Flydubai is set to overhaul its presence on one of the Gulf’s busiest corridors, shifting all Dubai–Riyadh flights to King Khalid International Airport’s newly upgraded Terminal 5 from 25 February 2026. The move, which follows an operational bulletin issued on 13 February, positions the Dubai-based carrier at the heart of Riyadh’s airport modernisation drive and underscores how aviation upgrades are dovetailing with Saudi Arabia’s wider hospitality and tourism boom.
Flydubai’s Big Move on the Dubai–Riyadh Route
From 25 February, Flydubai’s services between Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Riyadh will relocate from the older Terminal 3 to the newer, more technologically advanced Terminal 5 at King Khalid International Airport (RUH). Flights FZ 843 and FZ 844 are scheduled to be the last rotations using Terminal 3 earlier that day, while FZ 849 and FZ 850 are due to inaugurate the new operation out of Terminal 5.
The Dubai–Riyadh sector is one of the most heavily trafficked routes in the region, serving business travellers, government delegations, religious visitors and leisure tourists alike. For Flydubai, consolidating operations at a purpose-built, high-capacity terminal is both a commercial and operational statement: the carrier is locking in room to grow seat capacity, tighten turnaround times and sustain competitiveness against Saudi low-cost rivals on this strategic city pair.
For travellers, the change will be visible from the curbside in Riyadh. Check-in desks, security lanes, departure gates and baggage belts will all shift to a different terminal footprint, altering everything from airport wayfinding to where chauffeurs wait and where travellers meet colleagues on arrival. The airline is already urging customers to double-check their departure and arrival terminal details before travel around the switchover date.
Inside Riyadh’s High-Tech Terminal 5
Terminal 5 at King Khalid International Airport is the newest passenger facility at RUH and has been designed to handle up to 12 million passengers a year. Opened originally for domestic flights, it has been progressively upgraded into a high-spec terminal, featuring biometric e-gates, some 30 self-service kiosks and a layout optimised for quick processing of narrow-body aircraft – the workhorses of regional routes like Dubai–Riyadh.
The terminal’s architecture favours short walking distances and clear sight lines, with check-in, security and boarding areas arranged to reduce bottlenecks during peak evening and early-morning banks. For Flydubai and its passengers, that translates into reduced queuing times, faster boarding and improved on-time performance, particularly during Riyadh’s busy departure waves.
Behind the scenes, Terminal 5 is also designed for higher gate flexibility. It can handle up to 16 narrow-body or eight wide-body aircraft simultaneously, giving Flydubai access to additional stands during peak periods. For passengers, the tangible impact will be fewer bus-boarding operations and more flights using airbridges, an upgrade in comfort that also shortens the time from aircraft door to curb.
The terminal is operated by an international airport management company under a private concession model, part of a broader trend in Saudi Arabia to bring in global expertise to raise service standards. This often results in more responsive customer service, tighter performance metrics and, over time, new retail and dining brands that match expectations of international travellers.
What the Terminal Switch Means for Everyday Travellers
For passengers who have flown the Dubai–Riyadh route for years, the operational change will require some new habits. Travellers accustomed to arriving at Terminal 3 in Riyadh will now need to plan their journeys to Terminal 5 instead, factoring in different access roads, parking areas and pick-up points for taxis and ride-hailing services. Corporate travel managers are being advised to update itineraries, traveller tracking tools and airport transfer instructions to avoid confusion in the final days of February.
Inside the airport, the main difference will be processing speed and ambience. The addition of biometric e-gates is expected to accelerate passport control for eligible travellers, while the expanded array of self-service kiosks should ease pressure on traditional check-in counters. For frequent flyers on tight schedules, the potential reduction in time spent queuing at security and border control could make early-morning and late-evening departures more attractive.
Passengers with reduced mobility are likely to benefit from Terminal 5’s more compact design and improved vertical circulation, with escalators, elevators and walkways configured to shorten routes between check-in, security and gates. However, the transition may also bring some short-term challenges. Airline and airport staff will be settling into new routines and systems, and some facilities, such as partner lounges, may take time to open or expand at the new location.
Flydubai is advising passengers to arrive a little earlier during the first weeks of operation at Terminal 5 and to pay close attention to pre-flight communications via email, app notifications and digital boarding passes, where the new terminal designation will be clearly indicated.
Business Travellers, Connections and the Corporate Market
The Dubai–Riyadh corridor is a lifeline for executives, consultants and project teams shuttling between boardrooms, construction sites and government offices in both capitals. For this demographic, the move to Terminal 5 is as much about reliability and connectivity as it is about aesthetics. Faster processing can translate directly into shorter door-to-door journey times, enabling same-day trips with tighter schedules.
Terminal 5’s design supports smoother connections to domestic Saudi routes operated by national carriers based in the same or adjacent facilities. While Flydubai’s core connecting hub remains in Dubai, the Riyadh terminal upgrade should simplify itineraries for passengers linking a Dubai flight with onward domestic services within Saudi Arabia, particularly once interline and baggage agreements are optimised around the new set-up.
Corporate travel departments may also see operational benefits. With more predictable processing times and a higher standard of facilities, companies can better plan meeting start times and ground transfers, reducing slack time built into itineraries. Some firms are already reviewing their duty-of-care systems to ensure terminal data is up to date, so traveller tracking tools correctly reflect the new arrival and departure points in Riyadh.
Cargo buyers and logistics planners using Flydubai’s belly-hold capacity on the route will also need to note new drop-off and collection arrangements at Terminal 5. While freight volumes on narrow-body regional flights are smaller than on wide-body long-haul services, the shift still has implications for time-sensitive shipments and just-in-time supply chains serving projects around Riyadh.
