Damascus Airport

Yes the check-in process is slow. I have never seen anyone read documents as thoroughly as the Syrians do. There are several stages of scrutiny that one must pass before gaining entry to the pax area. But Syrians are friendly and generous people. Duty free is dirt cheap and in Syria it is available to domestic flights. Damascus features some of the best people watching that I have experienced anywhere. There are very few flights going to Europe and virtually none going to North America. Most flights are going to the Middle East or Africa. The array of gowns headgear and you-name-it clothing was charming and fascinating.

Damascus airport has two faces. The arrivals hall and the baggage reclaim hall really need some work as it looks as though they are falling apart. The baggage carousels in particular are too worn. However baggage reclaim was fast. The departures area is slightly different from other airports in that only the passenger can go to the area with the check-in desks. Check-in can be very slow even with short lines of people. Thankfully they don't seem to be too bothered about overweight luggage. Everyone needs to pay a departure tax before passport control - don't forget this! Then before you get to your gate you can access some shops selling newspapers tobacco and coffee.

I was happy with the acceptable duty free with good prices arrival at immigration is terrible with long queues and people cutting through the lines with ease - expect a minimum of 40 minutes to pass the immigration desks specially at peak hours. The security check at the departure hall is chaotic and it may be wise to use your shoulders to shrug your way through. Check in counters are acceptable depending on your airline.

Ride from city to airport should not cost more than 200 Syrian pounds in a metered taxi. Airport was quiet at that moment which could not prevent the chaos at the first security checkpoint. Passport checked four times (including immigration and check-in). Although I had an e-ticket with LH and OS it turned out that DAM is not an e-ticket station and could not accept this. Airline staff at check-in phoned the Austrian office downtown trying to solve the problem but they couldn't change it either which meant that I had to buy a new ticket for the DAM-VIE leg. VIE-AMS could be continued on the e-ticket again although not without more hassle at VIE itself. Airline-staff courteous and friendly. Executive Lounge is roomy with good food and several liquors (it's still an islamic country). Prices in the duty-free shops looked okay. Don't know about the toilets which have been mentioned in previous comments.

Damascus Airport was quite an experience! The duty free as others have said IS amazingly cheap and very well stocked. When I got to Immigration the fun began. The visa was fine but the officials I met had never seen a New Zealand Passport before! After a few phone calls to HQ in town they let me in with a lot of apologies. They were very friendly though. Once through there is an ATM to withdraw cash a currency conversion booth or two and a counter where you pay 600 syrian pounds for a taxi voucher then they see you into the taxi. Going out even more of an experience! 75 syrian pounds to get a baggage trolley and get in then someone takes off with the trolley 'to whisk you through further" then it's baksheesh for another hundred pounds... not a lot of money just annoying. Passport check at front of check in hall. Check in were very friendly another passport check. Then you pay two hundred pounds departure tax then go for the third passport check... this is the proper passport check departure Syria. The toilets are holes in the ground and they stink. The only thing that really bugged me was being locked in a glass cage with a hundred or so other people for an hour and a half while we waited for the aeroplane to arrive. If there had been toilets and water available after passport control it would not have been too bad -thank goodness I happened to have some water and juice with me just in case!!

I know that summer is the busiest time for air traffic in the Middle East. I was expecting to go through hell during my connection at Damascus International Airport. I was completely wrong. When i arrived from London the airport was experiencing its maximum traffic. My connection time was 5 hours. I was amazingly surprised by the low prices at the fantastic duty free. It was one of the nicest i have ever seen. I got a great deal on an EOS camera; 90 dollars less than the price in England! Apart from the duty free i spent time at the modern internet cafe. I was able to complete a lot of work there. I also enjoyed a nice meal at the cafe. I was able to pass the time enjoyable. I arrived at the boarding gate it was full however the tickets were processed immediately and i was greeted with a warm smile. I believe that Damascus International Airport has really made efforts to be recognized as a world class airport.

During peak time the check-in area is near impossible to navigate. Most passengers just push their way to the front of queues so if you want to be served you also have to push and be ruthless. Airside the airport is clean and the duty-free is excellent (very cheap) though apart from shop there is nothing else to do - though you spend so much time queuing in immigration and for x-rays and check-in and to buy airport tax etc etc etc that there's never much time left.

Damascus airport is small but clean. The toilets on first floor have no water so rush to ground floor is heavy particularly when 747 SP brings a full load of passengers. If joining from Damascus come well in time. Only two X-Rays machine were working and there was made rush due to ID holidays. Do not forget to purchase SP 200 airport departure tax stamp otherwise you shall have to return from Immigration. The counter staff and Immigration personnel are very co-operative.

Clean and tidy lots of seats good number of passport control desks resulting in no delays. A very high standard duty free with cheap quality goods. Got a Seiko watch for about £90 and found out when I got back to the UK that it costs £350 on the high street!

I was a transit passenger through Damascus airport twice. On the face of it it appears clean and tidy but as you spend more time there it's seriously lacking. Firstly there's no where to change money or obtain visa advances. I arrived with £1000GBP of travellers cheques and had a 4 hour connection. I was unable to purchase any food or drink and the 1 restaurant that is there only accepts Syrian money. If you are lucky you can pay with euro pounds or dollars in hard cash. Otherwise you have to starve or die of first. There is a duty free shop that accepts visa and sells incredibly cheap cigarettes (I think they were $1USD a packet). However you won't be able to buy any food or drink to consume with your visa card unless you don't mind living off toblerone and whisky. Toilets didn't have any toilet paper in them. I was sitting on the seats and I left my girlfriend. When I returned she had moved because an older Syrian (I presume?) guy had started waving his stick at her and telling her to move. He had then requisitioned the whole seat and sat around 9 burkah wearing women on the seat opposite him. Transfer desk and being booked onto the next flight was efficient apart from competing with Indians for a Delhi transfer was like taking part in a scrum. The airport seriously needs a money changer and VISA ATM in the departure lounge.