Damascus city center bus to International airport

Hello,

Is there still the airport shuttle bus from Baramke bus station (City centre) to the International airport?
I know the Baramke bus station is closed for normal service, so where is this bus located?
How much one way?
How long does it take to get there at around mid-afternoon (have a 8pm flight to India)?
Is there a booking office or just show up?
How often does it depart?

Thanks for the info.
Steve

Hi,

if all is as in mid-July, you can always catch the bus in Baramkeh. I was there when the Karaj has moved and the office was left on place. I have read some threads, recents, confirming that you always can take the bus here.

The bus office and stop was 150 m just in front on the entrance on Chari' Filastîn (the former part of the station for the microbuses), just in the corner in front of the entrance.

If you have some time during the day, go to Baramkeh and see by yourself or ask on place (the hotels will advice you to take a taxi...).

The Company is, since 2006, ETIHAD (brown new buses, with a jumping gazel as logo). The fare was 25 SP by person and 25 other for each "big" luggage. There is one bus every 30 minutes (on xxh00 and xxh30), at least since 06h00 am to 12h00 pm (midnight). The fare has maybe a little increased with the price of petrol. There is between 30 and 45 minutes between Baramkeh and the airport, depending og the traffic.

There is also another bus of the same company at Karaj Harasta (norhen bus station), going from there to the airport.

You need to be at the airport at least two hours before your flight. Don't forget to keep on you 200 SP for the departure tax. Take water in town (25 SP) instead in the airport (75 SP).

And, if you can post in return the up-to-date situation, it could be useful. Thanks!

There are several posts further down on this branch about the same subject.

Beware however : if you want to go downtown from the airport, definitely take the bus to Baramkeh, as Harasta is far away from the city, and there will a hord of taxi drivers attacking you when getting off the bus, and charging exaggerated fares to the city ( SYP 200 is what they ask, 100 is even too much, but avoid this by heading for Baramkeh from where you can walk to many of the most popular hotels - see further down ).

Hi, I've been following some threads and I'm still confussed about whether the Baramke bus station has closed or not. I'll be travelling to Damascus soon and have been checking out my old Lonely P. and the net. I know that there is probably no nightbus as I arrive at 03:20 am, so I'll have to take a taxi into town. Still I'll need to get back to the airport later so I'll need to know from where to take the bus. Also, is there an early bus to Palmyra from Damascus, is so at what hour?

Hi,

indeed, it's better to go to Baramkeh than to Harasta.

For those who need the information, there is a bus (a big, old and white bus, for 5 SP) between Harasta and the center of Damascus (which can drop you on Chari' ath Thawra, just before the bridge, five minutes from the hotels Al Haramain or Ar Rabie); this bus is waiting not far from the shuttle Harasta-Airport, on the part of the Karaj near the main road. The are also microbuses. Two years ago, I was able to bargain a taxi to Harasta at 50 SP, but it was hard !

If I've see this shuttle in Harasta going to airport, i have not seen a bus from the airport to Harasta ???

Last year, I understood that the shuttle Baramkeh - Harasta was going all the night, but I'm not sure that I and the office man have well understood each other (my arabic is not perfect...). It could be interesting to have confirmation of that from a traveller in Damascus. What I'm sure is that I've caught a bus at the airport, this summer, just after 5.30 am and we were in Baramkeh just after 6.00 am.

So, if landing at 3.20 am, there are just about two hours - two hours and a half waiting, in which the passage at the custom, luggage claiming and some change...

Thanks a lot.I'll take the bus to Baramke then and maybe a taxi to Harasta from there,so I can take the bus to Palmyra from Harasta the same morning. My Arabic is no-existant, I'm sure I'll manage with French and English somehow:)

Nice to learn that there are shuttles between Harasta and Baramke !
I took the airport bus to Baramke in September, and then was the only service using the once very busy, but now completely deserted, long distance bus station !

hi i took the airport bus from Baramke last week on my flight back. i took a service there to the station at night. when i got there it was all dark. but you have to walk all the way to the entrance of the station , where there is an office ope. there is a guy selling tickets. the price is 25 syrian lira. another 25 syrian lira for you bag. the bus leaves every hour or every half hour. mine left at 11pm. the tourist office said the last bus is at 11.30pm. so maybe the have 2 every hour. the journey is abt 40 minutes to 50 minutes. the sevice cost me less than 10 syrian lira from souq sarooja.

Hi everybody,
My nephew informed me that he got Damascus Airport Bus Shuttle from Baramka Sq. at 1H30 in the morning...that was mid July 2008...

Cheers