2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003Found this video and some photos on the @t2.engineers Instagram account showing the current status of the new T2 terminal that’s under construction. I had heard that work on the airport never stopped throughout the pandemic which is how I guess they’ve managed to get so much done.
There is another video I found below taken from @arabaviation that shows how the interior is coming along as well.
I know it feels weird talking about Kuwait Airways and plane interiors when most of us aren’t planning to travel any time soon (or at least until the 2-week quarantine on arrival rule is removed) but, around a week ago, Kuwait Airways took delivery of the world’s first Airbus A330-800.
This is a brand new plane built from scratch for Kuwait Airways and can accommodate 235 passengers, 203 in Economy Class, and 32 in Business Class. The interior is as current as you can get and the Kuwait Airways Business Class finally looks competitive. Check out the interior yourself in the video above.
So earlier this week I took my mum to the airport since she was leaving for the States and the experience felt really strange. I think being at the airport after so much time away and seeing it basically deserted felt a bit eerie. The long term park for example was completely empty which I’ve never seen before and Emirates which used to have flights every few hours now has only one a day and it’s barely filled.
For those of you planning to travel out of Kuwait, here are a few things that I noticed are different:
You’ll have your temperature taken as you enter the airport.
Before arriving to the check-in desks there is a checkpoint where they scan your Kuwait Mosafer QR Code. I was accompanying my mum who had a QR code but I didn’t have one and it wasn’t an issue. I also saw some other people pass through without having to show a QR code either.
The same checkpoint also checks your PCR test results. In my mums case the guy also called a number to confirm the result of the test, I guess that’s to stop people who are using fake test results.
I read that you aren’t allowed into the airport unless you’re traveling or accompanying someone elderly. I never got asked why I was in the airport but not sure if that’s because I was with my mum or if it was because the rule wasn’t being enforced.
My mum traveled with Emirates and the check-in area wasn’t busy at all. There were clear markings on the floor to show the distance you need to keep between other travelers in line and that spacing was being enforced.
While at the check-in counter about to finish up with my mum’s check-in, some airport guy came up to us and was like we both can’t be standing next to each other. I tried to explain she was my mum and we came to the airport together and I’m helping her check-in, but he insisted we social distance. That was very bizarre and I would have gladly continued arguing with him to find out the point but by then we had already finished up with Emirates so didn’t bother.
Kuwait Airport isn’t allowing carry-ons, neither is Emirates supposedly, so to my mum’s dismay I forced her to pack a small backpack (which according to the guy I spoke to on the phone was allowed). Once my mum boarded the plane the first thing she did was send me pictures of people who had a carry-ons and I’m now no longer her son.
Restaurants inside the airport are open and adhering to social distancing rules. (update: supposedly just Shake Shack and Starbucks)
Hope the above was helpful, I might have missed something so if you want to add anything to the above just leave it in the comments below.
The Civil Aviation just announced a few moments ago (3:15PM on the first day of the airport reopening) that there are in fact countries that are banned from flying to Kuwait. The countries on the banned list are the following:
Armenia – Bangladesh – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Brazil – Chile – China – Colombia – Dominican Republic – Egypt – Hong Kong – India – Indonesia – Iraq – Iran – Italy – Kosovo- Lebanon – Macedonia – Mexico – Moldova – Montenegro – Nepal – Pakistan – Panama – Peru – Philippines – Serbia – Singapore – Spain – Sri Lanka – Syria (source 1, 2)
So if you live in one of those countries and had booked a flight to Kuwait, it doesn’t seem like you’ll be able to fly back for the time being.
Update: One airline had to inform their passengers that only Kuwaitis would be allowed to land in Kuwait after the late Civil Aviation announcement barring planes from certain countries from flying to Kuwait. That must have been so disheartening to the passengers who thought they were finally coming back home. Link
The Civil Aviation have posted a list of requirements for passengers that are flying in and out of Kuwait. Check them out below:
Departing Passengers
• Must register in the application (Kuwait Mosafer) and submit the relevant barcode throughout the phases of travel.
