What are the best Middle Eastern countries to visit for all around fun? Sight seeing, shopping, night life, etc.? I’m on a budget of about 100K and don’t speak any of the languages. I’m also of course talking about the ones that aren’t war torn hellholes. Any good candidates?
>>2716749None of them.
>>2716749As you can see, this isn’t really the best place to ask. You’d unironically have better luck asking on /pol/ or /int/
>>2716749I’d say Lebanon but it’s in a shit state at the moment. Try Oman since they didn’t tear down their historic buildings to build shopping malls like the Saudis did.
>>2716749100k is practically a million dollars in all of these places except like Dubai, your options to do stuff are pretty expansive, I’ve only ever heard good things about Oman and Turkey is pretty cool but I’ve heard skeevy things about Istanbul so maybe stay away from it
stop over for a few days in one of the developed cities then hire a car and drive around oman
Turkey, UAE, Qatar, Oman and Egypt.Sticking to the general touristy spots and you will be fine. Expect various degrees of Sanitized Shopping mall tourism (UAE) or third world shithole tourism (Egypt) depending on your interests.DONT listen to the try-hard RealTraveler™ fags who act like they raw dogged Syria with no issues; they haven't even left their fly-over state.
>>2716749Jordan is the winner here. Good food, good sights, people are friendly enough. I would say Lebanon too but recent events like >>2716797 means you should probably steer clear for a while.
>>2716749Visit the Dead SeaLots of fun
Oman is everything Arab countries wish they could be. Rich but not soulless, Good infrastructure but pristine nature. No one speaks English but the south Asians who work as baristas and gas station attendants can translate for you and, for some reason, all signage is in English as well as Arabic.
>>2716749I’m pretty curious about Syria myself. I know Turks hate them because they make for pretty shitty refugees but ordinarily I wonder what they’re like
>>2716891Oman looks kino, particularly as winter's cooler weather arrives - it's still hot as hell right now. Salalah is on the southern coast and has tons of budget lodging options. >>2716934My Jordanian friend didn't have many positive things to say about his country...besides, it's right next to Isr*el, so who knows when things will pop off over there.
>>2716749If you wanna look at some pretty buildings Iran is pretty good. Don’t remember anything else they have though. Oman is definitely looking like the top choice
>>2717190September's ok but does limit how much you might want to walk around. The problem with going to Salalah at the same time is that the time it's green is when the rest of the country is hot
>>2716796>/pol/rent free
Egypt will make you racist. Turkey is a lot of fun though.
>>2717418lol
>>2717336I mean that seriously. They probably would know.
>>2716749>Israelfeels like the movie "zone of interest" seems nice, clean & safe due to american tax money but then the longer you stay, you realize it's a black mirror dystopia full of brainwashed racist jews. hard to enter other countries if you have an israeli stamp>Palestinedystopian slums, genocide, extreme poverty, historic sites in bad condition>JordanMost accessible Arab country. Basically like what Palestine could have been. A bit touristy.>LebanonSlightly better than Palestine but still pretty poor and shitty. Lots of scammers. Cool historic ruins. Very French.>Egyptcrowded, polluted, scammers everywhere, corrupt police, overtouristed but still a must>Sudancivil war, extreme poverty, few tourists, underrated, more pyramids than egypt, very tall slenderman people>Libyacivil war, difficult visa, no insurance, few things to see but no tourists>Saudi ArabiaCool Dune-esque country especially if you are Muslim, but kinda has evil vibes and is full of overgrown toddlers who are nice but don't work yet have way too much money.(continued)
>>2717796>Yemencivil war, pirates, poverty, cool cities though and badass landscapes>Omanvery underrated, few tourists, badass landscape, kinda like Saudi before oil>UAE overrated mall, but cool futuristic vibes and good for a layover>Qataranother mall but not as cool as UAE>Kuwaitthe shittiest out of all mall countries & hottest place in the world. truly pointless.>Bahrainit's like Vegas for Saudis who want to drink and have gay sex. Not really for outsiders. Kinda like Macau for Chinese.>Iraqwartorn but now safe. people are very generous and hospitable. not much tourism. somewhat sketchy still and way too hot.>Syriacivil war & not much tourism but pretty cool underrated and not much tourism >Turkeyvery accessible, best all around country in the region. quite distinct & not arab. plenty to do and see. they love cats. weather is great. also good for medical tourism. >Iransafe and hospitable people but politically too much of a liability to visit. kinda run down and stuck in the past which can be cool. >Afghanistanprobably the coolest country but obviously very sketchy & run by the Taliban. feels like going back in time to the 1800s. very beautiful landscapes and people are quite hospitable.
