Dubai International Airport (DXB / JXB)  

Dubai International Airport (IATA Airport Code DXB)

Latest flight information tel Dubai International Airport +971-4-2166666 or visit the Flight Information menu on the Dubai Airport website. All Emirates (EK) passengers arrive at and depart from Terminal 3 (T3). Most other airline passengers use Terminal 1 (T1). Terminal 2 (T2) is for a handful of more obscure airlines.

Dubai Airport concourse and terminal differences

An airport terminal is usually where passengers check in for departure, or collect luggage and go through customs when arriving. A concourse is usually where the planes arrive and depart from. Sometimes the terminal and concourse buildings are separate, sometimes they're the same. Duty free shops and other facilities might be located in terminals or concourses or both. For Dubai Airport, it can be a little confusing. As of October 2008 when the new Terminal 3 and Concourse 2 opened, there are 3 terminal buildings and 2 concourse buildings, with a third concourse under construction (expected completion date 2011).

• Terminal 1 is where passengers for most non-Emirates Airlines (EK) flights check in for departure, or clear customs and collect their bags on arrival. T1 flights depart from Concourse 1 - called the Sheikh Rashid Terminal (not concourse, just to be even more confusing).
• Terminal 2 is used for a few airlines. The T2 building is also the concourse for flights for passengers using T2, and is located on the Sharjah side of the airfield from T1 and T3 (there's no separate concourse building for T2).
• Terminal 3 is used for Emirates passengers and most flights use Concourse 2 but some flights use Concourse 1 (The Sheikh Rashid Terminal) resulting in a surprisingly long walk to and from T3 for those unlucky passengers.
• Concourse 3 is a large hole in the ground for the time being but will be a building eventually (by 2011 say Dubai Airport).

Gate numbering on boarding passes can be confusing. Numbers starting with a 1 are for Concourse 1 (not Terminal 1). Numbers starting with a 2 are for Concourse 2 (not Terminal 2). Numbers starting with a 3 are for Concourse 3 (not open, and not Terminal 3 - if you get one of these, boarding will commence in 2011 so you should find somewhere comfortable to sit for the next year or two).

Dubai Airport Concourse 3 was in the news in April 2009 when the joint venture (JV) contractors Al Habtoor Leighton Group and partners Murray & Roberts & Takenaka downed tools and walked off the job due to contractual difficulties. Al Jaber Engineering and Contracting (ALEC) became the new contractors for the construction of the concourse.

Dubai Airport Terminal 3

The new terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport (DIA) opened with a first flight to Doha on 14 October 2008 at 14:15. There was a four phase operation to shift all Emirates (EK) flights from terminal 1 (T1) to T3. When you walk around T3 and think that it seems like a large building, that's because it is. The largest by footprint area in the world, coming in at about 1.5 million sq meters / 1.5 square km (or over 16 million square feet).

• Phase I for flights to GCC and American destinations
• Phase II for flights to Africa and other Middle East destinations
• Phase III for flights to Europe
• Phase IV for flights to Asia, Australia, and New Zealand

Dubai Airport general information

Dubai International Airport (or just Dubai Airport, DXB) is in the Garhood / Garhoud area of Dubai. A second international airport is under construction in the Jebel Ali area, called Al Maktoum International Airport. Previously the new airport was to be known as Dubai World Central International Airport, and previous to that was Jebel Ali Airport, Jebel Ali International Airport, Jebel Ali Airport City, or Dubai International Airport City. Both airports are owned and operated by Dubai Airports (a catchy name for a company in the airport business wouldn't you say?).