• Must obtain health certificate issued by laboratories approved by the Ministry of Health, confirming negative infection with COVID-19 disease, if required, depending on the requirements of each country, together with adhering to the required period of its validity.
• Citizens must obtain health insurance for the period of travel, covering treatment of infection with COVID-19 virus.
• Must abide by the health requirements respective to wearing masks and gloves, using the sanitizers and adhering to physical-distancing.
Arriving Passengers
• Must register in the application (Shlonik) prior to boarding the aircraft.
• Must obtain approved health certificate (PCR), proving negative infection with COVID-19 disease, with 96-hours validity from the testing date.
• All arriving passengers will be subjected to home-quarantine for 14 days.
• Body temperature of all passengers will be checked prior to boarding the aircraft and upon arrival.
• A random (PCR) test will be conducted on 10% of the passengers of each flight upon arrival.
• Must abide by the health requirements respective to wearing masks and gloves, using the sanitizers and adhering to physical-distancing.
If you leave or arrive to Kuwait August 1st onwards, let us know in the comments about your experience.
Traveling next month into or out of Kuwait? The Kuwait Civil Aviation Authority has launched a web-based application to help make it more convenient for travelers that are departing or arriving to Kuwait post-August 1.
The app provides a variety of different services including booking your airport check-in visit time so you don’t have to wait at the check-in counters, you’ll also be able to get your boarding pass online (finally, it took a worldwide pandemic to make this happen) and the app also gives you baggage notifications which I am assuming is so travelers don’t huddle up around the conveyor belt waiting for their bags to come out.
The app looks pretty impressive and you don’t need to install it since it’s web-based, just visit kuwaitmosafer.com
Thanks Zaydoun
Yesterday I got an email from Qatar Airways letting me know that they’ve resumed daily flights from Kuwait until the end of the month:
Mr Makhoul, in these challenging times, we are here to support you if you need to travel home. We recently resumed flights from Kuwait so that you can now fly daily to select destinations, until 30 May 2020.
As we understand your travel plans might change, we are offering you more flexibility. You can change your date of travel free of charge, or exchange for a future travel voucher*.
Your safety, security and well-being are our first priority. As always, we provide the highest standards of hygiene on our aircraft, so your journey back home is seamless and safe
All flights are one way only and there is no mention that I need to fly specifically to my home country. So I guess I could fly out to any country that is currently allowing non-citizens/residents to come in. They had some offers mentioned in the email but when I checked their website none of the prices there matched the offers in the email. For example, a one-way economy ticket to London was listed as KD85 in the email but the lowest ticket price I found online was KD168.
I don’t think there are any other airlines flying out daily so I guess whatever they ask for you’re gonna have to pay if you want to leave Kuwait. Also if you’re Kuwaiti, it doesn’t seem like you’re allowed to fly out.
While on vacation I read an article that said expats who were in countries with high rates of the coronavirus like Thailand and Italy wouldn’t be allowed back into Kuwait while Kuwaitis would be quarantined either at home or at a government chosen location depending on which country they would be arriving from.
It got me really worried since it meant if while in Tbilisi a large outbreak occurs, I might not be able to get back into Kuwait.
Yesterday a friend was telling me it happened to her expat friend who was in Italy on vacation. He wasn’t allowed to get on the plane back home to Kuwait. I know everyone is freaked out about the coronavirus but I really think this is unfair since a lot of people like me count Kuwait as our home. If it was me in Italy and I wasn’t able to hop on a plane back here I wouldn’t know what I would do or where I would go.
I booked a week-long vacation starting next Wednesday to Tbilisi, Georgia since I heard a lot of good things about the city. The last time I took a proper vacation was back in August 2018 and it was also for a week so I’m really really looking forward to the time off. I’m taking Jazeera Airways since they fly to Tbilisi directly and then going to rent a Land Cruiser LC76 while there so I can also drive over to Armenia next door.
