DAMMAM — With summer vacation around the corner, Saudi missions abroad have issued travel alerts to Saudi tourists who visit foreign countries. Saudi missions in various tourist spots announced that they will be working full time during Ramadan and Eid holidays. They said they usually hire additional hands to serve Saudi citizens and look after their affairs whenever needed. The Saudi Embassy in Turkey said its Eid leave is only for five days. The Saudi Embassy in Cairo warned Saudi tourists against going to dangerous or suspicious places especially at late night. According to Al-Hayat newspaper, the embassy asked Saudi citizens to always keep their passports with them, and register their passports at the consulate and keep photocopies to be used in case of loss or theft. It asked Saudi tourists to immediately report the loss of passport to the nearest police station, keep the number and date of the police case file and then visit the embassy to get an emergency travel document. It warned Saudi tourists to be very cautious when dealing with drivers, salesmen or persons who claim to be important personalities or famous businessmen. The embassy warned Saudi tourists, especially students and other travelers, not to deal with visa brokers who may claim to legalize their stay in Egypt. It urged Saudi tourists to keep their important documents at the hotel safes and never carry large amounts of cash or their passports in their briefcases. The embassy asked Saudi tourists to use white cabs for transport and to write down the plate number to recognize the vehicle if necessary. "Never use the private cars no matter how low their fare may be," the embassy said, asking Saudi citizens to rent cars or apartments from known companies. It asked tourists to carefully read rent contracts preferably in the presence of a lawyer and urged them not to accept the services offered by unknown persons. "You should also avoid going to remote areas with a few number of people especially at late night," the embassy warned tourists. It asked Saudi students who may opt to stay beyond six months, which is the validity of their visit visa, to obtain a permanent residence permit from the department of passports and immigration after showing the university or school registration. It said Saudi students with permanent residence permits will be treated similar to Egyptian citizens.