• DXB address:
  • Department of Civil Aviation
    Dubai International Airport
    PO Box 2525, Dubai, UAE
  • Telephone +971-4-2162525 or +971-4-2166333.
• Flight information tel +971-4-2166666.
• Dubai Airport opened on 30 September 1960. By 1969 there were 9 airlines to 20 destinations, by 2004 there were 107 airlines to more than 160 destinations. As of June 2008 there are 120 airlines flying to 205 destinations.
• Terminal 1 connects to the new Sheikh Rashid Terminal (concourse) which opened in April 2000, and is used for most commercial flights to Dubai. Passenger capacity was increased to about 25 million passengers per year, which meant the new terminal was only good for 5 years before busting its gaskets. Prior to the opening of the Sheikh Rashid Terminal, the Terminla 1 building was also the concourse for flight arrivals and departures.
• Terminal 2 is used mostly for business and charter flights.
• Terminal 3 (and concourse 2), originally expected to be completed in 2006 but not open until 14 October 2008, is dedicated to Emirates Airlines passengers. Total capacity of Dubai Airport up to 60 million passengers per year with the opening of T3.
• Another A380 specific facility (concourse 3), with longer ladders for the upstairs passengers, was expected to open in 2009 but that's been pushed back to 2011. This, together with the new terminal 3 and concourse 2, will increase capacity to 70-80 million passengers per year (various figures seen - April 2009 reports said 80m). Which sounds like a lot, but at current growth rates the doors won't close anymore by about 2012/2013. However, by then the new airport at Jebel Ali should be taking up some of the strain.
• An e-gate card is available for residents and visitors, a very handy short cut to the ever lengthening queues at passport control.
• Dubai Airport had 22 million passengers travel through in 2004, 25 million passengers in 2005 (14% growth), 28 million passengers in 2006, 34 million in 2007, 37.4 million for 2008. Average annual growth 9-10% since 1980 (2.8 million passengers), but this increased to about 15% annual growth after 2002.
• Dubai International Airport was voted Best in the Middle East and Africa for 2005 by Business Traveller Magazine Germany

Dubai Airport passenger numbers

• Figures in italics represent estimates and/or forecasts (latest 2009-2010 forecasts released 14 September 2009)

Getting to and from Dubai International Airport

• Dubai Airport location is in the Al Garhoud area on Deira side of the creek. Coming from Sharjah, try either Al Ittihad Road (or car park as it usually is), otherwise known as the Dubai Sharjah Road. Or try the Airport Tunnel. Either way, there are signs to follow.
• Driving from Bur Dubai (Abu Dhabi) side of the Dubai Creek, go towards the Garhood Bridge and follow airport signs, but this takes you through a Salik toll gate. To avoid Salik, use the Business Bay Bridge. The airport signs then direct you to a longer route that gets you stuck in the Airport Tunnel traffic jam. A shortcut is: as you go over the Business Bay bridge, take the second exit to Dubai Festival City (no airport sign), follow road around to the right to traffic signal - turn right, and right again at next intersection, then straight ahead at the next traffic signal / traffic lights. Continue straight ahead through several more signals until you get to the Airport Road where you turn left, then follow signs to Terminal 3 or Terminal 1. If you have to go to Terminal 2 (unlikely), then you'll need to drive around to the other side of the airport. There should be airport signs to follow after you make the initial exit from Business Bay Bridge.
• Public transport to the airport includes taxis, Dubai Municipality buses, and airport buses visiting many hotels. Four and five star hotels usually arrange pick up and delivery of guests. Three star and lower probably not.
• Dubai Metro - from September 2009 the Red Line operations start with a station at Terminal 3 (T3) but not T1 open. Good access to hotels in Al Riga area of Deira, and a couple along Sheikh Zayed Road. Only 10 Dubai red line stations open initially, all 29 expected to be open by February 2010.

Accommodation near Dubai Airport

• The nearest hotels are Al Bustan Rotana Hotel and Airport Meridian Hotel, which are both within walking distance across the main Airport Road - there are covered airconditioned walkways over the road. But if you have luggage and/or you're walking in the middle of the day during summer, take a taxi. It might not look far but you'll be cursing the heat by the time you get there.
• The Airport Millenium Hotel is a bit further away on the road leading to the Garhood Bridge and Dubai Tennis Stadium. A long walk (not recommended, especially in summer) or short taxi ride.
• Premier Inn is a Dubai budget hotel near the airport, open September 2009 with rooms for AED 450 at the time.
• The Dubai Youth Hostel is not within walking distance but is not too far away by bus or taxi.
• The Dubai transit hotel is in the terminal building for the use of transit passengers on an hourly or daily basis.

