FIVE visa-on-arrival places to travel to this long weekend

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FIVE visa-on-arrival places to travel to this long weekend

With the prospect of a three-day weekend, expats are heading off not just out of the country but also exploring this diverse landscape the UAE has to offer.

By Web Team

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Published: Wed 28 Sep 2016, 1:33 PM

Last updated: Thu 29 Sep 2016, 11:12 AM

It's that time of the year again, where you get three glorious days to enjoy the weekend. 
This Sunday (October 2), will be an official holiday for all ministries and federal government entities as well as private employees on the occasion of the Hijri New Year, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation and the Dubai Media Office has announced. 
With the prospect of a three-day weekend, expats are heading off not just out of the country but also exploring this diverse landscape the UAE has to offer. 
Here are the 5 places expats are heading too:
1. Jordan

This country has been long romanticised by movies like Lawrence of Arabia and Indiana Jones, and has always been a popular destination among GCC expats. UAE residents are keen to go to Jordan for the amazing desert landscape of Wadi Rum, the tranquil beaches of Aqaba, the magnificent ruins of Petra made famous by Indiana Jones, and most of all for the Jordanians themselves, who are among the friendliest and most welcoming people in the entire region. Jordan offers a visa-on-arrival scheme for most nationalities and GCC citizens can travel there freely.
A british expat in Dubai, Sharan Sunner says she picked Jordan because it's so easy to get to from Dubai and the flights are so cheap.
"It's somewhere that has been on my list of places to visit for years, I can't wait to see Petra and Wadi Rum!" she adds. 
2. Georgia
Georgia has an ancient culture, vastly different to the one we have here and is just a hop, skip and jump away from the UAE. It's close, inexpensive, culturally rich and offers a climate and geography that is very unusual. The capital city of Tbilisi has so much history and a variety of food and drink, and is an eastern European gem. It's one of three places with no visa restrictions for GCC residents.

A representative of Deira Holidays adds that Hong Kong and Thailand are the other two places GCC expats can go visa-free. Georgia is only three hours thirty minutes away from Dubai and Fly Dubai flies there regularly.
3. Nepal
There's no country more welcoming than Nepal. The tiny kingdom nestled between two superpowers, might just be the mountainous escape you need from the desert. In Kathmandu, Boudhanath Stupa is by far the most calming and serene spot int he city even with it's hordes of pigeons that make for great photographs. If you head over there right before dusk or dawn you can watch the monks chant and take their daily clockwise rounds of the stupa. Don't forget to go to Thamel to shop! You can even go bungee jumping 30 mins away from the capital. Kathmandu is four hours away from Dubai and Indians can enter the country for free. For other nationalities there's a visa on arrival scheme.
Abu Dhabi based Indian expat Leena Bora says, "I love how warm and welcoming the people of Nepal are. They are so helpful and the food is simply delicious. That's one of the reason I'm going to visit this long weekend." 
4. Maldives

Maldives is popular with GCC residents for a reason. It is a tropical paradise perfect for unwinding and relaxing, perhaps for sitting back on the beach with a coconut or going snorkeling or diving with magnificent underwater wildlife. There are plenty of holiday packages (Holiday Factory and Tripadvisor) to choose from.
Male is a four and a half hour flight from Dubai.   
5. Lebanon

Lebanon is known to be a country where "one where you can ski in the mountains in the morning and sun bathe by the pool in the afternoon" and was once called the "Paris of the Middle East" by many. Beirut is now becoming even more affordable to get to from the UAE. There are many hostels and high-end hotels to choose from and the capital city, Beirut is known for its stellar nightlife. This destination is a great hit with Arab and European travellers alike. Lebanon also has some great language schools for those who want to master Arabic. You can get a visa on arrival at Beirut International Airport, GCC citizens can enter the country without one.


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