Ease of visit and transporation: x2Cost: x2Sights: x2Everyday people and their bullshit: x1Conflict, liabilities, political climate and international ramifications: x1It's Turkey. It's on auto-pilot with a bit of an edge just to keep things spicy. Also the map is ass, Libya's Maghrebi, Sudan's neither middle, nor east. Afghanistan is its own mess. Here's a better one.
>>2717891North Africa is MENA so it’s close enough. Sudan is weird though yes. I would say Afghanistan counts too.
>>2717899I know what the NA in MENA stands for, Anon. Thread title contains "ME" alone. I hope the picture explains it best, I can't do any better for (You) at the moment.
>>2718063… but your original map also includes Egypt… which is also NA… I’m aware of all of this info
>>2716802>100k is practically a million dollars in all of these places except like Dubai,The GCC is expensive in general. 100k wouldn't afford you that great of a life there and all of the countries are pretty comparable in terms of expenses. I say that having lived in two GCC countries over a 3 year span. >>2717797>>Kuwait>the shittiest out of all mall countries & hottest place in the world. truly pointless.Fuck Kuwait>Bahrain> have gay sex.Mostly hetero sex although man (and boy) love Thursdays exists. Coomings good for the region, a lot of the hookers there survive by fucking US sailors stationed there. Also no reasonable person draws a distinction between North Africa and the Middle East.
>>2717796I'm going to Israel and Palestine in November, hoping they don't cancel my flights (Lufthansa cancelled all flights until end of October). Any suggestions?
>>2717796>hard to enter other countries if you have an israeli stampisrael has not stamped visitors' passports for several years
>>2716753this
>>2717796>israel rich because muh us aidEnvious thirdie detected
>>2717797>>Bahrain>it's like Vegas for Saudis who want to drink and have gay sex. Not really for outsiders. Kinda like Macau for ChineseBahrain is amazing for outsiders. There are hordes of prostitutes from everywhere, and liberal arabs. Bahrain is my vote for best ME country. Great might clubs. Great museum, grand mosque your is cool. Go see the Tre of Lige. Lots of entertainment and food options
>>2716749>TurkeyNormie tier, great first ME country if you've never been before. Lots of history, Istanbul nightlife is great, warm Mediterranean climate.>LebanonGreat, just not at the moment. Huge amount of history and geographical variety packed in a small country. Put on your list for when things improve.>JordanCities, including Amman, is meh at best, but awesome nature. Wadi Rum is otherworldly. Much more conservative than they like to admit, but you can still go out for drinks in Amman.>IranMogs every other country in both culture and history, go before Trump bombs it.>UAEThe entire country is a large shopping mall in the desert. Population is 90% Indian. Completely soulless.>Saudi ArabiaUsed to be the final frontier of ME travel, but has opened up in recent years, now it's on the same level as visiting Dubai. They erased all their history, the house where the literal prophet Muhammad was born and raised was demolished and turned into a parking lot for example. The only historical sights worth seeing are off limits to non-Muslims, nature is still neat.>OmanThe most authentic Arabian culture you'll find on the peninsula>Israel, PalestineNothing to see or do unless you're interested in the conflict or the Bible. Israelis are the unfriendliest people in the world. Expect to be detained for 8 hours on entry and exit for no reason.>EgyptGreat country inhabited by what is universally agreed upon to be the worst people on Earth. You'll be scammed and harassed 24/7, women have it worse here than in either India, Saudi or Afghanistan, which says something.>the restEither in the beginning, middle or end of a civil war, it's not safe, don't bother.
I know they're not on the map, but how are Morocco and Tunisia at the moment?
>>2719713>Population is 90% IndianIt’s honestly incredible how they let that happen. You would think they would’ve pushed back against it more.>The only historical sights worth seeing are off limits to non-MuslimsHow does this work anyway? How can anyone verify if you’re Muslim or not? Do they ask to recite a Hadith? Or do you just wear a keffiyeh and you’re all good?
>>2716749Turkey will be the best for food and history.
>>2719713I have been wanting to go to Lebanon for years. When will it finally be feasible again? I hope I won't have to wait several more years of IDF bombing them.
Bump
>>2719713>>UAE>The entire country is a large shopping mall in the desert. Population is 90% Indian. Completely soulless.Dubai, maybe, even though it still has great places outside of downtown. Jumeirah archeological park is great, the whole Al Shindagha complex is awesome, and Saruq Al Hadid is well worth a visit. Then there's Sharjah with its Islamic museum, and there's Al Ain in its entirety. Shame I didn't have time to go to Fujeirah when I was in the UAE, stuff over there sounds fun too.
