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Abu Dhabi Airport Guide

Abu Dhabi International Airport is located in the suburbs to the east of the city. Home to Etihad Airways, the airport is made up of three terminals (1, 2 and 3) with Etihad flying from 1 and 3, depending on your destination.

As Abu Dhabi’s passengers tend to transit the airport to onward destinations, the airport does have peak times, predominantly around midnight and in the early morning (around 6-8am). During this time, you can expect longer queues than normal, however, the process does go very quickly.

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Arriving into either terminal, having had your hand luggage checked, you’ll arrive into terminal 3’s main departure area, a collection of 25-30 shops with an upstairs restaurant and cafe area overlooking the airport. 

You’ll be able to find the usual duty free delights and it even has a Boots in case you forgot anything. Terminal 1 is a 10 minute walk away and has a similar number of shops and restaurants situated around the outside of its circular building.

Due to Etihad’s growing number of flights and partner airlines, luckily, you probably won’t have to wait around for too long before your connecting flight, however, facilities at the airport are limited to the usual shopping and eating. 
The airport has, however, recently introduced sleeping pods, a revolutionary idea for transit passengers who want to get a bit of rest and relaxation between flights. The chairs which transform into small beds offer partially or fully enclosed sliding shades so you don’t have to listen to the airport noise and so offering a private and secure environment. 

Each pod also allows passengers to charge their mobile phones, laptops and other devices whilst in use. The “GoSleep” pods cost 45AED per hour and can be paid for with card (as with everything else in the airport) so you don’t need to worry about changing currencies.

The airport is currently building a new Midfield Terminal which, although will be very modern with plenty of amenities, won’t be open until 2017. In the meantime, however, Abu Dhabi Airport is still a good option for transiting passengers.

Airport profile

Number of retail outlets: 23 (T1), 29 (T3)
Notable features: Sleeping pods in terminal 3
Restaurants and cafes: 4
24 hour retail outlets: Yes