1

Hi,

Assuming your flight into Dubai is running on time, you should have no problem. Perhaps it will take around one hour to clear immigration and collect your baggage. Then it shouldn't take more than one hour to get to Sharjah airport by taxi. Actually it will probably take a lot less than that. The main flow of traffic is going from Sharjah to Dubai in the morning, and you will be going in the opposite direction.

You could take the Metro part of the way and then a taxi, but I don't think you would gain much by doing that. It's best if you take a taxi directly from Dubai airport.

I'm not sure which country you come from, but some nationalities get a visa on arrival in the UAE, while others need to get a visa in advance. You can see here for some more info: http://www.emirates.com/english/plan_book/essential_information/visa_passport_information/uae_visas.aspx

2

I have done this by cheap public transport though I think it will be tight. It was Metro from airport and then bus to Sharjah city centre and another bus to Sharjah airport.

3

First up, as Matt pointed out, which passport you hold? Make sure you will get a visa on arrival (or apply before hand) to come out of Dubai airport immigration. Expect you will be out in an hour (max at that time of your arrival). You have enough time to reach Sharjah well before 10 am. Just for your information, Sharjah has quite a dull aiport, not much to do there except wait for your flight. Suggest have a fresh up / breakfast at Dubai arrival before grabbing a cab to Shj airport.

4

Thanks all. I just checked and I can get visa on arrival. Provided that my flight to Dubai arrives on schedule, is it worth the trouble to consider taking a bus to Sharjah airport? (bus 111 Iast time I read?)

5

The real answer is that it depends on what value you assign to the hassle & stress of doing it the cheap and most complicated way.

Option A
Exit Dubai Airport, grab a coffee and breakfast in the main concourse, chill out, wander outside when you're refreshed, jump in a taxi and jump out at Sharjah Airport. Cost ~80 AED (22 USD).
Travel duration approx, 25 minutes.
Option B
Exit Dubai Airport in peak traffic time, go straight to the Metro station, sort out what ticket you need, and which platform you want, wait for metro, take metro for 2 stops, get off the metro, wander round trying to find the right bus stop for the Sharjah Airport bus, work out what ticket you need, wait for the bus (it runs once an hour, so you could be waiting for a while), lets be charitable and assume bus actually arrives when its meant to, take bus and jump off at Sharjah Airport. Cost ~15 AED (~4 USD). Travel duration anything between 1 hour - 2.5 hours, depending on the bus timetable. The unreliable timing means that you could arrive with an hour and a half in hand, and it all works like clockwork. Alternatively you could end up arriving at Sharjah with only the bare minimum check-in time in hand. Or, even worse, you could end up standing at a Rashidiyah bus stop for an hour and a half with no bus in sight, before panicking that you're going to miss your plane, and then jumping in a taxi, which you wont be able to find, because Sod's law says there wont be any around at that point.

My approach would be that my personal comfort is worth more than 16 USD to me, and I wouldnt consider it for a minute.
Especially not if the next flight is on Air Arabia and is therefore almost certainly not exchangable or refundable.
And even more especially if I've just got off a long-haul overnight flight and I'm already sleep deprived.

6

Thanks. I will just take a taxi. Enough to exchange USD50 at the airport?

7

Absolutely - that will more than cover it.