How to get from the airport to your hotel and the city center of Dubai

Dubai International Airport

Dubai International Airport is located in the Al Garhoud district and is the primary and largest airport of Dubai. It has about 475 thousand aircraft movements and over 78 million passengers per year. The airport has a capacity of up to an impressive 90 million passengers per year. Measured by passenger traffic it is the 3th busiest airport in the world.

The airport has three terminals. Terminal number 3 is the largest terminal in the world at the moment and has also several airport hotels. Terminal 1 includes concourse D and terminal 3 includes concourses A, B and C. Terminal 1 and terminal 3 are connected, so passengers could travel between them without going through the immigration services. These two terminals hosts mainly international passengers from outside the Gulf-region and sub-continent. Near terminal 3 is also the Al Majlis VIP Pavilion which, as the name suggests, offers high class services, – lounges and – facilities. Terminal 2 hosts mainly budget passengers from the Gulf-region and sub-continent, like Afghanistan, India, Iran, Pakistan and Saudi-Arabia. The terminal is located at another location of the airport. And the Executive flights terminal for the high end travellers is in a separated area near terminal 2. For passengers who want to move between the terminals are shuttle services like a taxi or public transport available. All terminals have lots of shopping facilities, several restaurants and cafes and some children play areas. The airport has over 26.000 m2 (280.000 sq. ft.) retail space in the three terminals together.

Dubai International Airport is the homebase of airline company Emirates and low-cost carrier FlyDubai. And for the Australian airline company Quantas it is its second hub.

From Dubai International Airport there are several options to get to your destination:

By bus
On the opposite of the terminals 1, 2 and 3 there are bus stands from RTA (Roads and Transports Authority). Emirates also offers a bus service between the airport and further destinations like Al Ain and Abu Dhabi.

By metro
There are two metro lines from Dubai Metro at the airport. In front of terminal 1 and terminal 3 is the metro station of the red line. Behind the Dubai Airport Free Zone and terminal 2 is the metro station of the green line. The red metro line and green metro line cross each other at stations Union and Khalid Bin Al Waleed where you can change lines.

By renting a car
During your stay in Dubai is renting a car the most convenient way to discover all areas of the city. With a car you have the freedom of movement, because you don’t depend on timetables, bus stops and stations, while you travel from door to door. And because the airport is connected to the D89, which is one of the longest roads in Dubai, it is also very easy to drive to your destination in Dubai. At Dubai International Airport are several car rental companies in each of the arrival terminals, which are often the well-known brands like Alamo, Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Sixt. To know which cars and car rental companies are available at the terminal where you arrive, you can make use of a car rental comparison site. The advantage of making a comparison and booking in advance is that you don’t have to compare all the desks at the airport with each other after a long flight. You can directly pick-up the keys of your already booked car. And when you book well in advance there are often more cars to choose from, than when you have to do it with the leftovers after your arrival.

By taxi
At each terminal you can follow the taxi signs which will guide you to the taxi stands in front of the arrivals section of the terminal. The taxis are cream coloured and the taxis with a pink trim have a female driver.

Al Maktoum International Airport

Al Maktoum International Airport, also called Dubai World Central is located in in the Jebel Ali Free zone which is in the southwest of the city of Dubai. By size it is the second largest airport of the world, but not by number of passengers (yet). Currently it is under construction to make it able to handle over 160 million passengers per year. Then it will probably become the largest airport of the world in number of passengers. Several hotels and lots more retail space will also be added to the airport. In the areas near the airport large logistic centers, commercial centers, recreation areas, golf resorts and luxury villas and apartments and about 100.000 car parking spots will arise. This economic zone will become the future home for over 900.000 people. The airport will get the latest technologies and the layout and the processes will be streamlined as efficiently as possible to reduce walking distances and time. Passengers will for example be able to drop their baggage off as early as possible to increase the comfort of the travel. At this moment only a handful of airlines fly to and from this airport, but their number is steadily increasing.

From Al Maktoum International Airport there are several options to get to your destination:

By bus
Busses from RTA (Road and Transports Authority) connect the airport to the city center. When you arrive at Ibn Battuta station you can change routes to other parts of the city or take the metro.

By renting a car
Several leading car rental companies like Avis, Dollar, Europcar, Hertz, Sixt and Thrifty have a desk in the arrival terminal of Al Maktoum International Airport, or Dubai World Central. Car rental is, even more than at Dubai International Airport, a very convenient way of transportation through Dubai as you don’t need to rely on public transport, which is still in development in this area of Dubai. From the airport you have easy access to the main roads of Dubai like the Sheikh Zayed Road (E11), Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road (E311) and Emirates Road (E611). Booking your car well in advance has the advantage that you can choose between a wider selection of cars, so that chances are higher that your desired car is still available. And when you make use of a car rental comparison site you don’t have to visit all the different car rental desks at the airport to see which one can provide you with the best deal.

By taxi
Traveling by taxi service is also a convenient and affordable way to get to your destination. The cream coloured taxis are metered with prices set by the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai and its drivers speak English. The taxis with a pink trim have a female driver.

By metro
The metro station at the airport is not finished yet, but will be connected to the current metro lines.

By train
There are plans to build a railway which will link Al Maktoum International Airport to Dubai international Airport.