About Arabian Wanderers
Arabian Wanderers is a Dubai-based adventure travel company committed to reconnecting people with the natural world.
Through carefully designed small-group adventures across the region, we create meaningful and unforgettable experiences where like-minded travelers form authentic connections.
About the Role
We are looking for a reliable and highly capable Senior Finance & Accounting Specialist to take ownership of our day-to-day accounting, financial controls and management reporting.
This is a hands-on individual-contributor role with no direct reports at present. The successful candidate will personally perform the accounting work and serve as the company’s primary finance and accounting specialist.
The role will be approximately 70% accounting and finance operations and 30% reporting, budgeting, cash-flow planning and financial analysis.
Key Responsibilities
Day-to-Day Accounting
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date accounts in Zoho Books.
- Record and review supplier bills, sales invoices, payments, credit notes, refunds, accruals, prepayments and journal entries.
- Issue accurate and timely invoices for the sales team.
- Manage and validate bulk imports of B2C invoices, customer payments, credit notes and refunds from Bókun into Zoho Books.
- Perform pre- and post-import checks to identify missing transactions, duplicates, incorrect mappings or other discrepancies.
- Track customer payments and follow up thoroughly on outstanding and overdue balances.
- Maintain accurate accounts receivable, accounts payable and supplier statements.
- Prepare and execute supplier and contractor payments within approved timelines and following management approval.
- Ensure every transaction is supported by complete and properly organized documentation.
Vendor and Expense Management
- Create and maintain vendor records in Zoho Books.
- Collect supplier trade licences, VAT registration certificates, addresses, contact details and other required documents before completing vendor onboarding.
- Review employee card expenses daily and follow up promptly on missing receipts or invoices.
- Check expenses for unusual, unauthorized or potentially fraudulent transactions and escalate any concerns immediately.
- Monitor spending against approved budgets and identify overspending or cost irregularities.
Reconciliations and Monthly Closing
- Reconcile bank accounts, corporate cards and payment channels, including Stripe, Alaan, Bókun and Tabby.
- Reconcile imported Bókun transactions against booking reports, payment processors and Zoho Books to ensure completeness and accuracy.
- Account correctly for customer deposits, deferred revenue, gift cards, cancellations, refunds and foreign-exchange differences.
- Ensure revenue and related costs are recognized in the correct period based on trip completion.
- Maintain the appropriate Zoho Books tags and tracking dimensions for trip-level reporting.
- Review the chart of accounts and propose any necessary additions or changes for management approval.
- Complete the monthly financial close and all supporting reconciliations by the 10th of the following month.
Reporting and Financial Planning
- Prepare monthly profit and loss, balance-sheet and cash-flow reports.
- Produce accounts receivable, accounts payable and budget-versus-actual reports.
- Prepare trip- and destination-level revenue, cost and profitability reports.
- Maintain a rolling cash-flow forecast and supplier payment calendar.
- Monitor gross margins and investigate unexpected cost or revenue variances.
- Provide management with clear financial insights to support decision-making.
- Recommend opportunities to strengthen controls or automate finance workflows.
UAE VAT, Corporate Tax and Audit
- Prepare and submit accurate UAE VAT returns within the required deadlines.
- Review the VAT treatment of UAE and international trips, supplier expenses, refunds and other transactions.
- Prepare the accounts, schedules and supporting documents required for UAE Corporate Tax filing.
- Coordinate the preparation and submission of Corporate Tax returns, with external professional support where required.
- Liaise with external tax advisers and auditors and respond to their information requests.
- Maintain complete, organized and audit-ready accounts throughout the year.
- Support the preparation of annual financial statements and the external audit.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance or a related field.
- At least 4 years of relevant accounting experience, including responsibility for monthly closing and reconciliations.
- Direct hands-on experience accounting for a UAE-based company.
- Strong practical knowledge of UAE VAT and Corporate Tax.
- Strong hands-on experience with Zoho Books or a comparable accounting system; Zoho Books is strongly preferred.
- Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills, including formulas, lookups, data cleaning and reconciliations.
- Good understanding of accrual accounting, revenue recognition and balance-sheet reconciliations.
- Experience with multicurrency transactions and online payment processors.
- Strong written and spoken English; Arabic is an advantage.
- High level of integrity, confidentiality and attention to detail.
- Ability to work independently, meet deadlines and take full ownership of responsibilities.
Experience in travel, tourism, hospitality, events or another project-based service business would be an advantage. Experience with bulk accounting-data imports, system integrations or high-volume transaction environments is also preferred.
ACCA, CPA, CMA or another relevant professional qualification is preferred but not mandatory.
What Success Looks Like
Within the first three months, the successful candidate will have:
- Taken full ownership of Zoho Books and the monthly closing process.
- Established complete reconciliations for all major accounts and payment channels.
- Established a reliable and controlled process for importing and validating Bókun transactions.
- Ensured that sales invoices, supplier bills and vendor records are complete and accurate.
- Established effective processes for collections, supplier payments and employee expense documentation.
- Implemented a monthly management-reporting package and cash-flow forecast.
- Established consistent trip-level financial reporting using the appropriate Zoho Books tags.
- Documented the company’s key finance and accounting processes.
- Ensured the accounts remain accurate and audit-ready throughout the year.
What We Offer
- A full-time remote position based in Lebanon.
- Direct exposure to the company’s leadership and decision-making.
- The opportunity to take ownership of the finance function of a growing regional travel company.
- A collaborative, entrepreneurial and mission-driven working environment.
How to Apply
Please complete the application form below:
https://forms.gle/ncePQvjospxAxQaF6
Only applications submitted through the form will be considered. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an assessment and interview.