Getting through Dubai International Airport - arrivals

• On arrival from overseas, planes end up either at the nicely airconditioned walkways into the airport, or a long way from the terminal building in the cheap parking slots, from where you have to catch a bus.
• If you end up on a bus, usually the first stop is for transit passengers, and the second stop is for passengers staying in Dubai - customs and passport control is in a separate building from the main Terminal 1 building.
• When arriving at passport control, if you have to collect an entry visa, there is a counter where it should be waiting for you just before you walk up the stairs to join the passport control queues. Nationalities allowed visas on arrival are most European, North American, Australasian, and some Asian. At bad times, you could be waiting an hour in the passport queue. If you're a resident, it serves you right for not getting an e-gate card.
• After passport control, go and find your bags and walk through customs. It doesn't seem to matter much whether you choose the red or green line, customs officers will pick the occasional random person to check. Most of the time you'll sail through. Check the duty free allowances for information on what not to bring.
• Facilities for arriving passengers include a resonable selection of alcohol at Dubai Duty Free after passport control but before customs, and a few other electronic goods, cigars, cigarettes, perfumes etc.
• On a good day (using e-gate, no checked baggage) you can get from plane to taxi in about 15-30 minutes. Normal plane to terminal exit is 30 mins to 1 hour, although in 2008 that's stretching to 1-2 hours as the airport gets choked up.
• Evenings and early mornings are busiest times - many flights from Asia/Europe transit through Dubai in the middle of the night. There are no noise control restrictions in place so Dubai airport operates 24 hours per day.

Dubai International Airport departures

If you're travelling with hand luggage only, from mid-June 2008 there's a new check in facility upstairs at Terminal 1 for some flights, which avoids some of the queues.

• Allow 3 hours for check in and passport control (you'll get away with 2 hours but that leaves little room for error if you get stuck in traffic, or the check-in and passport queues are unexpectedly long).
• The departure drop-off area always seems busy for Terminal 1. If you want to have a long goodbye with someone, either do it before you get to the airport, or park the car in a proper carpark.
• Evenings from about 7pm to midnight are about the worst time for crowds at the departure terminal, and especially if coming from the Garhood Bridge the traffic queues just to get in to the airport will delay you 15-30 minutes, possibly longer.
• The end of June / early July is a nightmare time for exiting the country as all the schools finish around then and everyone wants to clear off.
• Don't forgot the new rules about bringing liquids. Clear plastic bags with no container over 100 ml, and total less than 1 liter. Or put stuff in your checked luggage.
• Facilities for departing passengers include good shopping at Dubai Duty Free (although many items are similar prices or cheaper in Dubai's shopping malls - especially if there's a sale on), the Irish Village bar and restaurant, several other cafes and restaurants (including a McDonalds), and a Transit Hotel at Dubai Airport. Also available are banks, a post office, health club (with pool), medical center, prayer rooms, business centers, first and business class lounges, etc. Most facilities are open 24 hours.
• Gates close 15-20 minutes before flight departure and airport staff toss out the bags of any passengers who are late. At least, that's what they say they'll do. It's probably not a good idea to test their patience so skip that extra burger or drink and trot along now, and if you're an Emirates Airlines passenger who checked in at the new Terminal 3 and you've just discovered your boarding pass has a gate number starting with a "1", you better get moving. You've got a long jog ahead of you ...

Dubai Airport Facilities

• Concourses 1, 2, and 3 (completion in 2011)
• Cargo Terminals 1 and 2
• Dubai Airport Expo - home of the Dubai Airshow up to 2009 (moves to the new Jebel Ali airport for 2011)
• Dubai Airport Free Zone (DAFZ) - one of several Dubai free trade zone areas
• Dubai Airport Aircraft Maintenance workshop - a little bigger than your local car mechanic's garage.
• Dubai Flower Center - for flowers and other perishable goods
• Terminals 1, 2, 3 (open October 2008)

Jebel Ali International Airport (IATA Airport Code JXB)

JXB was renamed as Dubai World Central International Airport ... and then ...

