Scores of Brits have been left trapped in Dubai on holiday, and have complained about receiving little or no assistance from authorities and insurers amid the US assault on Iran
Donald Trump’s ongoing assault on Iran has left scores of people stuck in neighbouring regions like Dubai, a Brit holiday hotspot, from which people have been unable to escape – all the while watching bombs fall.
Multiple families have revealed they are struggling to get back home after travelling to the sun-kissed city on holiday or to visit relatives, with fleeting contact from British authorities. The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office warned in an alert over the weekend that only “all but essential travel” should be undertaken to the United Arab Emirates, and for people there to register their presence in the nation – more than 100,000 of whom have done so as they await evacuation.
That waiting has landed some people in dire straits as they are urgently required home for events like funerals, while others are finding the situation is not covered by their insurance.
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Salli-J
Mum Salli-J said she has been left stranded in Dubai with her two sons and a friend, and has no idea when her group will be able to get home.
She said: “Me and my family are stuck over in Dubai. I’m here with my partner, two sons and friend not knowing when we can get home.” The mum added that they have received little help from authorities, and that their insurance provider has been unable to provide cover as the incident is “classed as terrorism or war”.
Claire and Chris
Claire, 42, and husband Chris, 47, are worried they will miss Claire’s mother’s funeral on Friday following military activity in the Middle East. Fiona died from motor neurone disease (MND) on February 7 and her daughter is desperate to get back to the UK to support her sister with funeral arrangements.
Claire, who did not want her surname to be published, said: “There are just the two of us and I hate the thought of her going through that on Friday without me.”
She cannot reschedule because other family members have already made travel and accommodation plans. She added: “I would feel really bad if we left mum at the funeral directors until I might be able to get home, because we just don’t know how long this may go on for.”
The couple, from Braunston, Northamptonshire, were staying at the Five Palm Hotel in Dubai on Saturday with their children Noah, 18, and Pippa, 17, when the missiles began appearing.
Claire said: “There were a couple of intercepted missiles overhead, very loud. We’re not used to dealing with this sort of thing, so it’s not a case of just being on holiday for a few more days. The local government has one of the most sophisticated defence systems in the world, so we are probably better off here than we would be in the UK if we started being attacked.”
Claire has spent around an additional £2,000 on flights for Wednesday and Thursday trying to get home for the funeral. The couple run The Wheatsheaf Inn, Braunston, and have cancelled events at the pub to help staff cope with their absence.
James and Rebecca
Meanwhile, James Gill, 31, a golf instructor, was staying in Business Bay, Dubai, celebrating his girlfriend Rebecca Crawford’s 28th birthday when the couple first heard explosions. Mr Gill, from Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, said: “I’ll be honest, I have hardly slept. I am in fight or flight mode.
“We have work to go back to, my girlfriend, she is an A&E nurse and she is supposed to be working on Sunday, she might have to cancel things. It is not a good situation.
“There is no word of what we should do in this situation. Very few people have found themselves stuck between a kind of war zone. I witnessed a missile getting shot out of the sky. It was pretty surreal to see. One of the nights we got an alert that said ‘incoming missiles, take shelter’, that was frightening.”
Back home, their families are “worried sick” and Mr Gill explained the next available flights he could find are around £5,000. Mr Gill said: “We are trying to get a flight back to anywhere at this point. We just want to get home where we feel safe. It is an absolute mess.”
Nick and Joanne
Nick Westwood, 62, a retired train driver from Barnham, West Sussex, and his wife Joanne, 61, a retired credit analyst, have been sleeping in the lobby of their high-rise rental.
The couple, who are in Dubai for a “bucket-list” holiday, had planned to leave on Sunday but have had to extend their seven-day stay, paying an extra 400 AED (£81) per night. Mr Westwood, whose 25th-floor accommodation is only available until Thursday, said: “It is very, very scary, very stressful and it’s just like being trapped in limbo.
“We have been sleeping down in the reception room of this building. We came back up to the room at 4am this morning and we got another four hours’ sleep.
“And as soon as we got up, there were more drone attacks straight over the building.” The couple have been told that rebooking their flights back to the UK will cost them £6,000. It is just a waiting game really. It is getting dark here again now and this is when the [missiles] usually start.”
Bea, who requested for her surname not to be published, was at a boat party on Saturday when she saw “white plumes of smoke” and heard “booming” noises. The 23-year-old from London is in Dubai to visit her brother and said the missile looked like “a very slow shooting star”. She added that her biggest concern is “escaping” the region.
