These Gulf countries will be easier to travel to with new Schengen-style visa
The GCC Grand Tours Visa, also known as the GCC Unified Visa, will allow non-Gulf nationals to visit one or all six Gulf nations under one visa.
This is similar to the Schengen Area, which allows people to travel freely between certain European countries without the need for strict border checks.
The visa was approved in 2023 by the Gulf Cooperation Council, an alliance between Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to allow travellers to flow between the six countries and to promote tourism across the region.
The UAE is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Gulf due to its ultra-modern cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with glitzy skyscrapers sitting on the sandy coastline.
The country, like many other Gulf nations, also attracts thousands of expats, lured by hot weather, luxury lifestyle and financial benefits. It is estimated that some 30 million of foreign nationals live across the region.
Visa-free travel is already available to citizens of these countries, but the new visa will benefit foreign nationals. To be eligible, the purpose of a trip must be tourism, a short-term stay, or seeing family and friends – not employment.
While the validity period has not been finalised, it is expected to offer a duration from 30 to 90 days.
The visa is anticipated to be launched this year, although an exact date has yet to be confirmed.
The aim GCC states that the aim of the visa is to boost tourism and increase spending within the region, which will in turn create jobs.
Once launched, the visa will be available to apply for online, with the council saying the unified visa will be more cost-effective than the current visas. The price of the visa has yet to be outlined.
To apply, a visitor will need to provide their passport, and may need to supply additional documents such as proof of accommodation, travel itinerary, insurance, proof of financial means and their return or onward ticket.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
16 hours ago
- Daily Mail
London resident shares the biggest mistake American tourists make that all Brits hate
If you're an American trying to blend in while taking a trip across the pond, it may be best to forgo one particular habit. A fed-up Londoner shared a cautionary tale to traveling Americans, after noticing a particular quirk of visitors - taking to Reddit to share their constructive criticism. The keen observer said they were getting a coffee with a friend and were approached on three different occasions by Americans asking for directions. But when the tourists abbreviated the names of various locations, it left the Brit outraged. 'PSA to Americans visiting this summer: we do not shorten place names here,' the Reddit user titled the post. 'First [person asked] how to get to "Green" (Green Park), and that they'd come via "Edgware" (Edgware Road - obviously a totally different part of the city to Edgware itself),' the irate user complained. 'The next wanted to find their hotel in "Holland" (Holland Park, obviously not the country region),' they added. Their grievances didn't stop there, with the London resident writing they had noticed it happening a lot in another thread about life in the British city. 'As people who live here we got the gist of what they were saying yesterday, but it's such an unnecessary layer of friction,' they pointed out. The user went on by declaring it could potentially end up 'catastrophic' in some situations. 'If you're googling the wrong thing, asking for directions, researching somewhere (Gloucester instead of Gloucester Road, Liverpool instead of Liverpool Street, Leicester instead of Leicester Square etc.),' they wrote, before urging Americans to: 'Help yourselves out while visiting.' 'We did discuss reporting "Green" as a hate crime afterwards but let it slide to be polite,' they joked in a comment. Frustrated Londoners piled on in the comments, sharing other location abbreviations or mishaps that have annoyed - or impacted - them the most. '"Green" as an abbreviation is absolutely insane,' agreed a user. 'This does genuinely cause problems. Some are easy to spot - if you ask for Leicester instead of Leicester Square people are going to ask for clarification rather than direct you to the East Midlands,' they continued. 'But if you want Tottenham Court Road but you ask for Tottenham you may well be sent the wrong way!' 'Someone once asked me how to get to Oxford and I told them to go to the end of the street, turn right and walk 60 miles. I thought this was hilarious, but they did not see this as funny. They were looking for Oxford Circus,' shared another user. Someone else noted that tourists often have trouble finding their way to Abbey Road, which was made famous by The Beatles' album of the same name. The iconic zebra crossing is actually located at the St John's Wood area. And to make matters more confusing, there's a train stop called Abbey Road that is not where the iconic album cover was shot at all. 'I had to go to Stratford a few years ago and used the DLR. There is one station on the way called Abbey Road,' one Redditer shared on the thread. They jokingly observed along with a snap of a sign directing tourists: 'They have obviously had problems with tourists looking for the other Abbey Road as they put this sign up.' Someone else assured the annoyed user it happens with travelers to the US too. 'You joke, but in the hotel business this occasionally happens in America too,' someone chimed in. 'I had a guy run out in a hurry after he realized that he didn't feed the entire city name in to his GPS and instead ended up where I was, which was the same thing but shorter. They continued with their cautionary tale: 'I'm guessing he probably had to drive through the night to get to where he was going, since it was 400 miles away. He was a business traveler, so most likely his job was on the line.'
