More than 600 tourists from Russia and Belarus are waiting to depart from Mauritius due to the closure of airspace in the Middle East. This was reported by Russia’s ambassador to the Republic of Mauritius Irada Zeynalova in an interview with TASS.
“More than 600 people have registered with us, but this includes tourists from Belarus as well. There are not many of them, but they are there, because we help the entire CIS,” she said.
According to her, most tourists were traveling on connecting flights through countries of the Persian Gulf — primarily via Dubai on Emirates flights. This route was the most popular way to reach Mauritius from Russia and Belarus, as there are no direct flights.
Emirates paid for the tourists’ forced stay in hotels only until March 3 inclusive. From March 4, the airline stopped covering the bills and operated the first evacuation flight from Mauritius to Dubai — however, only passengers with tickets for previously missed flights were accepted on board.
According to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, about 1,200 Russian citizens may currently be on the island, around 500 of whom are clients of tour operators. The ambassador noted that some tourists have already departed independently, although ticket prices have risen sharply.
“Dozens are leaving. It’s quite expensive, to be honest — carriers immediately raised their prices,” she said.
