Getting from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to the city

The prepaid counter is the answer

• The FCDO names theft including passport theft, harassment and overcharging of taxi fares at Dhaka airport specifically. Not Dhaka, the airport.
• The prepaid counter is inside the terminal, fixes the price by destination, takes payment and issues a receipt. Doing that before you walk outside removes the negotiation and the fare argument at the other end.
• Avoid touts offering to carry your bags. That single rule handles most of the approaches in the hall.
• The terminal itself is secure with a visible police and AVSEC presence. Outside, after dark, it is much less organised, and a pre-booked transfer is the right call for a first night arrival.

What the ride costs and how long it takes

• Late at night the same trip is 30 to 40 minutes. In rush hour it is 1.5 to 2.5 hours or worse. The number that varies is time, not distance.
• Uber and Pathao work here and quote upfront, which solves the price but not the pickup. The arrivals kerb is congested and matching a car to a plate takes patience.
• A CNG rickshaw is the cheap option and is not allowed on the airport expressway, so it detours. With a suitcase and Dhaka heat, that is a long ride.

Terminal 3, and why you will not be using it

• The airport's own pages are out of date on this. They describe Terminal 3 as under construction, due to finish in 2024, and expected to become operational in 2025.
• It was soft-opened in October 2023 and has not opened since. As of April 2026 it had been idle for about a year and a half while the civil aviation authority and a Japanese consortium argued over operation and maintenance, the embarkation fee, upfront payment and revenue sharing.
• The current stated target is 16 December or early in the new year. Treat any date as provisional.
• It is a 542,000 square metre building designed to add 12 to 16 million passengers and nearly 900,000 tonnes of cargo a year. When it does open, everything on this page about the arrivals layout changes.

The building you will actually use

• Terminals 1 and 2 are both international and share a single building. Arrivals exit on the ground floor concourse through canopy 1 and canopy 2; departures check in on the second floor.
• The domestic terminal is separate, single storey, to the left of the internationals, with arrivals and departures on the same floor. A domestic connection means walking outside.
• Foreign passport holders use the foreign counter at immigration, which is also where a visa on arrival is processed if you are taking that risk.
• Immigration counters run 24 hours.

The useful corner of the arrivals hall

• By the baggage belts: two help desks with free information, drinking water, free wifi, free telephone booths for emergency calls, and money exchange.
• Lost and found is at belt 1. Report a damaged or missing bag before you leave the building.
• In front of the green channel, by exit gates 1 and 2: car rental desks, banks for currency exchange, and a Bangladeshi SIM card shop. Three errands in one place.
• The Probashi Kallyan Desk, the expatriate welfare desk, is opposite immigration and helps returning workers with immigration, remittance, customs and transport questions.

Leaving

• The airport asks passengers to be at check-in at least four hours before departure.
• Security checks can be slow and air travel is frequently disrupted at short notice. Stay in touch with your airline.