... JXB was renamed again as Al Maktoum International Airport

• Part of Dubai International Airport City - area covered is 140 sq km (twice the size of Hong Kong Island). Expected cost $33 billion.
• Area will include Dubai Logistics City, Dubai Commercial City, Dubai Aviation City, Dubai Science and Technology Park, Residential City, Dubai golf resort.
• Completed in two phases. First phase includes Logistics City, one runway and intended mainly for freight. Completion intended for 2008 but delayed until June 2010.
• Second phase will have another five runways and annual handling capacity will be 120 million passengers and 12 million tons of cargo. JXB expected to be ten times the size of DXB. World's busiest airport in 2004 was Atlanta with over 80 million passengers.
• The first 4.5 kilometre A-380 enabled CAT-III runway is scheduled for completion by the end of 2007. 'First flights at JXB are expected mid-2008, when the first passenger and cargo terminals will be ready,' stated Abdulla Alfalasi, DWC's Marketing and Communications Director in 24 January 2007 press release (see below).

Dubai World Central - 24 January 2007 update (from press release)

• 140 square km aviation community include DWC Airport.
• Dubai Logistics City (DLC) AEB 1.5 billion headquarters and office park construction contract awarded to M. A. Kharafi & Sons (Kuwait) with March 2009 completion scheduled.
• Central Utility Complexes (CUC) contract awarded to The National Company, part of the Kharafi Group. One to meet district cooling requirements for DWC's airport area, the second for DLC's HQ and Office Park.
• DLC comprises a headquarters and Office Park, Forwarders Area, Light Industrial Area, Warehousing Area and the Staff Village. Area of 25 square kilometres, eventually will handle 12 million tonnes of air cargo annually in up to 16 air cargo terminals.
• The Office Park is part of the free zone, but outside the customs bonded area. The Park will provide leased office buildings and also host two business hotels, serviced apartments, banks, business centres, coffee shops, restaurants, snacks, prayer rooms, shops and a multi-use convention centre.
• Phase 1 of the Office Park will include 10 six-storey office buildings each with a total built up area of approximately 255,000m2, and a net office space of around 198,000m2.

Growth in passenger traffic to Dubai and the UAE - November 2006

• Dubai International Airport traffic almost 24 million passengers by end of October 2006 (Update: was over 38 million passengers for 2008).
• Total UAE airport capacity in 2006 is 33 million passengers. Expected to increase 4x by 2008 to 120 million passengers, and 240 million passengers by the time DWCIA is completed. Total for the Middle East region is forecast at 320 million passengers per year by 2012.
• Annual growth in passenger traffic about 15% for Dubai from 2003 onwards.

Last update Wednesday 21-Oct-2009

Related pages

• Airport terminal hotel
• Car rental in Dubai companies include Avis, Budget, Hertz, National, Thrifty, many others.
• Cheap hotels in Dubai
• Drugs in Dubai - be careful with what medicines you bring to Dubai
• Dubai Metro - mass transit system in public operation from 10 September 2009
• Duty free allowances Dubai - how much you can bring in
• e-gate card
• Flights DXB - list of airlines and destinations
• Hotels in Dubai
• Tourist guide to Dubai
• Visa Dubai and the UAE - list of different visas and descriptions

Related websites (open in new window)

• www.dubaiairport.com - Dubai International Airport website
• www.marhabaservices.com - Marhaba Meet and Greet Services for welcoming arrival and assisting departure passengers
• Dubai directory - add your link free

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Abu Dhabi AUH ABD ADB, Ajman AJM, Al Ain AAN, Dubai DXB, Fujairah FUJ, Ras Al Khaimah RAK, Sharjah SHJ, Umm Al Quwain UAQ information

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