What rights do people who have booked flights to the Middle East have?
Following strikes by the United States and Israel, the Iranian regime has retaliated by firing missiles at Washington’s allies throughout the region.
Many of the targets are in cities - such Dubai - that are popular destinations for Irish people travelling and working overseas.
They also serve as vital transit hubs for people flying from Europe to Australia and New Zealand.
A black plume of smoke rises from a warehouse in the United Arab Emirates after an Iranian strike. Picture by: AP Photo/Altaf Qadri.On Newstalk Breakfast, Sinead Ryan, presenter of The Home Show, said people who expect to travel in the next few days should start thinking about alternative plans.
“I think they need to start wrapping their heads around the fact that they may not be travelling at all,” she said.
“All flights out of Dublin for Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways are all cancelled again today - there's 16 flights a day.
“In Heathrow and Gatwick, they've cancelled all flights to at least Monday, according to their press statement.
“I certainly wouldn't be confident if I was travelling to that region - nor, by the way, might I want to, certainly over the next week or so. I think it's very, very sketchy.”
All 16 flights scheduled between Dublin Airport & airports in the Middle East have been cancelled once again today (Tuesday).
Further disruption is possible over the days ahead. As always, passengers should contact their airline directly for updates regarding the status of… pic.twitter.com/K4ttEL5NsE
— Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) March 3, 2026
The Department of Foreign Affairs has issued travel warnings for a number of Middle Eastern countries, urging Irish citizens to avoid all non-essential travel to the region.
“What that means is, because they now are under an avoid non-essential travel, that invalidates any travel insurance that you might have,” Sinead explained.
“And that's the biggest issue, because without travel insurance, you really are stuck over there.
“So, I would be really saying to people, check with your airline, check with your travel agency.”
Sinead continued that if an airline cancels a flight, then they are bound by “very strict” rules, obliging them to refund the customer or reroute them at a later day.
“You have the option which one of those to take,” she said.
“If you happen to be in an airport when that happens, well, then you're also entitled to what they call care and assistance.
“In other words, a meal voucher and a hotel and that kind of thing.”
Please see a message from Ambassador of Ireland to the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait @IEAmbUAE. pic.twitter.com/Y6rhw2aOXm
— Irish Embassy UAE (@IrelandEmbUAE) March 3, 2026
However, Sinead warned that the “sensible thing” at this stage would be to take the refund given the instability of the situation.
“Once you do that, there's no further obligation on the airline,” she said.
“If you book through a travel agent, you are probably in a slightly better position because the whole thing has been booked as a package holiday and that comes in under the package directive - which is a different set of rules.
“Which means that you will get, in all probability, a full refund of the monies that you've already paid.”
Main image: Passengers boarding airstairs in Dubai Airport. Picture by: Alamy.com.
