Ground handling checklist for overseas tour operators sending groups to the UAE

A group that lands in Dubai at 02:00 with 40 suitcases tests every promise made in the contract. This checklist is for overseas tour operators and the UAE handler they choose. Work through it before departure, and send the answers back in writing.

Before you sign: licences and insurance

• Ask who owns the vehicles and who employs the drivers. A handler that resells other people’s seats is a different risk from an operator.
• Ask which licences cover each service. Assure is RTA licensed in Dubai. A service that starts and ends in another emirate may need a licensed partner there, so ask for the position per route.
• Ask what insurance covers passengers and luggage, and request the certificate.
• Ask for a written scope: every transfer, tour, guide and extra, with times. See what a DMC does in Dubai if you are comparing handler types.

Arrivals: terminals, coach pickup and luggage

• Confirm the airport and terminal for each flight. Airlines use different terminals, and a group split across two flights may need two meeting points. Our group arrivals guide covers the layout.
• Dubai Airports says there is no pick-up area at arrivals and vehicles use the car park at each terminal. Agree one meeting point and a mobile number that works on landing.
• Count bags, not people, when you size the coach. A coach with all seats full may have no space for 40 cases.
• Add 60 to 90 minutes between landing and departure from the terminal for a large group: immigration, baggage claim and head-counts take longer than for one family.
• Keep a late-flight rule in the contract: the coach follows the real landing time, and waiting is charged only as agreed.

For individual or small-party arrivals, see airport transfers for each UAE airport.

Coaches, guides and languages

• Ask for the seat count and the luggage hold of each vehicle. Vans, minibuses and coaches are available through our partner network, subject to availability, so confirm the size you need early.
• In Dubai, tour guides are licensed by the Department of Economy and Tourism, and a guide must work for a tour company. Ask to see the licence badge.
• Name the language of the guide for each day. A group that needs two languages needs two guides, not one speaking fast.
• Decide who leads the group: your tour leader or the handler’s guide. Both is usual.

Attraction and venue rules

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

The mosque centre requires that tourist groups and private visits complete all booking procedures before the visit. A visit is not confirmed without prior booking. Tour operators must allocate at least one person to accompany their visitors, provide suitable attire and brief the group on entry rules in advance.

Women need clothing that is loose to the ankles, with sleeves to the wrists and full hair coverage. For men, clothing that covers the whole leg is preferred, and transparent, tight or sleeveless shirts should be avoided. Vehicles cannot be left at the mosque overnight between 23:00 and 4:00. The full visit plan is in our Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque visitor guide.

Burj Khalifa and Dubai Frame

We could not confirm group entry rules for these two from the official attraction sites. Ask the venue, or ask us to confirm the current rules for your date, before you promise a time slot to the group.

Cross-border add-ons: Musandam via Dibba or Khasab

Musandam is part of Oman, so a day trip leaves the UAE. The land ports at Dibba and Al Darah are listed separately in Royal Oman Police Decision 195/2022. Every traveller needs an original passport valid for at least 6 months, the right to enter Oman for their nationality and a UAE visa or residence that allows re-entry. Collect passport copies for the whole group early. The details are in our Musandam border and visa rules.

Payments, rooming lists and manifests

• Agree who pays what, and when, before the group travels. Terms are set per partner and written down.
• Send the manifest as one spreadsheet: passport names, nationality, flights, hotel, room and the leader’s mobile.
• Add dietary needs, wheelchair users and children’s ages. A hotel and a coach captain both need them.
• Version every change. A rooming list that exists in three copies causes a wrong hotel drop.
• If you resell under your own brand, read the white-label transfers guide.

On-trip communication

• One 24/7 number on WhatsApp and phone for the leader and guide. Assure answers it day and night.
• A group WhatsApp with the leader, guide and dispatcher, not the whole group.
• A daily check the evening before: pickup time, vehicle, lobby point.
• A fallback for missed flights or road closures, agreed in advance.

For incentive programmes with several days of moves, see the incentive trip transport guide.

Printable checklist

• Licences and insurance certificate received
• Written scope of transfers, tours and guides
• Terminal and meeting point per flight
• Coach seats and luggage hold match the bag count
• Guide licence badge and languages confirmed
• Mosque booking made and dress code sent to the group
• Passports checked for any Oman day trip
• Manifest and rooming list sent in one version
• 24/7 number given to the leader and guide
• Late-flight and no-show rules agreed

Ready to plan a programme? See travel trade partners, our private tours and the corporate ground transport guide.