DWC, Al Maktoum International, sits in Dubai South next to Expo City at the far south-western end of the city, and it has no Metro station. The fastest way in is a taxi from the rank: about 35-40 km and 30-40 minutes to Dubai Marina for around AED 100-140, 55-60 km and 45-60 minutes to Downtown for AED 150-200, with the Palm reached via the Marina. The cheapest is the RTA bus F55 to Ibn Battuta Metro station and the Red Line from there, a few dirhams on a Nol card but 1.5-2 hours door to door. Here is every option with times, costs and the steps.
By SB Excursions · Published 15 September 2026 · Updated 23 October 2026
Tour on this route: Full-Day Desert Safari in Dubai — From $45 per person, 7 hours.
How far is DWC airport from Dubai Marina?
About 35-40 km, or 30-40 minutes by taxi for around AED 100-140 with the meter starting at about AED 25 at the airport rank. Downtown is further, about 55-60 km and 45-60 minutes for AED 150-200. There is no Metro at DWC; the public route is bus F55 to Ibn Battuta station and the Red Line.
This guide also answers:
- Is there a Metro station at Al Maktoum airport (DWC)?
- How much is a taxi from DWC to Downtown Dubai?
- How do I get from DWC to Dubai by public transport?
The five ways in from DWC, ranked
#1
Taxi from the DWC rank
The default. Cream RTA taxis wait outside arrivals, the meter starts at about AED 25 at the airport rank and runs at about AED 2 per km, and the roads out of Dubai South are fast: 30-40 minutes to the Marina for around AED 100-140, 45-60 minutes to Downtown for AED 150-200. Cards accepted, no booking needed, and the only option that works at 3 AM.
#2
Careem or Uber
Similar or slightly higher than the meter, with the price fixed before the car moves and the hotel already on the driver's map, which matters at DWC because the drive is long and a pinned address saves the conversation at the end of it. Get online first with a SIM or eSIM from the airport, then book while you wait for the bags; the app shows the pickup point.
#3
Bus F55 plus the Metro Red Line
The only public transport. The F55 runs from the airport to Ibn Battuta Metro station on the Red Line; from there it is a short ride to the Marina stations (DMCC and Sobha Realty) or a longer one to Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall. Budget 1.5-2 hours door to door and about AED 8-15 on a Nol card, which you need before you board because the buses take no cash.
#4
The Palm via the Marina: taxi, or tram plus monorail
The Palm lies beyond the Marina, so it is the Marina fare plus one more leg. By taxi, roughly 50 km and 50-70 minutes, budget about AED 130-190 (the Marina fare plus the AED 35-50 Marina-to-Atlantis stretch). By public transport: F55, the Red Line to DMCC or Sobha Realty, the tram to the Palm Jumeirah stop and the monorail up the trunk in about 15 minutes for roughly AED 20-30 return.
#5
Our tours with hotel pickup
The airport ride is the only transfer you need to organise yourself. The full-day desert safari, the Abu Dhabi day and the sunrise balloon all collect you from the hotel lobby and bring you back, from $45 per person, and the desert and Abu Dhabi days are paid on the day with no prepayment. Send the hotel name on WhatsApp and the pickup is fixed.
DWC to Dubai: the verdict
Fastest and simplest: a taxi. From the rank outside arrivals, about 30-40 minutes and AED 100-140 to Dubai Marina or JBR, 45-60 minutes and AED 150-200 to Downtown, and the Palm via the Marina for a little more. With any luggage or more than one person, this is the answer, and after midnight it is the only one.
Cheapest: bus F55 to Ibn Battuta Metro station and the Red Line. About AED 8-15 on a Nol card, but budget 1.5-2 hours door to door with the waits, and you need the card before you board. Sensible for one person with one bag arriving in daylight, and a good introduction to the Metro you will use for the rest of the trip.
