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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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