Dubai International's terminals explained: T1, T2 and T3

Which terminal does your airline use?

Emirates always uses Terminal 3. flydubai splits its flights between Terminals 2 and 3, and the flight number tells you which. Most other international airlines use Terminal 1. Dubai Airports' airline directory is the live list, and your booking is the final word.

flydubai flights from Terminal 3 have four-digit flight numbers beginning with 1 (FZ 1XXX); its Terminal 3 list includes destinations such as Almaty, Bangkok, Belgrade, Kathmandu, Krakow, Milan Bergamo, Nairobi, Prague, Tashkent, Warsaw and Zanzibar, and flydubai says passengers affected by a terminal change are told in advance^[12].

What should you know about Terminal 3?

It is large. Emirates says its A gates can be up to 20 minutes' walk away, B gates up to 15 and C gates up to 25, and that moving between concourses takes about 30 minutes. The A gates are reached by an airport train.

In Terminal 3 you can walk between the B and C gates, and take a short airport train to the A gates^[1]. Emirates gives walking times of up to 20 minutes to the A gates, 15 to the B gates and 25 to the C gates^[11], and says it takes approximately 30 minutes to travel between concourses; it runs a bus between Concourses A and C, from bus connection area A6 and connections desk E^[10]. Free buggies can be picked up in the central areas of Concourses A and B and at the entrance to Concourse C^[10].

Dubai Airports lists, among others, the DXB Family Zone in the B gates, the Game Space gaming lounge, Timeless Spa and the DXB Hotel at Terminal 3^[5]. Trolleys are not allowed on the airport train, and people with pushchairs or bulky bags are asked to use the lifts rather than the escalators^[6].

How do Terminals 1 and 2 differ?

Terminal 1 is the main terminal for international airlines other than Emirates; its D gates are reached by an airport train. Terminal 2 handles regional and international flights, including flydubai and many regional airlines, and has DXB's Assisted Travel Lounge.

Guests reach Terminal 1's D gates on a short airport train ride^[1]. Dubai Airports' lounge listings include the Ahlan Business and First Class lounges, for guests on airlines without a lounge of their own, and a British Airways lounge^[5]; the listings are sorted by terminal, so check the one on your boarding pass.

Terminal 2 is home to the Assisted Travel Lounge, the airport's first, for people of determination and travellers with hidden disabilities^[5][4]. It is also the one terminal Dubai Airports does not list on the Metro^[7].

How do you get between terminals?

On one ticket, by the airside shuttle buses from the Connections areas, without passing through passport control. On separate tickets, you usually clear passport control, collect your bags and go by road. flydubai sets a minimum of 120 minutes between Terminals 2 and 3.

• From Emirates at Terminal 3 to another airline: shuttle buses leave from bus connection area A6 in Concourse A (for F gates), connections desk K in Concourse B (for D and F gates) and connections desk E in Concourse C (for F gates)^[10].
• flydubai between Terminals 2 and 3: follow the Connections signs to the buses; get an onward boarding pass at a flydubai or Emirates connections desk if you have none. The minimum connection time is 120 minutes^[12].
• On separate tickets: Emirates says you clear immigration, collect your bags, go through customs and take a taxi or bus to your departure terminal; its paid baggage transfer service can move your bags instead, if your connection is at least three hours^[10]. Dubai Airports says travellers without a Dubai visa on separate tickets can ask Marhaba Services at the transfer desk to transfer bags, for a fee^[1].

How do you reach each terminal?

The Metro's Red Line stops at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3. Buses leave from stands at Arrivals in all three terminals and need a Nol card. Dubai Taxi runs from ranks at every terminal around the clock.

Questions travellers ask

Sources

The desk opened each source on the date shown. Rules, fees and timetables change: check the official source before you travel.

1. [1]Transfers — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
2. [2]Dubai International Airport airline directory — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
3. [3]DXB sets global benchmark as record traffic become the norm (11 February 2026) — Dubai Airports Media Centre. Accessed 25 September 2026
4. [4]DXB set for a busy start to summer as daily guest numbers top 200,000 (1 July 2026) — Dubai Airports Media Centre. Accessed 25 September 2026
5. [5]Relax & refresh — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
6. [6]Safety tips — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
7. [7]Dubai Metro at DXB — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
8. [8]Bus from DXB — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
9. [9]Taxi at Dubai Airport — Dubai Airports. Accessed 25 September 2026
10. [10]Transferring between terminals — Emirates. Accessed 25 September 2026
11. [11]Online check-in — Emirates. Accessed 25 September 2026
12. [12]flydubai operations at Terminal 3, Dubai International (DXB) — flydubai. Accessed 25 September 2026
13. [13]Metro & tram stations map — Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Dubai. Accessed 25 September 2026