My AWFUL Saudia Flight: Flying to Saudi Arabia

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I took a strange flight with Saudi Arabia's airline Saudia which ended up having some of the most bizarre customer service experiences I've ever had.
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[@importedmusic]

The steep pitch was probably due to the check-in lady phoning ahead to the pilots just to put the icing on your cake.

[@abrarahmed816]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@AUmarcus]

I thought it might be to get out of Libya's missile range? It's Tunisia's neighbour after all. I remember flying from Sydney to Rome on Qantas a few decades ago, the normal flight plan would've taken us over Libya but we avoided it like the plague.

[@369jtrain]

Probably from random flying rounds aimed towards you

[@potato1084]

No. No it’s because of strict rules around airspace in the area.

[@miaquinn5791]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@LeandroAragon]

All the departures at Tunis required a 6% gradient of climb, this is why is so steep until at least 3000fts, at 250 knots its at least 1500ft/min climb. Lot´s of restricted airspace around the airport. Love your videos !! Cheers from Brasil !!!

[@conorrclark8274]

Great knowledge, thanks

[@LeandroAragon]

@@conorrclark8274 my pleasure !!!

[@christianwilliams9010]

Thank you for the info.

[@LeandroAragon]

@@christianwilliams9010 my pleasure Chris !

[@dalemullins4562]

there you go! I'm guessing there's probably some surface-to-air defense systems around that area LOL definitely don't want to go to slow at certain altitudes around there

[@srikothur2845]

The woman at 2:00 seemed so upset that you actually had business class.

[@marcospark2803]

She was waiting for "not, Economic class" and then "This is only Business Class, get the #$%# out of here".

[@Robert-ml4oj]

It’s the hoody

[@daniyalbbd5281]

Typical Tunisian woman , they do the same to everyone who isn't a Muslim unfortunately

[@solarevalo3588]

SOOO RUDE! Hey, its not my fault that you HATE your job.....

[@braindeadbogan9272]

@@solarevalo3588 Exactly. I felt her attitude through the screen.

[@barbaratg5230]

I remember departing Tunis back to London. The guy at checkout took my passport and boarding pass then whispered he would give me back my passport if I gave him some money. I told him I had left all my loose change in my hotel room. He tossed my passport back to me in disgust. This was many years ago.

[@madlad4206]

Tunisians seem like a lovely bunch lmao

[@andrewnorth4857]

What a horrible experience a the airport, and quite a grim looking airport. I recoiled at the point where the lounge receptionist slapped your pass back down on the desk without even a cursory attempt at eye contact, let alone a smile. It was like one of those corporate videos where they show their staff how not to treat a customer. Still, at least you were able to enjoy some light dinning.

[@lorrainebennett7528]

She was so rude!

[@oldtwinsna8347]

Absolutely ridiculous treatment. Should've engaged the customer by asking, "Is it hot out there?"

[@jeffhatmaker817]

Kinda like how many public servants in the USA treats its citizens.

[@sixpoint3]

I thought I was the only one who noticed.

[@Propain4eva]

@@oldtwinsna8347 😭

[@pyramidhead2874]

Don't worry my friend, even I, a Tunisian native, am treated like shit.. I actually dread departing and arriving to carthage :')

[@RizTraveller]

He is not your friend...if he can, he will use you like a toilet paper and then flush you away.

[@lindabarrett5631]

Good to know it wasn't personal 😂

[@adamjacksonmedia]

@@RizTravellerAre you a Tunisian customer service agent? Sounds like it.

[@RizTraveller]

@@adamjacksonmedia Glad to expose Adams and jackson's of this world and their views about Tunisia.

[@adamjacksonmedia]

@RizTraveller Yes... Tunisians are just like anyone else. However, apparently their customer service sucks. Thank you for exposing my views.

[@RayStatham]

I made the same mistake of flying with this airline, the whole process was anti passenger from checkin to off-boarding. Not enough staff, super long queues, what felt like secret police bag searches. Horrible.

[@azeez8399]

Is this the same as Saudi Arabian airlines?

[@jacquelineb4375]

If the staff cannnot be bothered to be pleasant let someone do the job. Manners cost nothing. Thank you for your review.

[@sightsandsoundsofaviation]

The staff at Tunis Airport is a scandal. How dare you addressing and bothering them with your presence... ? Reminds me of the old Soviet Union "shut up and do as you are told" attitude. But Noel never loses his good humor, does he ? That makes this series so special.

[@electroid8119]

It's the total disorganisation that really grates. Years of domestic airports in India have taught be tolerance beyond my years

[@decentamerican7156]

But the old Soviet Union never hijacked our airliners and murdered thousands of innocent Americans - (They got away with it thanks to G W Bush)

[@cliveramsbotty6077]

i am a tall white western man. i thoroughly enjoy going to parts of the world where i actually get treated like shit, it makes a nice change to have the tables turned

[@bumblerbumble9843]

I think if I lived in Tunisia, I'd be as miserable as sin too.

