Dubai Airport

This is a shopping mall not an airport - too crowded noisy not enough seats no quiet area. Cunningly planned so that you spend more time in the shops.

This airport is a nightmare. Arrived late in the evening 23.30. Connection flight was scheduled 4.10 am although unfortunately there was a delay. I was searching for a smoking lounge in T3 - not available. Tried to find a seat to get some sleep over night but none were available. Tried to connect to the free WiFi - not available. When finally sitting at the gate waiting for boarding the Aircon was round 15 degrees Celsius. Without my winter jacket that I had in my hand luggage I would have been frozen.

This review pertains only to Terminal 3. Overall unimpressed especially considering it is only 3 years old. Enormous (takes at least 30 mins to walk end-to-end) overcrowded stuffy and a severe lack of toilets. I had to queue to use the men's toilets which is almost unheard of anywhere. Showers were entirely useless as they didn't provide towels soap or shampoo. It seems when they designed this place it was meant to be a shopping mall first and an airport second. One plus is the duty free has some of the best liquor prices I've seen.

I have been through Dubai Terminal 2 twice and both times have been awful. Staff are rude the Charterbus took 1 hr each time I have been there one of my transits was 8 hrs and I was forced not to smoke because the smoking areas were closed for maintenance. Conclusion my first flight via Dubai was a trial the second I was forced because I didn't have a different way to reach Yerevan from Jordan and I promised myself there will not be a 3rd time.

Arriving around 4.30 am in transfer from BKK to AMS I found DXB a decent airport for its size. There is quite some walking to be done including a security check but that is common at any large airport. The airport gets quite busy around this time as many flights arrive and departing around 7.00 am again. During these hours the airport begins to look like an overcrowded shopping mall. The Emirates Business Class lounge is quite good. Lots of space plenty of places to rest eat or drink. This lounge gets a bit crowded but it is acceptable. I wonder what DXB will look like when the expansion of Emirates will continue but for now it's a good and convenient alternative to direct flights from Europe to the Far East.

Have been through this airport 5 times. None of the times the free wifi worked. Bus arrivals can easily take 15 mins to reach the gate. The airport isn't very well thought through lots of walking too crowded and redundant security checks. Most staff are simply rude. Most "open" smoking areas are closed for maintenance and the few open are awful. It's clean and luxurious but in many ways far below standard.

Transit on T3. Airport was overcrowded and busy. Connection between flights was easy and smooth although there was no place to unwind (apart from lounges) to relax. Shops and eateries everywhere.

The airport is clean but improvements need to be made. On of my arrival we were bussed to the airport which I found strange as we flew in on a B777. The terminal seems to be a big duty free but after 3 shops you've seen most items the airport has to offer. Both my flights from Dubai to Paris and Singapore via Colombo took off 1 hr late. For me the airport has been one of the less well organised I've been transiting in.

Dubai International Terminal 3 is pretty good. I was impressed with its cleanliness although the Size of the airport makes it difficult to find the boarding gates. Queuing time for Economy class passengers at check-in desks are not great. Staff do their job well and are very helpful although struggle to smile. The airport's Terminal 1 is large and congested but Terminal 3 lives up to the hype.

Have been through this place twice and - rather like Dubai itself - it doesn't even get close to living up to the hype. Main issue is completely inadequate seating to the extent you have to go and buy something from the fast food joints just so you can sit down somewhere. I saw people dead asleep across what seats there were lying under them or collapsed over piles of luggage. The toilet facilities are characterised by long queues plus many people pushing their way to the front. Once you actually get to a cubicle you generally find excrement and urine all over the floor - maybe they are scent-marking their territory? Having walked miles to the departure gate I had to deal with PA announcements that are extremely loud and almost incomprehensible: when they start calling the rows everyone gets up and barges through to the desk regardless of where they are sitting on the aircraft.