With a fixed price: Careem or Uber at similar or slightly higher rates than the meter, booked from the arrivals hall. And once you are checked in, our tours take over the transport: the full-day desert safari, the Abu Dhabi city tour and the sunrise balloon all collect you at the hotel.
| Option | To Dubai Marina | To Downtown | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taxi from the rank | 30-40 min, about AED 100-140 | 45-60 min, about AED 150-200 | Meter starts at about AED 25; cards accepted |
| Careem or Uber | 30-40 min, similar or slightly higher | 45-60 min, similar or slightly higher | Fixed fare in the app; dearer at peak times |
| Bus F55 + Metro | Budget 1.5-2 h | Budget 2 h or more | About AED 8-15 on a Nol card; no Metro at DWC itself |
| Hotel transfer | Booked with the hotel | Booked with the hotel | Often dearer than a taxi; ask the price before you say yes |
| Our tours after check-in | Pickup at the hotel | Pickup at the hotel | The desert, Abu Dhabi and the balloon include the transport |
Approximate times with light traffic; fares are the RTA meter or the app estimate. Check the official site or the app before you travel.
Where DWC is, and why the distances are what they are
Al Maktoum International is in Dubai South, next to Expo City, at the opposite end of the city from the old airport. Dubai runs more than 60 km along the coast, and DWC sits past the last of it: Jebel Ali is the nearest district, then the Marina, JBR and Bluewaters, then the Palm, then Downtown and Business Bay, with Jumeirah, Deira and the Creek furthest of all.
In practice that means about 35-40 km and 30-40 minutes to Dubai Marina, about 55-60 km and 45-60 minutes to Downtown, and a Deira or Bur Dubai hotel longer again. The road is Sheikh Zayed Road and its parallels, fast outside rush hour (7-9:30 AM and 5-8 PM) and slow inside it; add 15-30 minutes to the Downtown figure at those times.
DXB, the main airport, is the mirror image: about 15 km from Downtown with Metro stations inside Terminals 1 and 3, and about 35 km from the Marina. DXB is closer to Downtown and Old Dubai and about level with DWC for the Marina, so if DWC is your airport, the Marina and JBR are the natural base. The Marina area guide explains what you get there, and it is also where our yacht cruises leave from.
By taxi: the rank, the meter, the timing
Follow the taxi signs from arrivals; the rank is outside the terminal. The meter starts at about AED 25 at an airport rank instead of the AED 5 street flag fall, then runs at about AED 2 per km, and the minimum fare of around AED 12 is irrelevant on a ride this long. Cards are accepted in every RTA taxi; say so before you set off. Pink-roofed cars are ladies' taxis with women drivers.
Expect about AED 100-140 to the Marina and JBR and AED 150-200 to Downtown or Business Bay with light traffic. For the Palm the driver goes via the Marina side: roughly 50 km, 50-70 minutes, budget AED 130-190. Give the hotel name rather than a street address, and for a Palm hotel say whether it is on the trunk or the crescent; the drivers know the towers better than the numbers.
Careem and Uber are the same ride with the fare fixed in advance at similar or slightly higher rates and the hotel pinned on the driver's map; the app shows you the pickup point. Our taxi and Careem guide covers the surcharges and the etiquette; the one that matters here is the AED 25 airport start, which is the same at DXB.
Step by step: bus F55 and the Metro Red Line
This is the budget route, and it works for one person with one bag in daylight. The steps:
- Get a Nol card first. RTA buses take Nol only, not cash. A Silver card is about AED 25 with AED 19 of credit; ask at the airport information desk where it is sold, and if you cannot get one before the bus, take the taxi rather than lose an hour.
- Bus F55 to Ibn Battuta. The F55 runs from DWC to Ibn Battuta Metro station, a Red Line station at the Jebel Ali end of the Marina side of the city. Check the next departures in the RTA S'hail app; the fare is charged by zone on the card.
- Red Line towards the city, in the Centrepoint (Rashidiya) direction. Tap in at the gate. For the Marina and JBR get off at Sobha Realty or DMCC, then the tram, a short taxi or a walk to the hotel. For Downtown stay on to Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall and walk the air-conditioned Metro Link bridge for 10-15 minutes, or get off at Business Bay for the canal hotels.
