Dubai International Airport (DBX)
Tel: (04) 224 5555.
Website: www.dubaiairport.com  

Dubai International Airport, located 5km (3 miles) southeast of the city centre, is the busiest airport in the Middle East with 28.7 million passengers passing through the airport in 2006, compared to 18 million in 2003, with a projected 60 million passengers by 2010. A new terminal, exclusively used by Emirates, opened at the end of 2008 with its own check-in, lounges and hotel. There are also massively ambitious plans for a second five-runway mega airport near Jebel Ali, the Al Maktoum International Airport.

Approximate flight times to Dubai: From London is 7 hours 45 minutes; from New York is 14 hours 50 minutes; from Los Angeles is 19 hours 55 minutes; from Toronto is 14 hours 10 minutes and from Sydney is 16 hours 15 minutes.

Airport facilities: These include ATM, bureau de change, banking, post office, medical centre, pharmacy, cafes, restaurants, gym, health spa, executive lounges, left luggage, duty-free shopping, tourist information bureau, smoking areas, children's playrooms and car hire from Avis, Budget, Fast Rent a Car and Hertz.

Business facilities: There are two airport business centres. The Global Link Business Centre is located in the departure lounge for terminal 1, with facilities including six ISDN booths, workstations with Internet connection and fax machines, as well as an around-the-clock secretarial service. The Connect Business Centre (tel: (04) 216 4278) is located in the International Hotel and has five meeting rooms and a conference room for up to 60 delegates. Eight workstations include ISDN terminals and fax machines. Secretarial and office services support is offered. There are a number of executive lounges in the airport, some offering excellent business facilities.

Transport to the city: Dubai Municipality (tel: 800 4848; website: www.dm.gov.ae) airport buses, with air conditioning and extra luggage space, leave for Al Subkha (bus 401) and Al Ghubaiba (bus 402) bus stations every 30 minutes daily 0600-2200 (journey time- 20 minutes). From the bus stations there are regular transfers to all parts of the city. Prepaid airport taxis must be booked in the arrival hall. These charge a fixed rate for destinations in the city centre (journey time - 10 minutes). Otherwise, Dubai Transport taxis are available outside the arrivals terminal, with a hefty initial charge.