Hipfig Travel Channel offers DIY travel video guides for more than 25 cities in
Asia, US, and Canada. If you like this video then subscribe, give us a thumbs up,
or a comment. Hey everyone, welcome to Hipfig's Travel Guide series on Dubai,
United Arab Emirates. In this video, we're going to be sharing our experience with
the Dubai International Airport, Airport code DXB, and hopefully this will help
guide you through your next trip to Dubai. The main airport in Dubai is Dubai
International Airport. Not only is it one of the busiest in the world but one of
the largest airports. You'll understand once you get here
We flew Emirates Airlines from Mumbai to Dubai. It was a quick three hour flight
and I think we spent more time at the fancy Mumbai International Airport than
the flight itself. We were greeted with a beautiful sunset while landing. Our first
impression of Dubai is that it's a modern city and it has traffic and
everything else that comes along with any modern city. Emirates Airlines has a whole
concourse, B, which is directly connected to terminal 3 dedicated only for them. To
give you an idea of the large scale of Terminal 3: it is 10 floors and includes
a multi-level structure for departures and arrivals. There are 3 passenger
terminals at Dubai International Airport If you're arriving from an international
airline apart from Emirates and Qantas you'll mostly fly into terminal 1. If
you're flying in through flydubai regional and other low-cost carriers you
arrive in terminal 2. If you're flying through Emirates or Qantas you'll arrive
in terminal 3. If you arrive in terminal 1 or 3 you can move freely between them
as they're directly connected with a common transit area by the automated
people movers. Terminal 2 is on the opposite side of the airport from
terminal 1 and 3 and if you're transiting to or from terminal 2 to the
other terminals there's a shuttle service which will take about 30
minutes. We arrived on Emirates Airlines terminal 3 concourse B around 6 p.m.
Once we go off the plane, we followed the signs to immigration and baggage claim
if you're going through transit and have a connecting flight
follow the red signs for your next flight. If you are transferring between
courses and terminals, look for the may I help you staff when you arrive outside
the gate. There are also interactive maps along the way to help you. To get to Terminal 1's
D gates, you can use the airport train. To get to Terminal 3's A gates
passengers can walk between B gates and C gates and then take the short Airport
train. Along our way to immigration you'll see many restrooms. We prefer to
skip the first ones we see and go to the next ones because there's usually a long
line especially for the women's restrooms as usual. We noticed as we were
walking that the airport provides kids strollers for the long walk. I wish they
made these for adults too.
You will immediately get a sense of the magnitude of the airport as you take the
long journey to immigration. It took us about a good 15 to 20 minutes of walking
You can see the shops and the in Airport hotels in the lower and upper floors, but
you can't access them until you pass your immigration. It does make the
walk more interesting. Keep walking and follow the blue or red signs depending
on your situation. You'll get there. Once we arrived, we didn't take pictures
of passport control because you're not allowed to do this as in most airports.
Once we arrived at passport control, we were directed to a line based on our
passport. the process was pretty smooth
Please note that everyone needs a Visa to enter the UAE. You will get a visa on
arrival if you're from the following: Gulf Cooperation Council countries
Western Europe, North America Far East, and Australia Asia. Otherwise you will
have to apply for a visa ahead of time
You can check the rules on the General Directorate of Residency and Foreign
Affairs website. This link will be added to our website hipfig.com when we
update Dubai International Airport
Directly after your passport is stamped and you exit the immigration stalls, you'll
have to pass your carry-on items through an x-ray machine. After that you'll walk
to baggage claim and clear customs to the arrival hall. There are several
currency exchange counters from different companies like Travelex and
local banks. There is one currency exchange counter in the baggage claim
area but this is not the only one you'll encounter. There is a whole area in the
arrival hall full of money exchange counters and banks. Follow the blue signs for
currency exchange. As in any world-class airport there are many transportation
options to your hotel. There are private limousines and cars which you will meet
at the arrivals hall if you have pre booked. The least expensive option are buses
Buses leave from the bus stops opposite terminals 1 2 & 3. For up-to-date routes
and times visit the Dubai roads and transit Authority website or you can go
to hipfig.com once we update the Dubai International Airport pages. Please be
aware that you'll have to buy an NOL card at the bus stop. Drivers do not
accept cash. The NOL card is an electric smart card that enables you to
pay for the use of various RTA transport modes in Dubai and can be
purchased at the ticket vending machines located near the bus stop. If you want to
take a taxi from the arrival hall, follow the signs to the official taxi stand
outside the terminal. The taxi stands run 24 by 7. For your information, there's also a
small surcharge when taking a taxi from the airport. If your hotel is near a metro
station, consider taking the metro train We decided to take the metro train as a
stop was near our hotel and we didn't have a lot of luggage. To get to the
Metro from the arrival hall, follow the signs for the Metro and go up the
escalators. Buy your tickets at the airport station once you arrive from the
Vending Ticketing machines. The cost depends on how many zones you travel and
the color card you choose. We bought the red NOL ticket option as it was the best
for our needs in dubai. There are only two train lines and the Metro Red line is
the one that runs through the airport The Metro Red line train runs frequently
and stops at metro stops terminal 1 and 3. Service starts at 5:50 a.m. and stops
at midnight. Be aware that on Friday service starts at 1:00 p.m. from the
airport. Once you have your ticket in hand enter the gates according to your
train direction by tapping your card on the card reader upon entering. We took the
train going towards UAE Exchange. We got on at Terminal 3 stop but there's
also a stop from Terminal 1 Once on the train, you can transfer to
the Green Line at Union Station if needed.
You're allowed up to two pieces of luggage with one being hand luggage
There's also a small luggage storage area to put your bags near the dividing
line between the women's and general seating area. The first carriage on each
train is Gold Class which is more expensive and generally less crowded
After the Gold Class carriage there is a carriage for women and children only
These carriages are clearly marked it. It gets pretty crowded after Terminal 3
especially in the evening and morning rush hours. You may want to keep this in
mind if you have a lot of luggage. It would probably be easier and cost about
the same amount if you're traveling with a family to take a taxi. Once we arrived
at our stop, we tapped out our tickets on the card reader and we walked the short
distance to our hotel. Happy Travels! Goto hipfig.co for more information or
go to our Hipfig Travel Channel on YouTube and be sure to subscribe for
regular updates