Should you visit Afghanistan? Tour company inviting Kiwis back to Bamyan

Kiwis are invited to ski the high Pamirs of Afghanistan, as a New Zealand company leads the country's tourism restart. Photo / A2A

Few New Zealanders have visited Afghanistan, and even fewer have planned a trip since 2021 and the return to Taliban rule. Next month a team of inquisitive tourists from New Zealand will be granted the rare chance to explore one of the world’s most landlocked and isolated countries on earth.

A specialist travel agency set up by Afghan expats in New Zealand is encouraging Kiwi tourists to go back to Bamyan, though it remains a highly adventurous destination.

On February 29, A2A is promising an “adventure steeped in authenticity” skiing into the mountains of the central Hindu Kush.

Gul Hussain Baizada founded the company A2A - or Aotearoa to Afghanistan - with fellow expat Amir Foladi last year.

Having been involved in tourism development projects funded by the New Zealand Government and Aga Khan Foundation, back in 2008, it is a dream they have held for 15 years. They paused their work and were relocated to New Zealand in 2021, following the end of NATO presence in Kabul.

But Gul says it’s time to take tourists back to Afghanistan.

MA 'Amir' Foladi' and Gul Hussain Baizada, right, relocated from Afghanistan to New Zealand in 2021. Photo / A2A

“We plan the trip for the first week of March. We have had two people sign up, so far but it’s possible we may postpone to next year, if we do not meet our minimum.”

The 12-day trip is being led by New Zealander Simon Shelton, who as well as guiding in Afghanistan has spent over 750 days in Antarctica as Scott Base winter-over leader. Having spent time in Bamyan in 2012 training mountain guides with the Aga Khan Foundation, Shelton is an obvious expedition lead.

“We are welcoming other nationalities as well, but it is firstly a New Zealand project.”

The tour company was founded to get New Zealanders back to Bamyan, Afghanistan. Photo / A2A

The tour for up to 10 people includes meals, accommodation, permits and a rare letter of invitation to visit the region. What is not included is flights or insurance.

Given MFAT has placed the whole of Afghanistan under a ‘do not travel advisory’ since the return of a Taliban government, this could be a big ask. There is no longer an embassy for the “Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan” in New Zealand.

However, Gul is less concerned about the logistics.

“Afghanistan has embassies that are able to issue visas in Australia and Dubai,” he says. “For most travellers, you have to apply for the visa during a layover in Dubai.

Despite the perceived remoteness, as of October last year, FlyDubai resumed flights from the UAE into Kabul, as the first non-Afghan carrier to restart air links.

With help from members of the New Zealand Alpine Club, they have been able to source alternative insurance to cover this most unusual travel location. Last year the company led tours for clients visiting Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Adventure tourism is the just tip of the iceberg for what Gul hopes might grow into cultural tours and hiking trips through the region. There is another - slightly - less adventurous trip planned for the Wakhan Corridor and the Pamirs.

“My background is more in cultural tours, I’m originally from Bamyan,” he says.

“When the situation got bad we relocated to New Zealand, with help by the New Zealand Government, but we still have family in Bamyan.”

Bamyan, central Afghanistan, became an unlikely home to ski and adventure tourism. Photo / A2A

The tourism venture to Afghanistan might sound outlandish but Gul and Foladi feel that tourism can help the country. It’s the reason they founded A2A, says Gul.

There is particular poignancy for New Zealanders to be able to go back to the place where the NZ Defence Force spent 10 years on a peacekeeping mission - from 2003 to 2013.

“They should not forget Afghanistan. People should not forget it is a place [that can be visited].”

While they waited before forming A2A over uncertainty over what would happen in Afghanistan following 2021, Gul feels the time is right to begin the tourism conversation.

Of course, there are many visitors who are uncomfortable with the idea of paying tourism taxes to the Taliban. Earlier this week the UN reported that the Afghan government was further restricting unmarried Afghan women’s access to work, travel and health care. Currently, women cannot move around or travel a certain distance without a man who is related to her by blood or marriage.

It is also unclear whether marital status could affect female travellers’ eligibility for visas. The embassy in Canberra, which serves New Zealand and Australia, says it will deny applications to individuals “suspected of moral corruption, or lacks respect for the prevalent culture in Afghanistan.”

Currently, a Single Entry Tourist Visa costs $260 and is valid for 30 days.

“The Taliban also benefit from growing tourism to Afghanistan, but the people can benefit more. They can see a future in it,” says Gul.

“We are not rich; we cannot send money, but we can help by sending tourism.

And we are happy to support the tourism sector.”

The Afghan envoy to the UAE visits an Emirates A380 at the Dubai Air Show last year, following the return of air links between the two countries. Photo / Jon Gambrell, AP

Which airlines operate flights to Kabul?

Since 2021 Afghanistan has been extremely difficult for New Zealanders to fly into to visit.

This could be changing as air links and trade routes slowly re-open with the new Islamic Republic.

In October last yea,r FlyDubai, an Emirati government-owned airline, became the first non-Afghan-based airline to resume services to Kabul airport.

Ariana Afghan Airlines and privately owned Kam Airlines were cleared to take off for international services following 2021

Since last year the FAA announced that US carriers could once again fly over Afghan air space for more efficient air routes, although the International Air Transport Association says it will not collect overflight fees for the Taliban government, due to sanctions.

Planes flying over Afghan Airspace should be paying $650 for the use of airspace and air traffic control.

Other international carriers including Emirates and Qatar Airways have yet to resume services, which have been paused since 2021.