I’m looking for things to do, see, and places to eat at so if you have any recommendations please let me know!
Here is an updated list of all the restaurant and cafes now open at the Kuwait Airways terminal (T4):
Al Refai
Cafe Coco
Caribou
Del Monte
Le Pain Quotidien
McCafe
McDonald’s
Pizza Express
Raising Canes
Shake Shack
Starbucks
WH Smith (munchies/drinks)
While prepping for this post I realized that I hadn’t written a hotel review since 2015. I think that’s because I don’t travel as much as I used to and when I do, they’re usually quick weekend trips over to Dubai. I usually stay at the Vida Downtown Hotel in Dubai but this past weekend the room prices were more expensive than usual at KD67 a night which is more than what I wanted to pay. Hotel rooms are still one thing I’m not comfortable with paying a lot for, I only tend to sleep there and not really hang out in the room so can’t see myself paying so much money for it. So while looking for alternative places to stay I stumbled upon the Rove Downtown Hotel. The reviews online were all pretty great, the hotel was a 5-minute walk from Dubai Mall, a 10-minute walk to my best friend’s apartment, the rooms looked nice and clean, and most importantly, it was only around KD35 a night. So I booked and hoped for the best.
When I first arrived to the hotel check-in was pretty quick even though they were a bit busy. While checking in I noticed what looked like an entrance to a cinema on the far end of the lobby so I asked the receptionist if that was an actual cinema and he was like yes it was. Turns out the hotel had a small Reel Cinema movie theater that played current movies and was free for hotel guests. I was already impressed. After getting the room key I headed towards the elevators when I spotted a Zoom brand convenience store connected to the lobby. I decided to check it out and they had a ton of munchies as well as things you might need like deodorant and toothpaste. So far it seemed like the perfect hotel and I started hoping the rooms would be good because I knew it had the potential to be my new favorite hotel in Dubai.
As soon as I walked into the room I was relieved. The room looked like what I had seen in the photos, it was clean, modern, cozy and not that small. When booking a room they had only two options really to choose from, either a room overlooking Burj Khalifa, or not. I didn’t care about the view so I booked a regular room and so my view was of some random towers further down the road and it wasn’t that bad. My overall first impression was really great at that point.
Over the next two days, I really couldn’t find anything negative about the hotel. Even if I’m trying to be super picky the worst thing I could come up with is the lack of decent TV channels or the lack of Apple TV. At Vida, I could connect to my Netflix account on the room’s TV and also stream YouTube videos from my phone to it. But that’s really the only negative thing I have to say about Rove. Dubai Mall was really easy to get to with the closest entrance being the new Fashion Avenue extension and if you want to Uber somewhere, the cabs are all super close and never take more than a couple of minutes to get to the hotel.
If you’re looking for a great budget hotel to stay in the next time you’re in Dubai then I really recommend you check out Rove. I was so impressed it made me go back to writing hotel reviews again. Here is a link to their website.
Deputy Minister of Public Works Ismail Al-Failakawi announced that the new airport project will open in August 2022, according to the schedule, indicating that the second package project for the airport has been recommended for award at the lowest prices, and we are awaiting the final approval of the agency reports Al Rai.
Al-Failakawi said, on the sidelines of the inspection tour organized by the Ministry yesterday in the presence of Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development Khaled Mahdi, “There are no obstacles facing the project, as work is currently being done in cooperation and coordination with the contractor, consultant and the Supreme Council for Planning to remove any obstacles.” He explained that the project is going According to the schedule, there is no delay, as the completion rate was 26.9 percent. Source
I’m not trying to be pessimistic here but I passed by the new airport this past weekend (picture above) and I can’t see how it will be completed by August 2022. That’s just two years away which seems crazy but then again, it’s a Diwan Amiri project so maybe 2 more years of construction doesn’t seem too far reached.