Muhammad Irfan
Muhammad Irfan, an NHS doctor, was making his way back to the UK when the missiles launched at Dubai by Iran left him stuck. The 31-year-old was on a layover when he was supposed to catch a flight to London Stansted Airport. Muhammed arrived in the United Arab Emirates city on February 28 – the day the attacks started.
“I was in disbelief that conflict had spread to the Gulf including Dubai,” said the doctor, from Colchester, Essex. “I received a message from my brother in Pakistan advising me to stay safe as the US and Israel had attacked Iran and this conflict could escalate.”
“This news was absolutely shocking for me as I hadn’t read anything like a possible conflict in the news before taking my flight to Dubai. Before leaving Dubai airport for the hotel, I heard a loud boom. I later read in the news that Dubai airport took a hit, unfortunately.”
Around 2.30pm, Muhammed was informed that his flight was delayed before being cancelled. He has now been left stranded in Dubai and is staying in a hotel. The doctor is away from both his wife and child, who live in Ireland. Muhammed said: “We have kindly been evacuated by authorities to a hotel, which is our temporary accommodation. This was absolutely unbelievable for me. I always thought that this region would be safe from such conflicts.”
Ola Jaworska and Pawe Jaworski
Influencer couple Ola Jaworska and Pawe Jaworski were left stranded in Dubai after flying out on the day of the military campaign against Iran as they “don’t follow the news”.
The pair said they intend to cross into Oman and take a return flight home from there. They announced that they are expecting their second child three days ago. The celeb couple, who have 640,000 and 1.7m YouTube subscribers respectively, have been preoccupied with Ola’s pregnancy.
As a result, they have been busy creating content related to their family news. They flew to Dubai on Saturday (28 Feb), the same day Operation Epic Fury was launched against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
They said on Instagram that they “totally didn’t know” about the conflict. Ola, who has 388,000 Insta fans and Pawe , who has 546,000 Insta followers, confirmed that they are both safe, and are looking for options to leave Dubai. Ola and Pawe , better known online as Zukoll and Jawor respectively, said: “We totally didn’t know, we don’t follow the news, especially recently.
“It’s been quite intense for us. Our pages have mainly been pregnancy announcements. We didn’t know what was happening. We wouldn’t have come here if we knew the situation was so tense.”
The couple, who lives in the Polish port city of Gdynia, said they saw missiles falling from the sky followed by nearby explosions. “We’re hiding in low buildings with as few windows as possible and recommend others do the same,” they advised. “People are generally functioning normally, there are no alerts or alarms.
“Fragments fell when we were at the Marina. We have to wait for information, we can’t really do any more. Don’t go into tall buildings, don’t walk outside in open spaces, and most importantly don’t panic.”
They said they are currently looking for ways to leave Dubai. They were considering the option of crossing into Oman by land before taking a flight back to Poland from there. They have yet to provide any further information on their departure. Regional tensions have escalated after the US-Israeli strikes against Iran.
Elbi Henshaw
Elbi Henshaw, 24, was given the advice to stop her windows of 46th floor apartment from shattering during attacks from Iranian missiles.
Elbi, moved to Dubai in January 2025 due to “the crime rate” and “miserable weather” in the UK. But for the last few days, Elbi has had to shelter in her high rise flat as Iranian drones are shot down overhead. She has been struggling to sleep over fears that a drone or debris may hit her building and claims she would rather “sleep outside on the floor.”
Elbi was told to “Keep one window of your house slightly open so that if there is any pressure from outside it can balance instead of shattering.”
The personal trainer, from Barnet, North London, said: “I really struggled to sleep because I know we’re really high. “I’d rather be on the floor outside than be in a high-rise building. “We’ve been told to keep one window open so if anything hits the window, it can help relieve the pressure.
“During the day yesterday, the drones were being hit out the sky all day. “We can see all of downtown and business bay but people on the marina side have fled.
“Yesterday when I saw a drone being shot down – my heart dropped, I felt so sick. If there’s any building work going on, everyone thinks it’s a drone. Everyone’s so on edge and on their phones waiting for alerts.” The nightmare ordeal began two days ago when UAE residents received an alert telling them to shelter in place.
Elbi said: “It’s been so scary. Two nights ago, was the scariest night as we got an alarm at 12:30am. We were told to take shelter and stock up on essentials.
“We heard screaming and shouting outside our door. It was a family of eight running to the basement with mattresses and pillows. Were on the 46th floor so it’s very high and you can imagine the fear from everyone.” Despite her fear, Elbi says she feels “less lonely” in Dubai than the UK.
She added: “I actually feel less lonely that I did in the UK. There’s so many people checking up on you. It’s really nice seeing the community come together. But it’s very eerie and quiet. I’m a PT and a lot of clients cancelled today. It’s very high risk.”