Terminal 2 at a Glance
- Location North of Terminal 1, across the runways
- Road access From Al Twar Road and Rashidiya
- Airlines About 30, led by flydubai
- Departure gates F gates
- Pre-booked driver Inside arrivals, at the customs exit
- Taxi rank Outside the arrivals exit, 24 hours
- Ride-hailing Own signposted pickup point
- Private cars Car park only, no forecourt pickups
- Metro No station at T2
Dubai Airports opened Terminal 2 in 1998 to take pressure off Terminal 1. It handles scheduled, charter and special-interest flights, and its single baggage hall keeps the way out simple. Getting to it, or from it to another terminal, is the part that needs planning.
Which Airlines Use DXB Terminal 2
Terminal 2 is flydubai's home base, and the Dubai Airports airline directory lists about 30 airlines there in September 2026, mostly regional and low-cost. Grouped by where they fly from:
- Gulf and Iraq: flydubai, SalamAir, Iraqi Airways, Ur Airlines
- Iran: Iran Aseman Airlines, Qeshm Air, Kish Air, Caspian Airlines, Karun Airlines, Varesh Airlines, Sepehran Airlines
- South and Southeast Asia: Air India Express, Nepal Airlines, Himalaya Airlines, Myanmar Airways International
- Central Asia and Afghanistan: Ariana Afghan Airlines, Somon Air, Turkmenistan Airlines
- Africa: Daallo Airlines, Jubba Airways, Badr Airlines, Tarco Aviation, Eritrean Airlines, RwandAir, Equatorial Congo Airlines
- Europe, the Caucasus and Russia: Wizz Air, Transavia, Georgian Airways, Azimuth Airlines, Taimyr Airlines
Two checks before you book a pickup. First, the same directory lists flydubai at Terminal 3 and at Al Maktoum (DWC) as well as T2, so a flydubai ticket does not automatically mean Terminal 2. Second, Air India Express uses T2 while Air India flies from Terminal 1. Your booking and boarding pass state the terminal; send the flight number with any transfer booking and it is checked against the schedule rather than assumed.
Where Terminal 2 Sits, and How Far It Is from T1 and T3
Dubai Airports places Terminal 2 north of Terminal 1, with road access from Al Twar Road and Rashidiya. On the ground that puts it across the runways: Terminals 1 and 3 face Al Garhoud, while T2 is reached from the Al Twar and Al Qusais side. For anyone who has cleared immigration, the only way between T2 and the other two terminals is by road, and the Metro Red Line stops at T1 and T3 only.
By road the terminals are roughly 6 to 12 km apart depending on which pair and which direction, around 10 to 25 minutes in normal traffic. The access road also shifts which places are close. Al Qusais and the Sharjah border at Al Nahda are a short drive from T2, which suits Sharjah residents flying flydubai or Air India Express (our Sharjah to DXB airport route covers that run), while trips south to Downtown, the Marina or the Palm take a little longer than the same trip from Terminal 1.
Terminal 2 Arrivals: Where Each Pickup Happens
After immigration you collect bags in a single baggage hall with six carousels, pass customs, and come out into the arrivals area. From there the pickups split five ways.
- Pre-booked driver: inside arrivals. Your driver stands at the customs exit holding a name board. With one baggage hall feeding one arrivals area, there is no second exit to wait at by mistake. The car is parked in a Terminal 2 car park a few minutes' walk away.
- Taxi rank: outside the arrivals exit. Dubai Taxi cars wait in front of the exit door around the clock. Follow the taxi signs; the meter starts at AED 20, or AED 25 for a van, and our Dubai airport taxi fare guide has estimates by destination.
- Ride-hailing: its own pickup point. App cars from Uber, Careem and Bolt never load at the taxi rank. Book in the app once you have your bags, then follow the signage from the arrivals exit to the ride-hailing point, and check the app shows Terminal 2.
- Friends and family: the car park. Dubai Airports has no pick-up area at arrivals and treats stopping on the forecourt to collect passengers as a traffic violation. T2 has two car parks: Car Park A (premium), a 3 to 5 minute walk at AED 30 for the first hour, and Car Park B (economy), a 10 to 12 minute walk at AED 15 for the first hour.
- Public bus: stands at arrivals. Buses leave from dedicated stands at T2 arrivals and need a Nol card, since cash is not accepted. There is no Metro at Terminal 2.
Terminal 2 Departures Drop-Off
Departures at T2 are on one floor, and every passenger enters from the main kerbside. Dubai Airports allows cars to stop in the designated drop-off bays with a time limit, so it is a set-down, not a place to wait. Aircraft park on remote stands behind the building, and boarding runs from holding lounges out to the aircraft, so do not cut your airline's gate deadline fine.
Tell your driver Terminal 2 in so many words. The approach comes from the Al Twar side, and a driver who follows the signs for Terminals 1 and 3 out of habit ends up on the wrong side of the airfield. When you book a T2 drop-off with us, send the flight time rather than a collection time; the pickup is set from the flight, with peak-hour traffic allowed for.
Getting Between Terminal 2 and Terminals 1 or 3
If you are connecting on one ticket, follow the transfer signs rather than leaving the building: Dubai Airports asks passengers moving between terminals to check with their airline or its Guest Experience Ambassadors on arrival. If you have already cleared immigration, perhaps for a separate-ticket flight from T1 or T3 or to meet someone landing there, treat it as a road journey. A taxi from the T2 rank starts at the airport rate even for this short hop, and a pre-booked car can be arranged for the same run. Allow at least half an hour from the T2 kerb to the next terminal's check-in, and more at peak times.
Meeting a Pre-Booked Driver at Terminal 2
Send the flight number
Add the arrival date, passengers, bags and destination. The terminal is checked against the flight, which matters at T2 because flydubai also operates from Terminal 3.
Tracking starts
Tracking begins as soon as the booking is confirmed, so an early or late landing moves the driver with it.
Driver in position
Before you land, the driver parks at Terminal 2 and sends a WhatsApp from the arrivals area.
Name board at the exit
Clear customs and your driver is waiting at the arrivals exit with your name on the board.
Short walk to the car
Bags go on a trolley to the car park, not into a queue at the kerb.
Free waiting time is included with every airport pickup, and the allowance is written into your booking confirmation. Our Dubai airport meet and greet guide explains the name-board routine at every DXB terminal.
The Other DXB Terminals
If your flight turns out to use a different building, each has its own page: DXB Terminal 1 pickup for most foreign airlines, including Air India and IndiGo, and DXB Terminal 3 pickup for Emirates. The service across all three terminals and Al Maktoum (DWC) is on our DXB airport pickup and drop-off page.
Sources
- Terminal 2 - Dubai Airports media centre
- Airline directory - Dubai Airports
- Car parking at DXB - Dubai Airports
- Taxi at Dubai Airport: ranks, fares and ride-hailing - Dubai Airports
- Dubai Metro at DXB - Dubai Airports
Fares, numbers and rules change. Check the official source before you rely on a figure.