Which DXB terminal, and where the driver waits.

One airport, three buildings

Dubai International (DXB) has Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3. The airport says Terminal 3 has three concourses, A, B and C, used mainly by Emirates, flydubai, United and Air Canada. Terminal 1 has the D gates for many international carriers, and Terminal 2 (F gates) handles regional and some international flights.

The airport also asks you to check the terminal on your ticket, on its website or with your airline. Terminals can change, so do not rely on a list you read months ago, including this one. Use the table below to plan, then confirm each flight close to the date.

Who uses which terminal

This is taken from the airport’s own airline directory, read on 29 October 2026. We show the airlines our visitors from the USA, UK, Europe, Australia and Japan most often ask about.

Older guides give other answers. Some put Air Canada in Terminal 1, and some call Terminal 3 Emirates only. We follow the airport’s directory. Japan Airlines, ANA and American Airlines do not appear in it, which is not proof they never fly to Dubai. Ask your airline which airport and terminal your flight uses.

Where the driver waits

The airport states that it has no pick-up area at Arrivals and tells drivers to use its car park at each terminal. Drop-off is at designated areas near the Departures entrances, with a time limit. Taxis queue at ranks in each terminal, and ride-hailing has its own marked pick-up points.

We have not found a published coach bay, waiting area or chauffeur meeting point at DXB, so we do not describe one as a fixed fact. Your written quote names the meeting arrangement for your flights. Our guide to meeting your driver at DXB explains how it usually works, and the big group arrival guide covers groups of thirty or more.

Moving between terminals

Inside the airport, guests change concourses by airport train, for example to the D gates in Terminal 1 or to the A gates in Terminal 3. The airport does not publish a walking or driving distance between its terminals.

By road, routing software suggests Terminal 1 to Terminal 3 is about 3 km, and Terminal 2 sits further away, roughly 6 to 8 km from the other two. Those are approximate, free-flow figures. For a vehicle change we plan 15 to 20 minutes between Terminal 2 and Terminals 1 or 3. That is our own planning allowance and not an airport figure.

The Dubai Metro Red Line serves Terminals 1 and 3 only. The airport lists service hours of Monday to Thursday 05:00 to 24:00, Friday 05:00 to 01:00 the next morning, Saturday 05:00 to 24:00 and Sunday 08:00 to 24:00, and says hours can extend on holidays. The Metro allows two pieces of luggage including hand luggage, so a group with big cases needs another plan. Check the RTA site for current rules.

From each terminal to the Marina, JBR and beyond

The terminal you land in changes the drive by a few minutes, not by a different answer. These distances come from OpenStreetMap routing, approximate, with no traffic. The time column is the range we plan with outside the rush hours, from our hotel area drive times guide. Allow more at peak times.

We found no published access rules for the Marina towers, The Walk or Bluewaters, so we do not promise a door-to-door drop. Give us the exact building and the driver confirms the best drop-off point before you land. The route pages for DXB to Downtown and DXB to the Palm have more.

Splitting a group across terminals

Send us every flight number, not just the lead one. We match each flight to its terminal from the airport’s information, then size a vehicle for each landing. A group that arrives in two terminals within an hour is better served by two vehicles than by one that shuttles between buildings.

• Seven or fewer with light bags: the Mercedes V-Class, 7 seats and 6 bags.
• Eight to thirteen: the 13-seater van, 13 seats and about 10 bags.
• Fourteen to sixteen: the Mercedes Sprinter, 16 seats and about 12 bags.
• Seventeen to fifty: the 30-seater mini coach or the 50-seater coach.

Bags matter as much as seats; see how many suitcases fit in each vehicle. Ask for a fixed written quote through the booking page.

Going back: allow for the airport’s own advice

The airport recommends arriving at least three hours before departure, with check-in counters opening about three hours ahead. Bags longer than 90 cm, taller than 75 cm or wider than 60 cm, or without one flat surface, go to the oversized baggage counter after check-in, so allow extra time. Your airline sets its own baggage allowance.

For the plan on the day, read leaving the hotel with a group. Flights landing at Al Maktoum instead are on the DWC transfer page.

Related: Dubai airport transfer for groups · How far is Dubai Airport from your hotel area · Meeting your driver at DXB · Big group arrival at DXB · Al Maktoum Airport (DWC) transfer · Airport Chauffeur · Get a quote

Keep reading

• Meeting your driver at DXB: Terminals 1, 2 and 3, the walk to arrivals, and exactly where your chauffeur will be waiting.
• Leaving the hotel for DXB with a group: The departure morning for a group leader: head count, bags, terminal, loading and the time the coach should be at the hotel door.
• DXB airport to Expo City for GITEX: Landing at Dubai International for GITEX Global 2026 and heading to Expo City: Metro, taxi or a pre-booked vehicle, hotel first or venue first, bags and the return.
• Dubai Airport to your hotel: Metro, bus, taxi rank, app ride, hotel transfer or a driver in arrivals: how to reach your hotel from DXB, area by area.
• Dubai Metro and a coach for groups: When a group should ride the Dubai Metro for one leg and take a vehicle for the others: a decision table on luggage, terminals, hours and stations, plus three worked examples.
• Dubai Airport to Downtown Dubai: From DXB to Downtown, Business Bay and DIFC hotels: the crossings, the rush hours, the drop-off at each tower and a vehicle sized to your bags.