>>2719738Arabs don't care as long as they rule over others. Being surrounded by shitskins is fine for them as long as those shitskins are slaves/have no rights.The most important rule for Arabs is superiority, and they get off on being a minority ruling over a caste of workers and clients.
>>2719738Arabs don't ever allow them to become citizens though. Indians are just brought in as slaves to build everything, then they are kicked out. Arabs get fat and have 10 children in their harems. Only whites are cucked by Indians.
>>2720285>Indians cucking anyone
>>2719713>the house where the literal prophet Muhammad was born and raised was demolished and turned into a parking lot for examplI call bullshit
>>2719713>>Saudi Arabia>The only historical sights worth seeing are off limits to non-Muslimsnonsense anonif you are thinking about the magic cube that is not a "historical sight worth seeing"the only historical sights worth seeing predate islam by centuries anyway so they don't care about themthe best example is hegra/al-ula which really should be as famous as petra but has been more or less ignored by the saudis
>>2720285>Indians are just brought in as slaves to build everythingHardly. There’s a lot of rich ones that are buying up property and real estate at break neck speeds and marrying well off Arab women. It’s Africans that are primarily the labor force from what I understand
>>2716749I wonder what it would be like driving through Yemen.
>>2720432>There’s a lot of rich ones that are buying up property and real estate at break neck speeds and marrying well off Arab women.Where did you hear this from? Because that's complete and utter bullshit.
>>2717053This but really. It must be otherworldly
>>2716749Turkey is the safest bet overall. Lots to see.
Sounds exciting!
>>2716749Prolly Jordan, Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE or Bahrain. Idk about Qatar and Kuwait, they seem boring
>>2716749Ive heard good things about turkey. Also Jordan is very stable relatively speaking. Ive been to Cairo and it’s not for everyone. Would strongly discourage females from going there.
>>2720432> There’s a lot of rich ones that are buying up property and real estate at break neck speeds and marrying well off Arab womenThere zero well-off arab women who are marrying any man who isn’t arab himself or white. >from what I understand You mean from what you completely guessed with no actual source or experience.
>watch videos of youtubers traveling and doing vlogs in post war Kabul Afghanistan >it seriously looks a million times better than anywhere is India in every way possible. I would love to visit Kabul myself by its discouraging because every single plane ticket costs a fucking fortune.
>>2723188What prevents me is losing ESTA if I visit.
>>2723185Not him but rich Indians love it over there. There are literal billionaires living there. It’s not hard to imagine them marrying into other rich Arab families or something
>>2716749I can only speak with experience about Saudi, Kuwait, UAE and Qatar.>Sight seeing, UAE for nature and crazy urban excess, Saudi for nature and history.>shopping, UAE>night lifeUAE>etc.?Interesting locals who will talk to you, Kuwait.Food, Kuwait, UAE.Qatar was the least of the four, in my opinion.
How is Algeria? I did Morocco but the touts were obnoxious as hell. Algeria looks nice, but I'd hope they're touts aren't as bad considering they're not a huge tourist destination.
>>2719919I live in LebanonI would say a year or two at the extreme minimum
Planning on exploring more in the future.>TurkeyIstanbul is a must. Nice and safe city, even safer than european capitals, but quite international. You will have no problems no mater what language you speak. If you want to see real turkish culture do some other parts of the country.> EgyptAgain the attractions are absolutely worth it but the shopkeepers around are absolute cunts who will harass you to enter their shops or try to prevent you from leaving without buying some shit.
>>2724167That sucks. Are you a local or an expat?
>>2718063Why is Mauritania not Muslim?
>>2724182>even safer than european capitalsseems doubtful
>>2716749If you’ve never been to the Middle East before, I strongly recommend Istanbul in Turkey. It’s more authentic and has more history and culture for sightseeing than the Gulf states, but is still clean and safe and the people there are used to tourists. It also has very good transport connections to pretty much everywhere else in the region.Don’t know much about shopping but it probably depends on what you want to buy. For night life Beirut is by far and away the best, but obviously don’t go there now because of the war. As for avoiding war torn hell holes - Sudan and Yemen are as bad as you think, Syria is a literal mafia state where you will get shaken down seven times just on the road from the airport to your hotel, but Iraq has come a long way recently. Most first worlders can get a visa on arrival now, and the places where anyone would want to go sightseeing (Baghdad, Shi’a holy cities, ancient Mesopotamian ruins) are safe now.
>>2727243Thanks for this
