Board the Red Line towards Centrepoint and ride eleven stops to Airport Terminal 1.
11 stops, 0 changes at the interchange. The line colour shows which train you are on at each point.
For one or two people, the Metro wins on cost and predictability. For a family with luggage, or in a hurry, a taxi is door to door and skips the walk.
| Option | Cost | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metro | AED 5 (Silver Nol) | ~25 min | Cheapest, no traffic |
| Taxi | AED 32 to 47 | 15 to 22 min | Door to door, luggage, families |
Coming from Downtown with bags, the lifts at Burj Khalifa / Dubai Mall are signposted from the walkway and easier than the travelator with a loaded trolley. Keep at least AED 7.50 on a fresh Nol card; the gate needs that much to let you through, and the trip itself only takes AED 5. A small bag fee may apply at the gate during peak hours if you have more than two pieces.
Airport Terminal 1 station is fully underground, with a covered link straight into the terminal building for flydubai, Air Arabia and Wizz Air passengers.
For more on the area around Airport Terminal 1, what is close by and worth a stop, see the Airport Terminal 1 station guide.
Pick up a prepaid Dubai eSIM before you leave Downtown so the data switches on the moment you land. Useful for flydubai check-in and at-gate updates.
No. The Red Line runs straight from Burj Khalifa / Dubai Mall (R25) north through the city centre to Airport Terminal 1 (R14). One train, eleven stops, no platform change.
Terminal 1 is the main international terminal for non-Emirates airlines at Dubai International, including flydubai, Air Arabia, Wizz Air, Lufthansa, British Airways, Singapore Airlines and many others. If you are flying Emirates or Qantas, you are at Terminal 3 instead, one stop further north on the Red Line at Airport Terminal 3 (R13).
The trip crosses two zones (Burj Khalifa is Zone 6, Terminal 1 is Zone 5). On a Silver Nol card it is AED 5, on a Gold Nol card AED 10, on a Blue personal card AED 5, and on a single-use Red ticket AED 6 plus AED 2 to buy the ticket itself.
About 25 minutes from platform to platform, including the short waits between stations. The walk into the terminal from the station adds another 10 to 15 minutes, longer with bags or a queue.
Yes. Burj Khalifa / Dubai Mall has lifts at both the walkway end and the platform end, the Red Line trains have low floors and wide doors, and Airport Terminal 1 station has a covered, step-free link straight into the terminal.
Yes, much cheaper on the Metro. A taxi from Burj Khalifa to Terminal 1 is around AED 32 to 47 and 15 to 22 minutes depending on traffic, against AED 5 on the Metro. The taxi is door to door and works any hour, but the Metro saves around 85 per cent of the fare during operating hours.
Late afternoon and early evening, when day-trippers from Downtown head home and commuters travel to the airport for evening flights. Friday and Saturday evenings are the busiest of the week. The first trains in the morning are usually quiet.
The last northbound train from Burj Khalifa / Dubai Mall towards Centrepoint runs around midnight every day. If you land or take off later than that, the taxi rank outside the mall is staffed around the clock.
Terminal 2 has no Metro station of its own. The closest is Abu Hail on the Green Line, then bus 43 for about 10 to 15 minutes, or a walk of roughly 1.5 km. For a direct trip to Terminal 2, a taxi from Burj Khalifa is around AED 40 to 60 and 20 to 30 minutes off-peak.