[@Stripemedia]

Rudest airpot I have ever experienced was Atlanta international arrivals. The shout and coral you like you are on the prison exercise yard. SFO and Dulles also bad. US airports have been the worst for shouty officials!

[@MancunianMrG]

That attitude of that check in woman was staggeringly bad, the utter contempt on her face as she looked at you.

[@A1FAHx]

Perhaps it was the camera?

[@LorenzoStoakes]

she almost qualified for the UK railways but didn't quite reach the levels of contempt they have so had to make do with this job instead

[@angel_lucifer3540]

i have to agreed YES she was indeed arrogant~ maybe somebody holding business tickets asking a favor to have FREE Upgrade~ and she was frustrated u know Arabs have "NO" word in their dictionary

[@MancunianMrG]

@@steevobarker581 Yes, because good customer service is about making lifelong friends isn't it?

[@iankelly8666]

They are so miserable 😂😂

[@lesleytapp4402]

Just flown in and out of Hurguarda Egypt as disabled traveller , I've done this with friends many times but this time our experience was dreadful beyond dreadful. There security is so tight which we're used to but so forceful and disrespectful to us when we arrived to none of our mobility equipment and left us at gate with no wheelchair or other assistance. We eventually found our own scooters and wheel chairs behind some unmarked door by baggage. But usually we praise how efficient they are and it was a startling contrast this time. Attitudes too

[@GarryPhillips]

Having a made a few Saudia flights recently, totally agree on your comments. Great food and cabin crew, but the rest of the experience is poor, especially compared with Emirates. They managed to lose my bag, but quickly recovered it, but then failed to let me know. So close but so far.

[@smikejasper4461]

Dear Noel, unfailingly polite in the face of blunt rudeness - I couldn't do it! Hope the rest of your flights are better. 😊

[@YannickoYT]

Its the British way. If we’re super polite, we don’t like you

[@smikejasper4461]

@@YannickoYT Nobody does passive-aggressive sarcasm like us Brits. 😂

[@davidmoorea1961]

Hey, they (“..the rest of your flights are better.”) can only GO UP - pun intended!😎🇺🇸

[@sammyt3514]

He probably wouldn't have been quite so 'unfailingly polite' if he wasn't recording the whole thing, though.

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

@@smikejasper4461 Uh, but Noel wasn’t passive aggressive _AT ALL._ He was simply *passive.* He said “uh, okay,” and scurried off with his tail in between his legs. There’s zero spine in this guy lmfao.

[@wylecoyote233]

The takeoff angle sounds a lot like the Orange County California Airport noise abatement takeoff that starts off super steep like a rocket ship, then once out over the ocean it almost seems like they turn off the engines as you level off. They used to give a pre-flight warning about the takeoff, but the first time I flew out of the airport they did not make an announcement and I was very unsettled until a flight attendant explained it to me

[@kbboy101]

The rule with many Middle Easter airlines (some more, others less) is that if you fly a route to a third-world country (South Asia, Africa) vs another route to East Asia, EU, or NA, it is like flying two different airlines or two different classes. Some airlines reduce the difference and others just expose it, but the gap is ALWAYS there. Part of it is down to the passengers too.

[@mrvwbug4423]

Yup, basically one side of the airline is trying to compete with Emirates the other is "Hajj express" for pilgrims from poor countries.

[@lassikinnunen]

Why not just create 2 brands tho

[@kbboy101]

@@lassikinnunen Many do. We have FlyDubai, Air Arabia, and Flynas.

[@duncan-xg9sh]

This is absolutely my experience.

[@musthaf9]

yep, I just flown Etihad from Jakarta to Rome, and the segment from Jakarta isn't even operated by Etihad

[@jss1004]

I am traveling to Thailand in November. There was a Saudia Air flight that was lower in price. I reviewed the airline and realized it would take me into Saudia Arabia for a 6 hour layover. No thank you, I would't fly there for free.

[@ac9110]

'service with a scowl'...you weren't wrong there!😖 That was another excellent video. These are always gems Noel, cheers for doing them. That hotel at the end was fantastic!

[@noelphilips]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

@@noelphilips 7:05 Regarding the typo you asked us about... you didn’t think it was “yoghurt,” did you? Because some spell it like that. There’s actually _TWO_ typos I found though: Both of the words “tagine” and “boukhari” aren’t supposed to be spelled that way. How do I know? I had to look up the words because I didn’t know what they were! Haha. I’ll leave you to look them up too, so you can learn their proper spelling if you’re interested and you didn’t realize that one or both words were misspelled. ;) My mom drilled into my head when I was young that looking things up myself makes the word/definition easier to remember, versus her simply giving me the answer. She was right!

[@shashankr5180]

​@@anti-ethniccleansing465The typo is actually in the sub-heading "Light Dinning" instead of "Light Dining".

[@Belfaol]

@@shashankr5180 Also Arrabbiata was misspelled

[@harrycallahan6623]

Wow, these kind of rude people should never be dealing with customers.

[@atomsmash100]

She was just itching to tell you to go check in somewhere else. Atrocious customer service.

