How Iran war is changing international travel: 63,000 flights cancelled and air fares soaring

The Iran war has changed millions of tourists' holiday plans and cancelled more than 60,000 flights in under three weeks as the conflict continues to impact global travel.

More than six million passengers travelling to or from the Middle East have now had flights axed since the conflict began, according to aviation data firm Cirium.

The war has also narrowed the slim corridor for long-haul flights between Europe and Asia, complicating operations for dozens of airlines as some increase ticket prices.

Airspace closures and safety concerns have resulted in services being suspended or rerouted with 63,265 out of 118,642 scheduled flights to or from airports in the Middle East now axed since the conflict started on February 28 - equating to 53 per cent.

Cirium told the Daily Mail this total includes 32,169 cancelled departures and 31,096 cancelled arrivals - covering all global flights to or from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Israel, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, Jordan, Bahrain, Lebanon and Iran.

Routes have been blocked due to a risk of missiles and drones, with flights to and from Australia travelling via Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi among those affected.

As the conflict drives oil prices higher, jet fuel costs are also soaring amid what the International Energy Agency has called the biggest oil supply disruption in history.

While the Middle East region's airlines such as Qatar Airways, Emirates and Etihad have been worst hit, most major international carriers have now been affected.

Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi, the three largest Gulf hubs, together handled an estimated 2 per cent of global air passenger traffic last year. Transiting passengers account for more than 70 per cent of all traffic at Doha and 45 per cent at Dubai.

An Emirates plane prepares to land at Dubai Airport on Monday following a drone strike

Qatar and Etihad jets parked at Barcelona-El Prat Airport last week, unable to fly due to the war

While Middle Eastern airlines such as Dubai-based Emirates have no plans at this stage to move their HQ into Europe, major hubs such as Istanbul or Frankfurt do offer sizeable long-haul networks and locations that can offer East-West connections. 

The war has broken out during a key time for the tourism industry, as people begin to make summer travel reservations ahead of the busiest time of the year. 

Demand has been dropping from UK holidaymakers for getaways to the likes of Turkey, Cyprus and Egypt since the US-Israeli war on Iran began on February 28. 

But bookings are up for Portugal, Italy and Spain as well as longer-haul trips to the US, Cape Verde, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Mauritius, Thailand and India.

Comparison website TravelSupermarket has reported surging interest this month for Atlantic and European destinations away from the areas near the conflict.

The firm told the Daily Mail searches for Dominican Republic were up the most, rising 123 per cent between March 1 and 11, compared with the 11 previous days.

Antigua, Cape Verde and Italy's Tuscany have also all more than doubled, while there was rising interest for Majorca, St Lucia, Montenegro and the Amalfi Coast.

British Airways Holidays confirmed to the Mail that it had also seen a boost in interest for holidays to the Caribbean, with Barbados searches on BA.com up 46 per cent and Antigua searches up 63 per cent versus the same time last year.

Searches for Indian Ocean holidays have also increased, with the Maldives up 32 per cent and Mauritius up 42 per cent. Searches to the Canary Islands have also been on the rise, with Tenerife up 38 per cent and Gran Canaria up 50 per cent.

Skyscanner travel expert Laura Lindsay told the Mail: 'As we saw in the pandemic, travellers pay close attention to the news agenda and travel advisories.

'The travel industry is well versed at adapting to unforeseen circumstances and for those who are determined to get away we know they are willing to adapt their plans in order to do so safely.

'With some routes still reduced as a result of airspace closures, travel disruption and travel advisories across key Middle Eastern hubs, Skyscanner searches data shows the top destinations for UK travellers this Easter include Spain, Italy, France and Portugal.

'Winter sun destinations like Dubai are typically amongst the for UK travellers at this time of year with Easter holidays coming up but given the ongoing events travellers are looking at alternative destinations.'

Thomas Cook said bookings to Portugal were up by 42 per cent over the two weeks to March 13 - followed by the Balearics at 40 per cent and Canaries at 16 per cent.

But On The Beach suspended its annual guidance last week due to war hitting bookings, as it described a 'significant slowdown in demand following the onset of conflict in the region, particularly to destinations such as Turkey, Greece, Cyprus and Egypt'.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary said there had been 'a big collapse in bookings to the Middle East and a big surge in bookings on short haul airlines within Europe'.

It comes as British Airways this week cancelled all flights to Dubai until at least June amid ongoing disruption in the Middle East. The airline will not fly to Dubai, Amman, Bahrain or Tel Aviv until after May 31, and Doha in Qatar until the end of April.

Flights to Abu Dhabi will be cancelled until later this year. BA's decision came hours after Dubai's main airport was forced to close when a drone attack caused a fire.

Dubai has surged in popularity in recent years, with 19.6million visitors in 2025, up 5 per cent on the previous year – including 1.47million from the UK, up 11 per cent.

But the recent conflict has thrown the city's tourism sector into chaos, with the UK's Foreign Office warning against all but essential travel to the United Arab Emirates.

An estimated 75,000 Brits visited Dubai last Easter - a figure likely to be close to zero this Easter as long as the conflict is still raging in just over a fortnight's time.

The Middle East's tourism industry is losing an estimated $600million (£448million) a day in visitor spending, according to World Travel and Tourism Council estimates.

UK Foreign Office guidance remains that Greece is safe; while most of Turkey is also considered safe, apart from the border with Syria along the east of the country.

There is no advice against Cyprus trips, but the Foreign Office warns 'regional escalation poses significant security risks and has led to travel disruption'.

Some areas of Egypt are deemed unsafe by the Foreign Office, including the Libya border, but not the key tourist regions of Cairo, Luxor, Aswan and Sharm El Sheikh.

Last week, the Mail revealed package holidays to countries near the war are being sold for as little as £100 as travel firms try to win bookings from concerned travellers.

Travel companies fear the drop-off will continue indefinitely with no end to the war in sight and are therefore unable to determine how much their profits will be hit.

MPs were warned at a hearing on Tuesday last week that holiday air fares are set to leap because of the Middle East crisis, amid fears about the impact on inflation.

Energy market expert Amrita Sen said the market for jet fuel had gone 'crazy', with a surge in prices likely to feed through into higher fares immediately.

The price for a gallon of jet fuel rose to $3.93 yesterday, up from $2.50 the day before the war broke out, according to Argus Media. Delta chief executive Ed Bastian said that amounts to roughly $400million in additional costs so far.

But executives from Delta, American Airlines and United Airlines also told investors yesterday that strong ticket sales are helping offset their higher costs.

All three carriers reported record bookings this year – with eight of Delta's top ten days for ticket sales recorded in 2026, five of them since the start of the war.

Empty beds in front of buildings along a beach at Jumeirah Beach Residence in Dubai last week

Searches for the Dominican Republic are up by 123 per cent this month. Pictured: Saona Island

Thomas Cook said bookings to Portugal were surging. Pictured: Olhos de Agua in the Algarve

Some airlines are partially protected from sudden price spikes through fuel hedging, a strategy that locks in fuel prices months or even years in advance.

But not all airlines do this - and those that do are usually only protected for a portion of their fuel needs, meaning prolonged price surges may cause more fare rises.

Airlines also may hike what they charge for premium add-ons – such as seat upgrades, extra legroom, checked bags or priority boarding - to offset higher costs.

This means consumers may not seen an immediate increase in the base fare, but the total cost of a trip could still increase once additional fees are factored in.

Among the airlines to announce price increases or new surcharges since the war began are Cathay Pacific, Air France-KLM, Air India, Hong Kong Airlines and FlySafair.