The Guardian
16 hours ago
- The Guardian
Newcastle's Alexander Isak offered £600,000-a-week tax-free deal by Al-Hilal
Alexander Isak has been offered a staggering £600,000-a-week tax-free deal by Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia with further lucrative bonuses on top. The Newcastle striker is open to leaving St James' Park and Liverpool, who are long-term admirers, are keeping an eye on the situation. Isak has not travelled to Asia with his Newcastle teammates for the club's pre-season tour, officially because of a minor muscle injury, and is assessing his options. They include Al-Hilal, who reached the Club World Cup quarter-finals, losing to Fluminense, and want to make a grand statement by signing Isak – one of the most coveted players on the market. Al-Hilal, who are managed by Simone Inzaghi, are prepared to sweeten the package for the striker with bonuses if he were to win the league and/or the Asian Champions League and top the scoring charts. Isak has been unsettled by the transfer talk and he did not play for Newcastle in the friendly at Celtic last Saturday. The club have no desire to sell him and the fans would surely take the dimmest of views of their Saudi owners if they were to let him go to Al-Hilal. Like Newcastle, Al‑Hilal are owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Liverpool would not be able to match the personal terms that Al‑Hilal have proposed and it is unclear whether they would be able to afford the fee; Isak is valued at about £120m. Liverpool have signed another striker – Hugo Ekitiké, for £79m from Eintracht Frankfurt – and spent heavily in other areas, most notably the £116m package for the midfielder Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen. Their other big deals have been for Milos Kerkez (£40m from Bournemouth), Jeremie Frimpong (£29.5m, Leverkusen) and Giorgi Mamardashvili (£25m, Valencia). Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion When sales are factored in, chiefly those of Jarell Quansah (£30m to Leverkusen), Caoimhín Kelleher (£12.5m to Brentford) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (£10m to Real Madrid), Liverpool's net transfer spend stands at £235.5m. It is possible they could raise further funds by selling Darwin Núñez, Harvey Elliott and even Luis Díaz, although they have maintained the Colombian is not for sale. Isak is contracted to Newcastle until 2028.
Daily Mail
17 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Revealed: The eye-watering six-figure weekly sum Alexander Isak could pick up if he goes to Saudi Arabia instead of Liverpool
Alexander Isak has been told he can earn a staggering £600,000 a week net if he signs for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia. Isak has not travelled with Newcastle on their pre-season tour to Asia and, as revealed by Mail Sport on Thursday, he has informed the club's hierarchy he wants to explore a move away from Tyneside. Premier League Liverpool are interested in adding the 25-year-old Sweden international to Arne Slot 's battery of forward options, despite spending £79million on Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt. Newcastle are keen to negotiate a new deal with Isak who has scored 62 goals in 109 appearances since his arrival from Real Sociedad and three years to run on his current contract. But the greatest riches are on offer in the Saudi Pro League and can eclipse what either Liverpool or Newcastle could afford to pay Isak. Al Hilal have made told his advisors they are prepared to strike a deal worth £600,000 a week net. Liverpool, though, are front-runners to sign the forward in a summer of mega-spending for the Reds On a long-term contract it is a life-changing sum of money on the table for the Swede. The complication at the heart of the issue is that Newcastle and Al Hilal are both owned by PIF, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund.