[@jimhache765]

how would you be with a camera shoved in your face when you're trying to do your job......

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

@@jimhache765 Yikes man. She works at an AIRPORT. You know, where tourists with cameras are EVERYWHERE?! That’s the job she took, and if she can’t treat tourists kindly, then she needs to find a different job. _SHE’S_ the one with the problem.

[@juliovildosola1075]

"Service with a scowl". Priceless humour!.

[@Donabate2]

Noel, you're a very brave man to video the security personnel at the airport. We're they aware you filming them???

[@michaelhall6178]

Two people on passport desks to serve several widebody flights? Sounds like Heathrow! 🙂

[@pegcity4eva]

Sounds like the airport in Florence Italy

[@Sashazur]

@@pegcity4evaor Berlin

[@hblee88]

As a foreigner, one must always look at each trip as an "adventure" otherwise each "surprise" becomes a disappointment. 😮

[@Komotau4691]

I tell you my story...I was in train for hours with two cringy gays who kiss each other,making sounds to be point of attention and making weird faces to each other and me :D Thats not a adventure. These situations ruin your day.

[@ErikMitch]

@@Komotau4691 I'm sorry, would it be better if it was two women instead for you? lol

[@Komotau4691]

@@ErikMitch In this case its should be better to be alone lol

[@d.n.8919]

@@Komotau4691well, I’ve seen the same thing between a man and a woman 😂 I didn’t want to see that.

[@Jeng4280]

That hotel room was incredible for the cost! So nice! I'm sure it was comfy too! Thank you for sharing your experiences with the rest of us. :)

[@joegreen2750]

All fur coat, no knickers. 😅

[@kukui79]

Too bad half of us in the human race wouldn't be allowed to stay there by ourselves.

[@Flo2806]

I remember flying out of Tunis back to europe like 10 years ago. The take off had a very high climb rate in combination with a pretty tight left turn. Meaning steep pitch up while sitting at a pretty high bank angle very close to the ground. I knew the plane could easily handle this maneuver, still felt uncomfortable af as a passenger. After reaching cruising altitude the pilot sort of apologised and said he had to perform this maneuver due to restricted airspace. The presidential residence isn't (or at least wasn't) allowed to be overflown and the runway we were taking off from was aiming at it. Edit: Your flight path at 15:30 looks like you were using the same runway. The presidential residence is near Carthage and it looks like you were flying over it. Maybe you are allowed to do so now at a certain altitude and thats why the climb was so steep?

[@Covid-bv4hp]

Restricted airspace requires the steep climb.

[@elliott7268]

Wow that's pretty awful customer service. Oh you're business class? 🙄 Wait! 😡

[@glocku373]

I know right! I was fuming while watching that

[@martinwebb1681]

He should have said, yes, I am doing a revue on staff attitudes 😂

[@cheekykitten25]

The number of times we got asked for our passport at Saudi was actually amusing. So much so, that even after 9 years my husband and I still joke about it 😂😂😂

[@Parawingdelta2]

The only Arab airline I've flown with is Emirates. Generally, I've found them OK although the last time, despite being encouraged to check in online to be allowed in a 'priority queue' for dropping off our main luggage we just had to line up with everyone else. When we were at Dubai airport, I reported an item of luggage which had been unattended for over half an hour to staff members. No action taken. After about an hour I reported it to the airport police. No action taken. It was still there at the gate when we left.

[@bernadettejaneczek4609]

Qatar Airways is also very good. Worked in ME for a number of years and Emirates, Ethiad and Qatar are the best.

[@markfulwell4256]

Having spent the best part of my working life in that part of the world, I wasn't surprised by your experience. Saudia will get you there eventually, but everything else is just a bonus.

[@knutmartinnord8297]

I fly Saudia regularly and insha'Allah, never had any major issues. A couple of delays, but all related to the ongoings in Yemen. Never even lost my bag, which I've been expecting.

[@kawangkwok5262]

Holy crap, the immigration service, the seat, IFE, and the loo, cannot even imagine that is today's business class. I think the food set off a little that is not the worst experience afterall.

[@MarkLukeFarrell]

Yeah business class is not what it once was in case you haven't heard. Way too affordable/accessible nowadays so a lot of airliners tend to cut corners.

[@Dangerman-vj3qn]

The business class differs from one plane to another. I ride the company's planes. The business class in the planes available inside the Kingdom is better than this one.

[@potato1084]

@@MarkLukeFarrell It’s really not though. It’s because the quality of business class is highly dependent on not only the airline but the locations both to and from the destination. Obviously they’re going to put more effort into a flight from London over a flight from Tunis.

[@chrini1]

Well this is only the segment from TUN. Which is the cheapest departure place for any SV route, even cheaper than CAI. Check out their business class going to BKK, MUC, MIL, etc.

[@nhc__]

انا سعودي واريد ان اوصل لك معلومة ان طيران السعودية افضل من كذا ولاكن طيران السعودية لاترسل الطائرات الفارهه للدول الفقيره قم بتجربه اخرى من دولة جيدة وسوف ترا

[@delmar9715]

Hi Noel, love your work! Always providing insightful and honest reviews. I love the reaction of the check-in lady. Seems like having customers isn't a priority according to her? Keep up the good fight. Much appreciated.