- For the Palm, leave the Red Line at DMCC or Sobha Realty, take the tram to the Palm Jumeirah stop and the monorail up the trunk (about 15 minutes, roughly AED 20-30 return) to Atlantis, or a taxi from the Marina for about AED 35-50.
- Tap out at the exit gate, or the top fare is charged. Budget about AED 8-15 for the whole journey and 1.5-2 hours door to door, more if you land at rush hour or early on a Sunday, when the Metro starts later, around 8 AM.
The Metro runs from about 5 AM to midnight or 1 AM depending on the day, so a late-night landing rules the bus route out and makes the taxi the only sensible choice. The station-by-station detail, fares and Gold Class included, is in our Dubai Metro guide.
DWC to Dubai Marina, Downtown and the Palm: destination notes
Dubai Marina and JBR are the closest of the three and the easiest: 35-40 km, 30-40 minutes, about AED 100-140 by taxi. Marina hotels stand around the canal and the towers; JBR hotels are on the beach side, a 10-20 minute walk or a tram ride away, and from the Metro both DMCC and Sobha Realty connect to the tram. The Marina is also where our cruises leave from, the marina pier behind Al Majara Tower, Dubai Marina: the 1-hour shared yacht tour from $32 on hourly departures with check-in 20 minutes before, and the yacht party at 9 PM for guests 21 and over. A first evening on the water is a short walk from most Marina hotels.
Downtown and Business Bay are 55-60 km, 45-60 minutes and about AED 150-200 by taxi, plus 15-30 minutes between 5 and 8 PM. By Metro, Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall is the Downtown stop and Business Bay the canal stop; both are a walk or a short taxi from the hotels. If you arrive in the evening, the Fountain shows run every 30 minutes from about 6 PM on Burj Lake, free, which is the right first hour in Dubai. The Downtown area guide has the rest.
Palm Jumeirah lies beyond the Marina: roughly 50 km and 50-70 minutes by taxi, budget AED 130-190, or the Metro, tram and monorail chain described above. Atlantis is at the far end of the trunk on the crescent; the trunk hotels are closer. A taxi is the honest recommendation here, because with bags the change to the monorail at the Gateway station is one change too many after a flight.
| Destination | Distance | Taxi time | Taxi fare (about) | Public transport |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai Marina / JBR | 35-40 km | 30-40 min | AED 100-140 | F55, Red Line to Sobha Realty or DMCC, then the tram |
| Downtown / Business Bay | 55-60 km | 45-60 min | AED 150-200 | F55, Red Line to Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall or Business Bay |
| Palm Jumeirah (Atlantis) | About 50 km | 50-70 min | Budget AED 130-190 | F55, Red Line, tram to Palm Jumeirah, monorail |
| Deira / Bur Dubai (Old Dubai) | More than Downtown | About an hour or more | More than the Downtown fare | F55, Red Line to BurJuman or Union, then the Green Line |
Light traffic; add 15-30 minutes at rush hour. Fares are approximate meter or app estimates.
Skip the transfer question: the trips that collect you at the hotel
The airport ride is the only transfer of the trip you have to arrange yourself. Once you are checked in, our tours do the driving. The full-day desert safari collects you at your hotel or apartment in Dubai, Sharjah or Ajman in an air-conditioned 4x4, drives 45-60 minutes to the Lahbab Red Dunes for dune bashing, sandboarding, the camel ride and the sunset, then the BBQ dinner and shows at Al Khayma camp, and drops you back: 7 hours, from $45 per person, or $65 with the 30-minute quad bike, no prepayment.
The Abu Dhabi city tour picks up at 8:00 AM and covers the 140 km each way with a licensed guide, the Grand Mosque with registration assistance, the BAPS Mandir, the Corniche, Heritage Village and Yas Island in 9 hours, from $45 shared or $245 for a private car for up to 7; again no prepayment, you agree the date on WhatsApp and pay on the day. The sunrise balloon ($275, 4-5 hours door to door) has a pre-dawn pickup anywhere in Dubai city and sells out one to two weeks ahead, so book it the day you book the flights.
