Hello,
I am considering a number of trips through the Middle East in the near future. I have been told repeatedly, by friends, to avoid Syria. What is the situation? Is it better to avoid this country (or this region) at the moment?
Thanks for your thoughts,
Mermaid
Re: Safety in Syria
[quote]Originally posted by Mermaid:
[b] Hello,
I am considering a number of trips through the Middle East in the near future. I have been told repeatedly, by friends, to avoid Syria. What is the situation? Is it better to avoid this country (or this region) at the moment?
Thanks for your thoughts,
Mermaid [/b][/quote]Hi Marmaid,
I am currently in Syria leading tours for Imaginative Traveller. It is absolutely safe and there is no trouble at all with security situation. Syrian are very friendly and helpfull people. Hope this will help to make your decision
Arif
Re: Safety in Syria
Thanks very much, Arif. Local information is very valuable!
Cheers, Mermaid
Re: Safety in Syria
Hi Mermaid,
Don't avoid Syria. I was there in April and felt very safe. It is a beautiful country and the people are very welcoming. Syrians are aware of the negative publicity folks from the Middle East get in the western press and they really go out of their way to be welcoming and to try and dispell the perception that they are all a bunch of extremists who hate westerners.
I hope you do choose to go to Syria. You won't be dissapointed.
Steph
Re: Safety in Syria
Hi Mermaid
Have your friends been to Syria? If so they may have had a completely different experience to myself and others I know.
Seriously it is an amazing place and you get a real sense of discovery there. I had so many great suprises and maybe the biggest was how friendly and open the Syrians are. Which is a terrible thing to say I know -why shouldn't they be open and friendly?- but western media does concerntrate on the spectacular and flag burning Arabs seems to be the flavour of the day with the likes of CNN and the Axis of Eviiiilllll oil and media barons that have us by the short and curlies.
You'll never know if you never go
Mitnak
Re: Safety in Syria
Hi,
I really appreciate everyone's postings on the subject of Syria. As near as I can tell the most recent posting was last August. I really want to do the Istanbul to Cairo trip and am wondering if anyone has been to Syria recently and has the atmosphere changed from what was posted? I should mention I'm from the U.S. I'm not sure if that changes things. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Re: Safety in Syria
Hello PJ,
Thanks for the posting.
Currently everything is fine in Syria and the fact that your from the US should not pose any problems. Imtrav are constantly in contact with our tour leaders on the ground and monitor current affairs. It's a good working practice to keep up to date with the media and government websites though often they do tend to over emphasise the situation. Naturally considering events in this region and US involvement a little decorum would not go a miss.
I hope this helps.
Re: Safety in Syria
Points well taken. Thanks for the info.
Re: Safety in Syria
My daughter is on the Istanbul to Cairo Tour. Currently, they are in Aleppo Syria. There hv been reports in the media of an incident car bombing etc in Aleppo around the same time that they arrived in Aleppo. Hv you heard from the tour guide? Are they all safe?
Would appreciate a response?
Many thanks
Re: Safety in Syria
Hello,
Thanks for your post.
I can confirm that none of our groups were affected and our tours continue to operations as planned with no changes to the itineraries following the events yesterday.
As usual we take advice from the British Foreign Office on whether to operate tours in our destinations. They do not advise against travel to Syria and have not actually mentioned it. We have also sought advice from our local agents, and we feel that it continues to be safe to operate in Syria.
I hope the comments above this posting have gone some way in allaying your fears.
Kind Regards,
Robert
Re: Safety in Syria
We have just returned from our Vacation. One of the trips we took was A Journey through Jordan and Syria. I can assure anyone taking this trip that they have nothing to worry about in Syria. Once you get over the border and into Syria you will find that the people are wonderful, friendly, kind and will go out of their way to be helpful to you.Aleppo was my favourite place and the hotel there was the best on the trip. Walking around Aleppo, as a woman on your own, is no problem.I wandered the streets alone. In Damascus the same. In fact I got myself lost and could not remember the name of the hotel or street where it was, I only knew that there was a circle with a statue on it where if i found the right one I could find the hotel from there. People I asked for directions went out of their way to get me to the right hotel. They wrote directions in both English and Arabic on paper so I could show to people as I walked from the souks to the hotel. I would go back to Syria tomorrow if I could. Lots to see and shopping a treat after Egypt. No hasssle, free to look at whatever you want, well mannered sales people,no pressure just a pleasure to be there in Syria.
All in all a great holiday.
Re: Safety in Syria
I went to Syria late last year. I found that in Aleppo I felt threatened (mostly from being hassled, stared at and at one point I even had a rock thrown at me), but found that in the South of Syria the atmosphere was the opposite. You just need to be aware that if you dress with a fair amount of skin showing (Northern and rural Syria 95% of the woman I saw were all wearing Berka) you will not be treated with respect. As a girl I wore mostly pants or long skirts and 3/4 tops or the very lose long sleve tops, but still felt undressed.
As to the risk of being hurt in a terrorist or random attack I have the scars to prove that it can and does happen. Don't go travelling with the attitude "it will never happen to me". I loved the Middle East, but it can be harmful to you health. Then again so can the taxi's in NY, the skydiving in NZ, the elephants in Africa... Weight up the risk and if you still want to go do it!! Crac de Chevalier is worth it, trust me!!
Oh and the American on our tour become Canadian for a couple of weeks. He thought that it worked!
Re: Safety in Syria
We generally find that for Islamic countries, covering up to reflect the local dress code makes it more comfortable for visitors and locals alike, and your tour leader will always advise accordingly. Unfortunately, especially in rural areas, interpretations can differ about what is appropriate. Sorry to hear about your rock-throwing incident. From all the reports we get back from people this is exceptionally unusual.
Do they really wear the full burqa in northern Syria? Or is it more like a hijab? The burqa covers the entire face and body, leaving a small mesh screen to see through, as worn in Afghanistan. There's a handy illustration of the difference on this BBC page if you scroll down: [url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5412742.stm]http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5412742.stm[/url]
I just had a report back form an American chap who travelled with us to Iran recently. He was a bit unsure about saying he was American at first, but says he encountered nothing but friendliness. In fact the only time he was made to feel uncomfortable was when he landed back in Washington and US Customs went through his passport and found the Iranian stamp.
Re: Safety in Syria
The rock wasn't the worst of it! I was one of the tour members in Amman, Jordan on the 4 Sept. These things happen though and I have just had to get on with things. I don't want to let angry people like this get me down or worse, stop me from travelling.
The woman were mainly dressed with nothing but their eyes showing. I have lived in London for a few years so was used to many different types of dress, but found this a little unnerving to begin with. However I loved that you could see flashes of bright colour when the women were walking!
Syria was a good experience and one I hope many others can enjoy. However if you don't want to go, or don't feel comfortable find somewhere else. The world is a HUGE place!
Re: Safety in Syria
[quote]Originally posted by:
[b] The rock wasn't the worst of it! I was one of the tour members in Amman, Jordan on the 4 Sept. These things happen though and I have just had to get on with things. I don't want to let angry people like this get me down or worse, stop me from travelling.
[/b][/quote]Exactly right. Given events in London, New York, Madrid and elsewhere, you never know what's going to happen so you might as well enjoy yourself travelling. It's always an affirmation for me of what people have in common around the world when you get treated with courtesy by people from a very different backgound.