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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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