[@noelphilips]

Thanks for watching!

[@matthewviti2241]

Great video! Reminds of my when I flew Alitalia into and out of Tunis in 2004. Airport still looks the same. I'll never forget on departure from TUN in a thunderstorm there was huge bang and flash. Think we got struck by lightning, but don't know for sure. Remember the cabin crew then going through the cabin standing on seats and smelling around for something in the overhead bins. We landed normally in FCO later on after a big diversion due to the storms.

[@neonunderground5972]

Wow. That lady at checkin really didn’t hide her disgust.

[@elliott7268]

Pilot here, I fly the A320 family of aircraft which is pretty similar to the A330 family in some ways. Not entirely sure why you would have had such a high climb rate or expedited climb. Could be some kind of saudi airlines SOP, or standard operating procedure, on their A330 but I doubt it. I'm guessing it was a tunis airport/ATC procedure. Could have been something from the particular SID, or standard instrument departure, that they received clearance for. Or maybe ATC requested they expedite their initial climb. I'm really not sure as it was probably airport/airline specific.

[@vetmedin]

or 1+F with high trend vector😅

[@elliott7268]

@@vetmedin well yeah that too. Wouldn't be too steep though. Noel flies on aircraft for a living so I assume when he says it was pretty steep, it must have been pretty dang steep.

[@Elnino2910]

@@elliott7268 realistically it’s near impossible for a passenger to be able to tell if it’s a steep climb or not as they base it on +ve g-loads and not the aircrafts actual ROC.

[@elliott7268]

@@Elnino2910 well yes you are kind of right, but you can still tell after decades of flying wether or not a climb out is steeper than usual.

[@paulsengupta971]

@@Elnino2910 There's also the angle between the window and the horizon.

[@chrisbrown8748]

2:30 You took the words right out of my mouth and if I can tell it was a nightmare by watching a edited video from the comfort of my office I can only imagine how you actually felt going through it.

[@sdfft820]

Noel, I used to fly British Airways in the 1980s. On one international flight, as a child I did a personal loo review. I found a plastic tube in the loo with cotton stuffed in it. To a little boy like me, it was strange, so I pulled the cotton out and started blowing into the tube as if it were a flute. As I walked through the isles with my new flute, a stewardess noticed it and snatched it from me. I was shocked at her rudeness! Thank you.

[@Courtneyburns90]

Lol thank you this comment made my day 😂

[@burnout10567]

Bruh what

[@Courtneyburns90]

@@burnout10567 tampon.

[@Marklin15]

Hopefully it wasn’t used

[@d.jensen5153]

I did the same thing at home. My mom quickly took away my new telescope.

[@howardjones6582]

When you took off you probably entered a no fly zone . the same used to happen when taking off from Bengazi in Libya . passenger comfort never came into it as soon as you had wing clearance it was hard to port or starboard depending on wind direction

[@user-dw8ud2hw5d]

You are a very patient man. I would not have put up with the rudeness at Tunis airport (what a rude check in agent and lounge agent). Waving people through security without checking boarding cards was extremely worrying. As for the stewardess closing your blind, I would have put it straight back up. Didn't your friend have a lousy Saudia flight followed by a pretty decent flight a few years later.

[@MykkiOnTheCusp]

What was wrong with the lounge agent? She just looked distracted, not necessarily angry or rude. (It's like if a woman doesn't have a smile pasted on her face 100% of the time, she's perceived as rude or something...)

[@letter1014]

@@MykkiOnTheCusp Same

[@RoyalFlushFan]

@@MykkiOnTheCusp When you're supposed to provide customer service, let alone a premium one (as a lounge in an airport), it's not asked too much to suspend your distraction for a few seconds and look at the customer checking in with you.

[@tsunamis82]

She probably closed the blind so you didn’t have glare on your screen.

[@pacmanc8103]

If he really wanted it open, he could have simply said ‘no thanks’. Geesh.

[@marinaharris-du2lr]

Love watching your reviews. So honest. As someone who works for check in for a ground handling company it allows me to advise my passengers on their destination and help them in any way possible to make sure that their journey is hopefully as stress free as possible. Thankyou 😊

[@noelphilips]

Thanks for that!

[@mikoto7693]

As a ground handler at a UK airport I have to wonder if the woman was in the wrong job. I hate customer facing roles so I freely chose to work on the apron. I avoid the pax areas like the plague. Maybe she should join us in aircraft services or as a ramper?

[@Jay_Wolfe]

I've watched a number of your videos now, and I have to admit that the one thing I really appreciate seeing, or hearing, is that you've gone to the effort to learn hello's, goodbyes, thank you's, etc in quite a number of different languages. It's something quite small, but so nice to know others make some kind of effort to do this.