Last week I went to Saudi for the first time ever and I spent a couple of days in Riyadh. I’ve got mixed feelings about the city, well not really mixed feelings but more like I don’t understand it. On one hand, you had MDL Beast, the largest electronic music festival in the region take place there, but on the other hand, from what I saw it still looks and feels like such a conservative city. It’s like both extremes are living side by side together and it’s very hard to process.
Getting a visa for Saudi is super simple right now. I actually totally forgot to apply for a visa and only remembered the evening before my flight but they now have an evisa website and even though I applied at 8PM, I got an approval less than an hour later for a 1-year multi-entry visa. I was relieved but also shocked since last year when I wanted to get a visa I had to get an invitation from someone in Saudi, and then was told I had to visit the embassy in Kuwait to apply for it and even then there was no guarantee I’d get a visa due to some political drama that was happening between Saudi and Canada.
The process of entering Saudi was also super easy. Once I landed in Riyadh and got out of the plane I followed a floor sticker towards a visa on arrival desk right outside the gate. There I handed my passport over to a lady behind the desk who finished up my visa process and stamped my passport. I then headed to passport control and I guess this whole process is super new because they were trying to re-enter me into the system again not knowing I was already in the system. They kept getting an error and then they noticed my passport was already stamped and were surprised since they didn’t know that they were stamping passports at the visa desks next to the gates. After multiple apologies for the delay (they were super friendly and apologizing the whole time throughout the process) I was let through.
Visually Riyadh isn’t a very beautiful city, well, most of it at least. The city is very beige and looks pretty old from what I saw. I can’t remember seeing any greenery in the city unless it was in the park and the only area the looked modern with beautiful skyscrapers was the King Abdullah Financial District that’s still under construction (pictured above). But, you still had some really beautiful buildings or projects in between all this which created a stark contrast. The way I was describing Riyadh to my friends was it either looked like Mahboula, or it looked like Dubai. Their roads are also in a worse state than ours but that’s mostly because the whole city is one large construction site right now because of the metro expansion and all the various large projects.
Because it’s Riyadh Season right now, they have some incredible things going on in the city. I went for dinner in Al Murabba (square) which is a huge historical area with old buildings and a large park that is temporarily occupied by some of the world’s finest restaurants like New York’s Dirty French and Carbone, and London’s Dinings SW3. All pop-ups but built to look like permanent structures. Once you pull up to the main gate of Al Murabba you are greeted by an army of Saudi hosts and hostesses standing on both sides of a long walkway into the park. Super fancy, incredible service and everyone is just extremely friendly. It felt like I was attending a fancy one-night affair but this is how it is every night. Actually everywhere I went the service was really great, customer service is something they take very seriously over there.
So yeah, right now Saudi is a very odd place with a mixture of two extreme lifestyles. While there I didn’t hear anybody complain about what’s going on even though I heard mumblings about alcohol being legalized soon. I think the conservatives might be fine with it all of it for now as long as it doesn’t affect them. Or maybe because things are happening so fast they haven’t had time to react. Whatever the case, it’s all gotten me very curious and interested in Saudi and now that I have a multi-entry visa, I’m going to be heading there more often, maybe even do a road trip. A friend who lives in Dubai messaged me last night telling me to meet him in Saudi this coming weekend for the Jamiroquai concert. Saudi in less than a year has become a regional destination.
Kuwaiti budget carrier Jazeera Airways has revealed plans to move to an all-economy fleet configuration with the launch of three new fare categories from January 8.
The move to economy will apply to all routes, except flights to Cairo, while the three categories include Economy Class: Light, Value and Extra. Source
Business class on Jazeera Airways never made sense anyway since they were the exact same seats as economy, just sold at double the price.
Spotted this in Dubai over the weekend. It’s an autonomous vehicle that just drives around until someone waves at it and then it stops. Once it stops you can then buy water and snacks from it.