Dubai World Trade Centre: parking, Metro, drop-off points and event-day traffic

Where is Dubai World Trade Centre, and which halls does it have?

Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) sits on Sheikh Zayed Road in Trade Centre 2, about 5 km from Downtown Dubai. Cars reach it directly from Sheikh Zayed Road. The campus is a run of linked halls and concourses, and each group of halls has its own nearest car park.

Halls	Nearest car park, per DWTC’s visitor FAQ
Halls 1 to 4, Trade Centre Arena, Sheikh Saeed Halls 1 to 3 (Concourse 1)	Sheikh Rashid Tower
Sheikh Maktoum Hall, Sheikh Rashid Hall, Halls 5 to 8	Exhibition Street and Exhibition Plaza
Za’abeel Concourses 1 and 2	Zabeel Plaza and Al Mustaqbal Street

Two entrances are named on organiser pages: the Convention Gate, beside the Novotel, and the Za’abeel Hall entrance. Find your hall on the show’s floor plan before you choose a car park, a taxi drop-off or a Metro exit.

How do you get to DWTC by Metro?

DWTC has its own station: World Trade Centre, on the Red Line. The Big 5 Global organiser puts the halls 2 minutes from the platform. From Dubai International Airport, the GITEX organiser gives about 20 minutes by Metro.

• Pay with a Nol card, sold at every station, including the one at DWTC.
• Drive part of the way. RTA suggests Park and Ride at National Paints, Centrepoint or e& stations, or the Al Kifaf multi-storey car park by Max station. Then take the Red Line to World Trade Centre.
• By bus, routes 27 and 29 stop outside the Novotel, next to the Convention Gate.

How much is parking at DWTC during an event?

There are two separate systems, and they charge differently.

DWTC’s own car parks. DWTC lists 7,530 spaces in six paid car parks and two free ones, with EV charging bays. The covered car parks are at Exhibition Street, Exhibition Plaza, Sheikh Rashid Tower, The Offices 1, One Central and Al Mustaqbal Street. Free spaces sit opposite the Convention Tower. DWTC publishes its car park rates on a parking map rather than on the page, so check it before show day.

Parkin’s public bays around the venue. Under the variable tariff introduced on 4 April 2025, Parkin charges AED 25 an hour from 8 am to 10 pm on about 200 public spaces immediately around DWTC. That rate applies only during listed grand events. Gulf News reported the bays as Major Events Parking, Code X. The 2025 list named GITEX, Beautyworld Middle East, Gulfood Manufacturing, The Big 5 and Automechanika.

Valet runs only for certain events, so it appears on some show pages and not others. For EV charging, bicycles and disabled bays, DWTC’s FAQ points to Al Mustaqbal Street parking, which links directly to the halls.

Where do taxis and private cars drop off and pick up?

Who	Drop-off	Pick-up
Dubai Taxi	Opposite the Ibis Hotel, or in front of the Za’abeel Hall entrance	Opposite the Ibis Hotel
Careem and Uber	Points throughout the venue	Points throughout the venue
Chauffeur car	The entrance nearest your hall	The point you agree with your driver

Dubai Taxi takes bookings on 04 208 0808. With a chauffeur, the car sets you down at the entrance for your hall and does not wait on the kerb. Message your driver on WhatsApp when you leave the hall, and the car comes back to the agreed point. On a long show day, a car with driver by the hour keeps the same car and driver close by between visits.

When is traffic around DWTC worst?

The RTA has warned of congestion around DWTC from 8 am to 12 pm and 4 pm to 8 pm during major events. Show hours line up with both windows. Big 5 Global 2026, for example, opens at 10 am and closes at 6 pm on most days.

• Morning: arriving between 8 am and 12 pm means joining show traffic on the approach roads. A set-down at the entrance saves the time spent looking for a bay.
• Evening: the halls close inside the 4 pm to 8 pm window, so most visitors leave at the same time. Agree your pickup point and time with your driver before you go in.

Drive times to DWTC from the airports and nearby cities

Road distances and drive times without traffic come from OSRM routing on OpenStreetMap.

From	Road distance	Without traffic
Downtown Dubai	about 5 km	about 8 minutes
DXB Terminal 3	about 15 km	about 18 minutes
DXB Terminal 1	about 16 km	about 26 minutes
Sharjah city centre	about 23 km	about 25 minutes
Dubai Marina	about 24 km	about 23 minutes
Palm Jumeirah	about 24 km	about 23 minutes
Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo City	about 40 km	about 37 minutes
Al Maktoum International (DWC)	about 55 km	about 54 minutes
Zayed International (AUH)	about 118 km	about 1 hour 20 minutes
Abu Dhabi city centre	about 142 km	about 1 hour 30 minutes

Tolls depend on the road your driver takes, and our Salik toll guide explains how they are charged. For airport arrivals, your chauffeur meets you in the arrivals hall with your name on a board, as on our DXB pickup page.

Which shows are held at DWTC?

Show	Next dates	What is at DWTC
Big 5 Global	23 to 26 November 2026	The whole show. Visitors under 21 are not admitted.
GITEX Summit	7 December 2026	The Summit day only. The GITEX Expo is at Expo City.
WHX Dubai	25 to 28 January 2027	The Labs zone and some specialist areas. The main show is at Expo City.
Gulfood	15 to 19 March 2027	Part of the show, shared with the Dubai Exhibition Centre.
Arabian Travel Market	3 to 6 May 2027	The whole show.

Two shows have left. The GITEX Expo moved to Expo City from 2026, and Automechanika Dubai followed for 10 to 12 November 2026 after 22 editions at DWTC. Their halls are covered in our Expo City Dubai parking guide and the GITEX Global visitor guide.

Each DWTC show has its own chauffeur page: Big 5 Global, WHX Dubai, Gulfood and Arabian Travel Market. Every other date of the season is in the Dubai and UAE events calendar.

Coach drop-off and holding areas for organisers

DWTC does not publish a coach set-down or holding area on its public visitor pages. Organisers and stand teams arrange coach access with DWTC directly, on 800 DWTC (3982).

For a delegation, Assure runs 13 and 19 seat Mercedes-Benz Sprinters from its own fleet. For bigger groups, 35-seat and 50-seat coaches come through our partner network, subject to availability.

Tips for a show day at DWTC

1. Match the car park to your hall using the table above. The car parks are spread around the campus, so the nearest one saves a long walk.
2. Watch for Major Events Parking signs on the street bays around DWTC on show days.
3. Under 21? Big 5 Global will not admit you.
4. Need step-free access? DWTC’s POD map shows the accessible entrances.
5. Two shows in one week? DWTC to Expo City is about 40 km by road, around 37 minutes without traffic, and both have Red Line stations.