The yacht cruises are the exception that you do reach yourself, from the marina pier behind Al Majara Tower, and they are paid in advance because the slots sell out; a private boat from our charter fleet starts from AED 400 per hour from the same pier. If you are laying out the whole trip from the arrival day onwards, the free SB AI planner puts these days on the Dubai map with the transport between them.
Leaving from DWC, late arrivals and summer
On the way out, add the same drive to whatever your airline asks for check-in: 30-40 minutes from the Marina, 45-60 from Downtown, and another 15-30 at rush hour. Book the car in the app the night before or ask the hotel to have a taxi waiting; DWC is far enough that a missed taxi is a missed flight.
Late arrivals: the Metro stops at midnight or 1 AM depending on the day and the F55 runs to its own timetable, so after midnight the taxi is the only option. Taxis run around the clock, and the Marina is 30-40 minutes away at 2 AM, which is the one good thing about landing late.
Summer: from May to September the days run at 38-45°C, and the bus stop and the walk from the Metro are the two places you feel it. In those months take the taxi in and save the Metro for the days when you are not carrying bags. The rest of the city's transport, tram and Nol card included, is in how to get around Dubai; landing at the main airport instead? The Marina route from there is in DXB to Dubai Marina.
FAQ
How far is DWC airport from Dubai Marina?
About 35-40 km, or 30-40 minutes by taxi for around AED 100-140 with the meter starting at about AED 25 at the airport rank. Downtown is further, about 55-60 km and 45-60 minutes for AED 150-200. There is no Metro at DWC; the public route is bus F55 to Ibn Battuta station and the Red Line.
Is there a Metro station at Al Maktoum airport (DWC)?
No. DWC has no Metro station. The public transport link is RTA bus F55 to Ibn Battuta Metro station on the Red Line, from where trains run through the Marina stations (Sobha Realty and DMCC), Mall of the Emirates and Business Bay to Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall. You need a Nol card before boarding the bus; budget 1.5-2 hours in total.
How much is a taxi from DWC to Downtown Dubai?
About AED 150-200 for the 55-60 km, taking 45-60 minutes with light traffic and 15-30 minutes more between 5 and 8 PM. The meter starts at about AED 25 at the airport rank and runs at about AED 2 per km; cards are accepted. Careem and Uber quote a similar or slightly higher fixed price.
How do I get from DWC to Dubai by public transport?
Buy a Silver Nol card (about AED 25 with AED 19 credit), take bus F55 to Ibn Battuta Metro station, then the Red Line towards Centrepoint: Sobha Realty or DMCC for the Marina, Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall for Downtown. Budget about AED 8-15 and 1.5-2 hours door to door, and remember the Metro starts later on Sundays and stops at midnight or 1 AM.
How long does it take from DWC to Palm Jumeirah?
Roughly 50-70 minutes by taxi, because the Palm lies beyond the Marina: about 50 km, budget AED 130-190. By public transport it is the F55, the Red Line to DMCC or Sobha Realty, the tram to the Palm Jumeirah stop and the monorail to Atlantis (about 15 minutes, roughly AED 20-30 return), which is a lot of changes with luggage.
Which is better for tourists, DXB or DWC?
DXB, the main airport, is about 15 km from Downtown with Metro stations inside Terminals 1 and 3, so it is closer to almost everything. DWC is about 35-40 km from the Marina, roughly the same as DXB, but 55-60 km from Downtown with no Metro. If your fare into DWC is much cheaper, base yourself in the Marina or JBR and the difference disappears.
Can I book a Careem or Uber from DWC?
Yes. Both apps run in Dubai at similar or slightly higher prices than the metered taxi, and the app shows the pickup point at the airport. Expect a fixed fare of roughly AED 100-140 to the Marina and AED 150-200 to Downtown, more at peak times. You need data first: a SIM or eSIM from the airport, then book while you wait for the bags.
Recommended Dubai tours for this guide
Full-Day Desert Safari in Dubai
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- Duration
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Photos: The Al Wasl Plaza dome at Expo City, the district next to DWC airport at the southern end of Dubai — Ahmad Dalain, CC BY-SA 4.0, The Palm via the Marina: taxi, or tram plus monorail — trolvag, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons).