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Travel to the UAE has never been easier since
it is now one of the most popular tourist destinations
in the world. Most of the leading airlines of
the world fly into the UAE, but you can also
travel by road or sea. The vast majority of
visitors take advantage of the excellent deals
on offer through a number of tour operators.
The national airlines Gulf Air and Emirates
Airlines offer a comprehensive air service to
the UAE's six international airports at Abu
Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai, Sharjah, Ra’s al-Khaimah
and Fujairah.
Over
40 passenger carriers operate scheduled flights
to Abu Dhabi from approximately 90 destinations
world-wide. Major international carriers include
Air France, Air India, British Airways, KLM,
Lufthansa, PIA, Britannia, and China Airlines.
Airport
facilities are superb and include an award-winning
3200-square-metre duty free shop, a 19-suite
airport hotel, a golf course 400 metres from
the terminal, a gym, VIP lounges, a tourist
information centre, car hire, travel agency,
hotel reservation, bank, bureau de change, internet
access and a 24-hour business centre. Raffles
for Dh500,000 cash are commonplace at the airport
and there is alcohol for sale on arrival.
Abu
Dhabi airport is situated on the mainland, 35km
(22 miles) east of the city. The journey to
the city centre should take about 45 minutes,
depending on the traffic.
Limousines
and Al Ghazal taxis (purple and white luxury
saloons) can be pre-booked or picked-up at the
airport. Fares are approximately Dh70. Orange
and white airport taxis charge approximately
Dh40 to the city centre. Many hotels run an
airport shuttle service.
For
the return journey, Gulf Air passengers can
check in at a city terminal opposite the Beach
Rotana hotel, up to 12 hours before their departure
time. There is a 24-hour courtesy shuttle service
every half hour from the city terminal to the
airport.
Bus
services run from the airport to the bus station
on East Rd approximately every 20 minutes. The
fare is Dh3.Note that there is no left luggage
facility at Abu Dhabi airport.
Approximate
Flight Times
From London to Abu Dhabi flight times are 6
hours 35 minutes, to Dubai 7 hours; from Frankfurt
to Dubai 6 hours; from Hong King to Dubai 8
hours, from Los Angeles 19 hours 55 minutes,
from Toronto 14 hours 10 minutes, from Sydney
16 hours 15 minutes. It takes 4 hours to fly
from Nairobi to Dubai.
Departure
Tax
You do not have to pay departure tax at any
of the UAE’s airports.
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