[@jaquelinerondel4877]

You stayed so polite

[@jamessanders145]

in this case not even that helped, I did not see one person smiling

[@krystofpalenicek5974]

Btw, somewhere amongst the stored Tunisair planes is TS-IML, the first aircaft I ever flew. This flight turned me into an avgeek and 2023 marks 15 years of my professional aviation carreer. Anyway, thank you for your excellent videos, Lord Philips! :-)

[@al6773]

Great video as always Noel. If that was first/business class I would dread to think what economy was like. The toilets were were disgusting and after only one hour of flight. It appears to have been a very poor flight and one to avoid I think. Thanks for uploading these weekly video’s. 👍

[@noelphilips]

Thank you for watching!

[@byteme11]

@@noelphilips I've seen cleaner portable toilets after a day of sporting events.

[@nhc__]

انا سعودي واريد ان اوصل لك معلومة ان طيران السعودية افضل من كذا ولاكن طيران السعودية لاترسل الطائرات الفارهه للدول الفقيره قم بتجربه اخرى من دولة جيدة وسوف ترا

[@ArsenicApplejuice]

@@nhc__shit service for the shit people…. That’s not a winning business strategy for the rest of the world.

[@gilrandall5802]

It doesn't appear that the toilets were cleaned at all. Disgusting for an airline, third world cleanliness and ground service. The hotel was amazing. I would never travel there as customs and security would intimidate me.

[@Djm8520]

Having lived/worked in Riyadh, I flew Saudi often. I found the airport in Riyadh to be fairly efficient and the service on the planes to be friendly. The food is only serviceable and, of course, you cannot get alcohol. Their flights to Geneve and Heathrow were very good and their Business Class prices are amongst the cheapest.

[@kaffir76]

1:50 BUSINESS CLASS?! 😂😂

[@ulfstrom]

Superb video as usual. You are the best aviation youtuber out there. Keep on the good work, Lord Noel!

[@ulfstrom]

Cheers from Sweden 🇸🇪

[@noelphilips]

Thank you Tommy!

[@LCFC_Chris]

noel i can't express how much i love your sense of humour and flight reviews. absolutely love you, legend

[@noelphilips]

Glad you like them!

[@CricketGirrl]

I was amazed at how fast you flew through customs. I lived in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, from 1980-1997, and things sure have improved. Not the attitudes, though. Lol But Saudi Arabia is a different beast.

[@ab-ts7md]

I lived up north in Jubail 78 - 86. I actually miss it!

[@CricketGirrl]

@@ab-ts7md I do too!

[@StevoE7]

Check in lady: "business classss?!" She was horrified lol. Other than the on-ground experience, I'd say it looks like they have incredible catering and a decent onboard service. I get the outdated aircraft for a generally short daytime flight. I think the large comfortable seats are adequate, particularly as they have power and USB. Entertainment is definitely outdated, but that didn't surprise me. I wouldn't call this "awful", just average.

[@we-hb4ni]

I can imagine Saudia’s management will be cringing on seeing this one 🤨🛬

[@007knick]

If KZbin is even allowed there….

[@malconsak]

@007knick it is. I'm from "there" lol. Saudia airlines are sh!t tho and everyone here knows that lmao there's new two national airlines that would be coming in the next few years

[@imu75]

20:00 The prayer before landing is actually announcement of crossing border called “Meeqaat” that is the point for UMRA passengers to start their state of special dress code called “Ihraam” and this sort of announcement is made on all airlines including British Airways approaching jeddah as it the gateway to Islam holiest place “Makkah” You may google more.. Welcome to Jeddah

[@beaudragon]

MashaaAllah i would love to experience that. Last year i did my umrah but flew from kuala lumpur to medina instead of jeddah. And it was pleasant flying with saudia dreamliner. Planning for umrah again this year and i hope to fly the kul-jed route.

[@Jay_Force_One]

Pretty sure there is a steep take off requirement out of Tunis due to airspace requirements. Trust me though, Airliners can climb way steeper than most people think they could. There is a ton of power in those engines and when the air is real dense close to the ground…..sheesh. They can really get it.

[@williammccoy7127]

I am sailor and spending my last years at sea in the northern hemisphere. After 40 years i had enough of this struggle traveling all over the world to join the vessel. Sick it was sometime, chaotic at best, disaster at worst.

[@mazincraft1]

The prayer call near jeddah is only on jeddah planes because it's the main airport for pilgrims coming into makkah and it's a reminder for them to change their clothes and prepare

[@beaudragon]

Wish this year i could fly to jeddah soon for umrah. Last year in january i took a saudia dreamliner from kuala lumpur to medina with a quick stop in riyadh. Pleasant experience 🤍

[@melglobus]

Omg Noel this was a hilarious video, really enjoyed it despite your pretty lacklustre experience. Looking forward to the Saudi adventures ahead!!

[@noelphilips]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@smokersvlogsobaidchawla1213]

While Saudia is really trying to replicate the "Dubai" model, they still have a long way to go in terms of providing the 'experience' of excellent customer service. I regularly fly between Dubai and Karachi, on both Emirates and FlyDubai, and while FlyDubai is supposed to be a budget airline, the airport staff, the flight crew, the service, everything is just amazing. Its just this difference in service levels that no one can beat Emirates in this game.