Riyadh’s Airport Overhaul and Vision 2030 in the Skies
The relocation of a high-profile international route like Dubai–Riyadh into Terminal 5 is emblematic of a much wider aviation transformation underway in the Saudi capital. King Khalid International Airport is in the midst of a staged modernisation that has seen terminals refurbished, capacity expanded and operations reshaped ahead of future mega-projects, including the planned King Salman International Airport.
Saudi policymakers view aviation as a cornerstone of Vision 2030, the national strategy aimed at diversifying the economy away from hydrocarbons and building up sectors such as tourism, entertainment, sports and technology. The country has set an ambitious target of accommodating hundreds of millions of passengers annually by the end of the decade, with Riyadh positioned as both a gateway and a global hub.
At a practical level, that means redesigning terminals to international standards, investing in smart airport technologies, and creating a more competitive environment for airlines and ground handlers. Terminal 5’s emphasis on automation and self-service reflects this shift, with biometric control points, digital wayfinding and data-driven operations intended to lift throughput while improving the passenger experience.
Flydubai’s move fits neatly within this narrative. By anchoring its operations at a modern, high-capacity terminal, the carrier is both responding to and enabling Saudi Arabia’s aviation ambitions. As more international carriers evaluate their footprint in Riyadh, Terminal 5’s evolving airline mix will be closely watched as a barometer of the city’s rising status on global air traffic maps.
Saudi Arabia’s Hospitality Boom: From Transit Hub to Destination
The upgrade of Riyadh’s terminals is not happening in isolation. It is directly connected to Saudi Arabia’s broader hospitality surge, which has accelerated since the launch of Vision 2030. The Kingdom has rapidly expanded its hotel inventory, with hundreds of thousands of rooms in operation and tens of thousands more in the development pipeline spread across Riyadh, Jeddah, the Red Sea coast and heritage destinations like AlUla.
Industry analyses show Saudi Arabia leading hotel development across the Middle East and North Africa by project count and room numbers, with a strong bias towards upscale and luxury categories. International brands are aggressively expanding, often in partnership with local developers, while the serviced apartment segment is booming on the back of long-stay corporate demand generated by construction, infrastructure and mega-project workforces.
For travellers passing through Flydubai’s new Riyadh gateway, this hospitality build-out is increasingly evident. New business hotels are rising in the financial district and government quarter, lifestyle properties are emerging to cater to a younger leisure audience, and branded residences and extended-stay products are targeting consultants and expatriates who may remain in the capital for weeks or months at a time.
The airport experience and the city’s hotel offering are mutually reinforcing. A smoother, more premium arrival into Terminal 5 sets expectations that are then met by higher service standards at hotels, more international dining options and modern transport links, particularly as Riyadh continues to expand its road and rail infrastructure around the airport-to-city axis.
Tourism, E-Visas and New Passenger Profiles
The shift of Flydubai’s operations to Terminal 5 also intersects with Saudi Arabia’s efforts to attract more international visitors through liberalised visa policies and new tourism products. The Saudi e-visa and visa-on-arrival schemes now cover citizens of dozens of countries, simplifying access for tourists attending entertainment events, sports fixtures, conferences and religious tourism beyond the traditional Hajj and Umrah flows.
As visitor numbers rise, terminals like T5 increasingly serve a more diverse mix of passengers: first-time tourists combining Riyadh with coastal or heritage destinations, regional weekend travellers from the Gulf, and a growing cohort of digital nomads and remote workers exploring newly opened parts of the Kingdom. Their expectations for airport and hospitality infrastructure are set by experiences in other global hubs, putting a premium on efficiency, cleanliness, dining variety and digital connectivity.
Airlines such as Flydubai, with their large regional networks and relatively young fleets, play a pivotal role in channelling this traffic. By pairing a modern terminal experience in Riyadh with high frequencies from Dubai and beyond, the carrier becomes a key connector in itineraries that might also include leisure stops in the UAE or onward travel to Asia, Europe or Africa.
The economic implications are significant. Higher inbound volumes feed occupancy at Riyadh’s expanding hotel stock, support jobs in hospitality and ground handling, and generate demand for ancillary services ranging from airport retail to tour operations. In this sense, the terminal shift is not just an aviation story but a tourism development story as well.
Practical Tips for Passengers Ahead of the Switchover
With the terminal changeover date approaching, travellers on the Dubai–Riyadh route should take a few practical steps to ensure a smooth journey. Anyone booked on Flydubai services around 25 February should reconfirm their flight details, paying particular attention to the terminal number indicated on their itinerary and boarding pass. Arriving at the wrong terminal can still be rectified, but it may erode the time savings that the new facility is designed to deliver.
Passengers using pre-arranged transport or meeting drivers at the airport should clearly specify Terminal 5 in instructions and ride-hailing apps. Business travellers coordinating with colleagues in Riyadh may wish to adjust customary meeting points, as signage and traffic flows differ between terminals and some older local references may still default to Terminal 3 out of habit.
Given the likelihood of early teething issues at any new or reconfigured operation, allowing a modest buffer in arrival times is sensible, particularly during the first weeks of the transition. Passengers should also monitor communications from Flydubai, which is expected to issue reminders and updates across email, SMS and mobile app channels as the date approaches.
For many travellers, however, the short-term need to adjust routines will be outweighed by the longer-term benefits: a more spacious, technology-enabled terminal, quicker processing, and a gateway that reflects Riyadh’s aspirations as a rising global city. As Flydubai takes up residence in Terminal 5, the Dubai–Riyadh shuttle is poised to become not just more convenient but also a more polished showcase of the Gulf’s fast-evolving travel and hospitality landscape.