“$8,852 for First Class”: New Details Emerge as UAE Begins Ticket Sales to Nigerians
- Nigerian tourists can now purchase tickets on Emirates following a two-year hiatus that ends on October 1, 2024
- Emirates has started taking reservations for passengers from Nigeria, charging $665.30 for economy class and $8,852 for first class
- This means reservations for flights from Lagos to Dubai or Dubai to Lagos can be made on the airline's website as of October 1, 2024
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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) flag carrier, Emirates, has opened ticket sales to Nigerian travelers after its two-year break from operations ending on October 1, 2024.
Source: Getty Images
This occurred at the same time as the opening of the visa application portal for Nigerian travellers to the United Arab Emirates.
In May of this year, Emirates declared that it will start up daily flights between Lagos and Dubai to Nigeria starting on October 1. This announcement came two years after the airline had ceased operations to Nigeria due to its inability to repatriate revenues from ticket sales in Nigeria since it owed more than $85 million.
According to Daily Trust, in an effort to find a solution, the federal government has resumed talks with Emirates and UAE authorities.
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Emirate begins booking
Emirates has begun booking for Nigerian passengers with the lowest cost of $665.30 (N1,059,969.41) and $8,852 for first class ahead of the restart of its flights in less than one month.
This implies that starting on October 1, 2024, anyone wishing to travel from Lagos to Dubai or Dubai to Lagos can make reservations on the airline's website.
Sources informed DailyTrust yesterday that the visa application portal had also been launched, and Emirates had informed its travel partners in Nigeria of this move.
A statement read,
“We are excited to inform you that the Dubai Visa Processing Centre (DVPC) has reopened and they are now accepting visa applications for passengers travelling to Dubai,”
Checks revealed that the cost of a 60-day tourist visa, free of verification fees, is N218,450.
Visa Amnesty programme
Furthermore, amnesty has been extended to people who are stuck in the UAE and wish to go home, effective September 1.
The amnesty for two months on visas was proclaimed by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Ports Security (ICP). Those who are residing in the UAE illegally have a vital chance to change their status during this time without having to pay any fines or penalties.
All visa categories are included under the complete amnesty, including expired resident visas, tourist visas, and even cases when people were born without any official papers.
According to the UAE government, the programme's openness made it possible for a diverse group of people to gain access to it, regardless of whether they had overstayed their visa or never had the right paperwork.
Beware of fake websites
Following the announcement by Mohammed Idris, the Minister of Information, a fake website was set up with instructions for applicants to pay an N640,000 verification fee and provide evidence of $10,000 in their individual accounts.
After rushing to use the website to make payments, several customers discovered it was phony and had nothing to do with the UAE. The UAE rejected the requirements.
Director of Research at Zenith Travels and aviation analyst Mr. Olumide Ohunayo stated that although the application process for visas has begun, certain candidates are still subject to restrictions from the UAE authorities. According to him, the government can still take action to increase the number of visas available or take the opposite stand and only grant Nigerian visas to certain applicants from the United Arab Emirates.
Emirates Airline crashes ticket fares
Legit.ng reported that Emirates Airlines is luring Nigerian passengers with cheap USD airfares, which had attracted mixed reactions from aviation analysts and passengers.
Findings showed that as of Monday, August 26, 2024, all fare inventories on Emirates Airlines’ website were competitive but priced in dollars.
The airline had fixed October 1, 2024, as the date to resume daily flights between Lagos and Dubai, offering more choice and connectivity from the Nigerian city to and from Dubai.
Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng
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