[@aysh444]

Absolutely agree. I went to Saudi for 11 days and was appalled at how rude they were, especially coming from the Uk and being used to excellent customer service. They sure have a very long way to go!

[@anti-ethniccleansing465]

@@aysh444 Well imagine living there? How could anyone not be miserable?

[@iandavies9576]

Congratulations on your patience and all round good humour. The Tunis check in stewardess certainly needs to move to a non customer facing role but at the end of the day there are no bad workers; just bad management; who, in this instance, haven’t trained their customer facing personnel

[@Volkaer]

I dunno man, most people don't need "training" to not act like dicks, and tend to use common sense when dealing with customers for their companies, regardless of what those companies are.

[@bill_lumbergh]

Countries that hate tourists so much deserve none

[@FahadFSA]

:(

[@pegersisuk]

Brilliant hotel room, plane was very tired 😫, great video as always noel 🙏

[@eriksandneshsien4571]

Well done finding the positives while noe exactly receiving a 5 star experience 😊. Love your videos!

[@noelphilips]

Thanks! 😊

[@geraldinemulry2115]

Hi Noel love your videos. Can’t believe the rudeness of the staff in airport. Well you are always in good humor well done 😊

[@noelphilips]

Thanks! 😃

[@PigeonPair]

The woman slapping your boarding pass back down on the counter and not even acknowledging you as you entered the lounge... wow

[@tomlee7956]

I can see why you were nervous on the initial climb but that is normal for the departure out of Tunis, it is actually a requirement. You MUST fly out of John Wayne/Orange County Airport in LA and experience that initial climb thanks to noise abatement procedures there, LOL. As far as the overall Saudia experience, I have flown on their flights 3 dozen times in the last 30 years and I see that they have not changed any all this time, LOL. The Jeddah airport has the same bad service but if you go to Damman, Riyadh, Al Taif and some other places in the interior, you learn to appreciate Jeddah even more, LOL. Thanks for another great video!

[@waschosen-]

I have heard a pilot say that there were issues with excessive angle of attack during the takeoff of the 737 (due to the installation of new powerful engines), which is why the Max version incorporated the MCAS system. I believe everyone is familiar with what happened afterward.

[@fredskronk]

Good on Noel for not drinking any longer. We all remember the time he emptied a ships entire minibar in about twenty minutes.

[@97I30T]

That video was hilarious. It's one of my favorite videos Noel has ever done.

[@jamesmilligan4030]

That was one of Noel's best vids and one I have watched a few times and had a great old chuckle too... How he kept his sea legs I really don't know lol

[@cocodelocofashion6424]

@@jamesmilligan4030 hey I’ve been subbed to Noel for quite sometime now and haven’t seen the vid your talking about. Sounds great and I’d love to watch it..could someone please point me in the right direction to find it? I mean how long ago or what was the name of the video? I’d greatly appreciate your help in finding this video..thank you in advance and for your time…

[@007knick]

Do you have a link?

[@leonredbon]

Pass the link along. I’d love to see it as well😂

[@royferguson2297]

Probably the flight used by pilgrims going to Mecca. I worked in Saudi and was in various Ports on Ships i found it ok,back in 1977 you were not allowed to were shorts then but by the 90s you could, back in the day the shopping in Jeddah was great 50 king Edward Cigars in UK were £50, £5 in Jeddah, Seiko watches etc cheap and the real thing. There is a change in engine speed when climbing which can shock you.

[@craigcowan2971]

Noel digging into his lunch. LOL! He was loving it.

[@williamheckel2434]

Thank you for a great video. Back in the late 90's I flew at Atlanta on American Airlines to attend the COMDEX computer show. On arrival at ATL on our MD-80 we touched down for a few seconds and the pilot went to full power emergency aborted landing (cue screaming passengers when the plane banked hard to the left and the overhead bins opened with stuff falling onto the floor) and we circled a couple times and the pilot came on saying he was sorry about that but it seemed there was a commuter jet that was crossing our runway and it was either abort or drive over the top of the jet. I was ok until I got to my hotel and my hand was shaking so bad I could barely sign my check in paperwork.

[@sainnt]

I had the worst experience at Dammam airport in Saudi Arabia. You have to go through passport control before going through security. I had power extension cords in my carry on, and was given the option of leaving them because they're not allowed, or going to check my carry-on in at check in. I wasn't allowed to go back to check-in because I already went through passport control, so I had to leave my cords. I'd traveled to probably 20+ countries with those cords. It was a nightmare.

[@stevenbrown62]

I've flown through Dammam many, many times and never had such an issue. Is this a new rule?

[@sainnt]

@@stevenbrown62 They told me that power extension cords were not allowed. I know because I had to leave two of mine and had to purchase new ones.

[@kbboy101]

@@stevenbrown62 Rules are defined by the person in charge at that time and his mood.

[@TheRareVideosXL]

Thank you for your honest reviews. Great content as always. Keep it up.

[@noelphilips]

I appreciate that!

