ie.
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