sky74

Hello! I'm hoping to avail myself of the knowledge of the hive mind here, as I have never been to Dubai before. On a return flight from Katmandu, I am taking a FlyDubai flight from KTM to DXB. I am scheduled to arrive at 22:35, and it seems that this airline arrives into Terminal 2. I am flying economy and checking a bag. So here's the issue: my flight back to the States is on a completely separate ticket. I'll be departing DXB on Lufthansa at 1:50AM out of - I *think* - Terminal 1. I will be in business class on that flight, and still checking a bag. Because these two airlines aren't "related" to each other, I am assuming I will need to fully exit immigration, collect my luggage, figure out how to get to the next terminal and go through the whole international check in process. Do I have enough time to do all of this? If all the flights are on time, I should have about 3 hours, but I've heard immigration lines can be long. Also, if I'm exiting Terminal 2 at baggage claim, what would be the best way to get to the departures check in for Terminal 1? Thank you so much for any advice!

RohanDXB

Straight off the bat I will begin by echoing most members of FT about the inherent risks of self-connecting.

With that out of the way, from my experience, the amount of time seems reasonable.

FlyDubai flights are almost always late - checking Flightaware, in the last 10 days, two flights have arrived in DXB post midnight and two after 11pm - this is an inherent risk and can swing wildly. I recommend selecting a seat as close to the front as possible - T2 doesn't have aerobridges and you will be bussed to the arrival gate - it will be important to be on that first bus.

Averaging it out, lets assume you land at 23:30, finish immigration (10 mins) and luggage (20 mins), you will be at the curb by 0:05. There is a shuttle bus of some description between T2 & T1 but I wouldn't count on the timings syncing given your subsequent flight and I couldn't find much information about it either.

Taxis will take 20 mins (in case of traffic) and cost $15-$18 at most.

Thus you will reach the check-in desk by 0:30 - 20 minutes before they close. By 1:00am you finish immigration + security and 10 minutes to the gate.

Assuming all the buffers get used and all the timings I have given above actually materialize you will make it to the flight but without being able to access the lounge and it's important that you move swiftly.

With DXB being my home airport there would be a risk that I understate how long things take so I have been a bit more conservative instead

Ro

sky74

Thank you so much! It looks like everything counts on FlyDubai being on time, and as it's later in the day I'm guessing the likelihood is high that it will be late by at least a bit. Hmmm...i may look into changing the ticket. Thank you!

B747-437B

You can also arrange with Marhaba who will sort out your baggage transfer automatically (even if there is no interline agreement) and also arrange an airside transfer for you so you don't have to deal with immigration lines and baggage claim.

Prices start at around US$50 for this and well worth it IMHO, especially if doing any sort of connection between T2 and T1/T3.

http://www.marhabaservices.com/engli...ces/meet-greet

747FC

+1 re Marhaba.

sky74

Oh wow - this is perfect!! And far less expensive than the ticket change fee I would get hit with. Thank you so much!