[@TheRareVideosXL]

@@noelphilips You're welcome.

[@yanniyanni7326]

Hey Noel, was that you applauding? if they told me you start praying on descent, I'd be screaming to cried my eyes out. You were one brave Brit

[@chrisblackler4202]

Well that woman at the start checking you in was damn well rude!! Hope she sued the charm school!! 😆

[@Dlo_9022]

I flew into Riyadh King Khalid International Airport and customs queue was not that long for me a bit confusing at first since they were processing national passengers first then they started processing visitors. I’m still in Saudi Arabia I been here since last month and I’m enjoying the country so far, you should fly into Riyadh it’s a nice city here and the locals here are very nice people I’ve had a pleasant stay so far.

[@Nounnnnnnnn]

Welcome to Riyadh 🥰

[@mazincraft1]

i once flown with them from Khartoum Sudan to Riyadh and swore to never do it again , the search at the plane is just demeaning tbh , i went with Qatar airways a few weeks ago and it's a whole other rather lovely experience

[@serge9808]

I fancy all your clips Noel, I find you a very respectful person when it comes to review airlines; unlike another youtuber who reviewed SAUDI (no name mentioned! and no more follow-up on him) who always complains of ALL airlines; but you are quite honest and again respectful ...something I value the most 👍👍👍

[@noelphilips]

Thank you for your kind words, glad you are enjoying them!

[@serge9808]

@@noelphilips I am always honest when writing and I do enjoy your clips...I remember the one you landed un Russia and you seemed very emotional which another virtue I love...happens to me when I have visited a country for a second tima; in my case Cape Town and Zurich....quite different are they not? cheers Noel

[@pegcity4eva]

I ruptured my eardrum from an incredibly steep landing.

[@serge9808]

Fancy all your reviews, cheers@@noelphilips

[@USAFA00]

If the flight wasn’t very full, that could account for a steep climb out after takeoff. Light fuel load for the relatively short flight and a light payload can mean a 5 degree or more steeper deck angle after takeoff.

[@TroyMorePhotography]

Between the heightened security and the steep climb out, it almost seems like they were being extra cautious about something.

[@jacquelinebutters1201]

Payback for what westerners think of their people😢

[@jimarcher5255]

Hand held missiles.

[@d.n.8919]

They have to be extra cautious in that part of the world

[@bsr6823]

I’d rather be safe than dead so the extra security never bothers me when flying to/from certain places. Also, it helps a great amount if you dress up a bit. I don’t drink alcohol so Saudia is a great choice for me because I can get amazing deals on flights out of JFK with a stop in Jeddah. I typically find the onboard service excellent and their catering is my favourite. So much flavour and fresh food. That old a330 would put me off a bit but their 787s and 777s are top notch.

[@R0swell5104]

Yes I was thinking of the dressing up bit too. Whilst it shouldn't make any difference what you ware within reason, turning up looking scruffy just singles you out for any extra checks going.

[@dash2048]

I've flown Saudi Airlines a couple months ago for the first time actually. It was pretty decent I'd say. My route was from Munich to Jeddah and Jeddah to Jakarta and back again. The crew was nice, the food was overall good. the entertainment system was a bit lacking though. it actually didn't work for almost the whole 9 hours flight...

[@joehughes7962]

Good luck Tracy . Hope and pray everything will go beautifully . I will be right here waiting for you and the family next video

[@allanadsett305]

Your experience is so different to what Josh Cahill received on his recent Dreamliner flight from Amsterdam to Jeddah. It would appear that not everyone received the updated training.

[@n1msu]

Noel, I just wondered if you'd be able to pull up the air quality stats from when you left the terminal if that gizmo stores historical data, as the air looked super dusty during the landing! I bet the cars over there have to change their engine filters before their oil!

[@777rogerf]

In Saudi, an immense dust storms called something like a "haboob" (?). can engulf you without without warning The temperature drops and the dust can turn into horizontal rain and mud. If there are hills the tops can be encircled with thunder and lightning, followed by small flash floods. You should park, because a running engine sucks in dust and stalls. This happened to me and a friend don the way to diving in the Red Sea. We were rescued by a Beduin (100 Riyals), but he dropped us off at the remote seashore where the air was clean but there was no one in sight. We were rescued because we found two Indonesians huddled under a makeshift tent. I speak a bit of their language.They had been fishing and had. a scheduled pickup. They kindly let be taken first to our company town in the interior.

[@ThibaultTresca]

jeddah's airport left a lasting impression on me lol, I was travelling with drum cymbals and the armed security guards did not understand what they were and kept yelling at me 😅😅 all while gripping the assault rifle in their hands, airport was also quite depressing. ---but free wifi though haha

[@henriettagibril6381]

Why didn't you give them an impromptu demonstration of how they work?

[@peterjolicoeur8753]

The flight didn't really seem AWFUL as your headline. Just kind of "meh". I worked on the Jedda Airport Master Plan years ago, but know that it doesn't matter how well you design a terminal, if the operator doesn't staff it properly it's going to be a horrible experience. I've had similar entering Dubai in the past, where there aren't enough immigration people -- and obviously none of them care how long you have to wait.

[@rafflesnh]

@21:15 " ...and the crew were friendly". I don't consider closing your window blind without asking you first very friendly.

[@alix5704]

Did you ever have the airport workers give you so much hassle that you missed a flight? And I don't know about the severe angle of attack, but I do remember decades ago at O'Hare, the planes all had to make rocket launches because the surrounding suburbs were complaining about the noise (O'Hare is an extension of Chicago on an "island" surrounded by angry suburbs). I was on a crowded L1011 taking off like that. No fun. I think the modern, quieter planes have done away with many of the noise complaints, though. You never hear about it much anymore from the O'Hare suburbs.

[@ss9702]

Hi, the prayer made on descend was for umrah goers (pilgrimage). There is a section in flight after entering red sea. Where announcement is made, people change in to the white clothes and pray in the prayers room at back to do the preparation for Umrah pilgrimage. Thats what that was all about.

[@peacefulpleb]

Thanks for this, Tunisia is now off my list of places to visit what an unfriendly lot they seem.

[@_tm11]

Lord Noel, where do you buy so much patience from? That was an absolutely horrendous nightmare! Well done to you, thanks for the video

[@noelphilips]

Many thanks!

[@jimarcher5255]

Not so bad. The pilot didn’t fly into a building.

[@dennisheath3747]

Having been in international jobs most of my life and having travelled to 65+ Countries and millions of miles (including living in Saudi Arabia) I can assure you that Noel's attitude is the only way to be. If you react badly to rude service, your day will go from bad to worse, remembering that the rude people serving you have temporary power over your life! They can make life even more difficult if they don't like your attitude. I've witnessed people getting angry with airline or ground staff. It never ends well for them.

[@motorcyclistfromholland8856]

Saudi is officially A dry country but I can assure you that they drink a LOT alcohol behind the curtains.

[@chrismcdonnell1695]

I really felt for you in this vid Noel. However, from a viewer perspective I learned a lot. Extremely informative. Thank you.

[@noelphilips]

Glad it was helpful!

[@sammyomrani268]

Thank you so much for visiting us in tunis, I didnt think i was ever going to stumble upon a travel youtuber going to such an unknown location

[@Rose_J]

I seriously don’t know how you can do this all the time. I hate everything about flying, except maybe for the destination. Without a doubt if I get near any airport, I get horribly sick. The last time I flew, I got a burst eardrum during the flight. I know I sound like a whiny, sickly person, but I’m really not. I think I’m just allergic to flying.

[@egpx]

"This one hasn't got a strap on". Now there's a sentence I never thought I'd hear on one of Noel's videos!

[@jjc882011]

@1:50 Saudi Air did you see your employee’s facial expression??????. WHAT A CUSTOMER SERVICE!

[@HLl564]

Experiences like these keeps tourists away for sure. They treated you like a terrorist until proven unguilty.

[@Kristina-mm9ih]

If we would have done the same to them, they would have called it racism.

[@dcat33]

Either way, better safe than sorry. Treat me like a terrorist baby and everyone else too

[@KimiFan2002]

So basically your average security officer…

[@user-tk2sc3rz9t]

​@@Kristina-mm9ihso true!

[@mattg7372]

Steep angle departure could be a noise mitigation rule for airport; similar to SNA (John Wayne / Orange County ) when you take off to west, over Newport Beach, you go steep angle & then they throttle back engines , until over the Pacific

[@michaelhawk6847]

That's my thought.

[@AOSD12345]

Agreed! A330’s engines are normally very loud. Unlike A350 is super quiet.

[@joshuav9005]

How could they check everyone’s bag at the gate without adding a good hour’s delay? Hopefully they started boarding early.

[@tomtpatrick]

😂😂😂, Noel! Another fantastic funny video my friend. I love to watch your videos after a long day at work. Keep up the great work. The girl or receptionist didn't even look at you! 😅😅😅. Glad I subscribed.

[@colonial6452]

Shades of Saudia in 1976!- with L-1011s, 727s and 707s. They still had TWA as "technical advisors", so after the travelers's prayer, Captain Tex would make a very encouraging announcement. Jeddah Airport was a single runway in the center of the city, as was Riyadh Airport. I once flew Saudia to Sanaa, Yemen where, upon landing, the captain announced that we should set our watches back 1200 years. On a flight from Jeddah to Riyadh, I thought that one passenger was flying with a chicken coop but it turned out to be one of the king's falcon masters.(Those birds got better service than the human passengers). On a flight to London, many female passengers boarded in full black coverage which disappeared in flight, revealing quite a collection of European designer fashions, while the reverse happened on the return flight. Not a YSL or Dior to be seen when we landed back in Jeddah. Ah, the old days.

[@niceviewoverthere4463]

Can't help but think that the checkin staff could have done with a few bevies to lighten them up a bit. Anyhow, thanks for warning me off. I'm spending enough on the Aussie - Singapore - UK trips where life is far less complicated. In so many ways.