Dublin Airport is located approximately 8.5km north of Dublin City Centre. It comprises of 2 terminals, T1 and T2. Originally opened in 1940, T1 was built in the 1970's and T2 in 2010. It currently serves approximately 22m passengers per year.

US Pre-Clearance
One of the great benefits of travelling from Dublin is US Preclearance. This essentially means that you do US Immigration & Customs in Dublin Airport before you even get on the plane. On arrival in the US you will disembark as a domestic passenger, collect your luggage and leave. It really is as simple as that. There are a few things to note:

Your first landing MUST be in the US. You will NOT get to pre-clear if you fly DUB-LHR-MCO for example.
The plane MUST be originating from Dublin, if it's on a stop on the way from gulf for instance, and you join the flight in Dublin, again you will NOT pre-clear
You still MUST do your ESTA
You still fill in the Customs Declaration Form
Dublin Airport website has a lot of information, including a video, here

Once you have cleared the standard Airport Security, you will arrive in The Loop. This is the airport shopping & restaurant area. There are numerous shops, bars and food outlets to keep you occupied. You can also pre-purchase on-line and collect prior to departure.

All US bound flights leave from gates 401-406. This area is only accessible once you have passed through USCBP. Please be aware there is very little here once you have cleared US immigration, just a few small shops/cafes (see Lounges below also). You are also limited on the food that can be brought through. There is a list here


NB Gates 401-406 and 407-426 are in the same wing, just different levels.

NB Gates 101-113 is a 8-10 min walk to immigration depending on your walking speed


Flights (as of Aug 2018)
Aer Lingus are the only ones who do a direct flight to MCO from Dublin. They fly at 3:00pm on Mon, Tue, Thu and Sat (Winter schedule usually drops the Mon flight). It does mean you get in late evening (7:45pm) but the return is also late (9:35pm) so you get some good time on departure day.

AA, Delta and United also fly regularly from Dublin. They all go to their main hubs, Philly, Atlanta and Chicago respectively, plus the likes of NY. They are earlier departures (10:00 to 12:00) so although flying indirect you'll probably end up in MCO at the same time. AA also fly to Charlotte (9:50am) which would be a pretty short hop (1h 30m) onward to MCO, regular flights too. Might be another option.

To	Airline	Flight No.	Time	Days
Los Angeles	Aer Lingus	ET504	07:30	Tu,We,Fr,Su
New York	American Airlines	AA291	08:50
Newark	United Airlines	UA022	09:20
Charlotte	American Airlines	AA725	09:50
Chicago	American Airlines	AA209	09:55
Boston	Delta Air Lines	DL155	10:25
New York	Aer Lingus	EI105	10:50
Atlanta	Delta Air Lines	DL177	11:00
Philadelphia	American Airlines	AA723	11:20
New York	Delta Air Lines	DL045	11:25
Chicago	Aer Lingus	EI123	11:30
Boston	Aer Lingus	EI137	11:35
Chicago	United Airlines	UA153	12:25
Washington	Aer Lingus	EI119	12:30
San Francisco	Aer Lingus	EI147	12:30
Washington	United Airlines	UA127	12:55
Newark	Aer Lingus	EI101	13:00
Philadelphia	Aer Lingus	EI115	13:40
Hartford	Aer Lingus	EI131	14:20
Los Angeles	Aer Lingus	EI145	15:00
Orlando	Aer Lingus	EI121	15:00	Mo,Tu,Th,Sa
Miami	Aer Lingus	WI141	15:00	We,Fr,Su
Seattle	Aer Lingus	EI143	15:50	Mo,We,Fr,Su
Chicago	Aer Lingus	EI125	15:50
New York	Aer Lingus	EI109	16:10
Boston	Aer Lingus	EI139	16:20

Lounges (Prices as of Apr 2018)
There are 2 lounges in T2. One, 51st & Green is AFTER US pre clearance and is €35(pre booked)/€39(at reception) pp. Details here.

The other is before the 400 gates and is €25(pre booked)/€29(at reception) pp. Details here. N.B. ensure you leave enough time to get through USCBP!


Transiting

If you are transiting through Dublin airport on a single ticket your luggage will be checked through to your final destination. At US preclearance you will be shown them on the screen and asked to confirm that they are yours. All single ticketed travel currently only goes through T2. For those landing in T1 you have to collect your luggage, come out through customs, walk to the other terminal and checkin/bagdrop. The walkway between the 2 terminals is located at the departures level.

I have learned recently that there is shortcut walkway from T1 to T2. If you go to baggage collection belt 1 in T1 there is a door and stairs which brings you into a backway for T1 security check in. Go through here and head left, you'll get to a walkway to T2. I have not manager to verify this as yet

Once you are past security you can walk from T1 to T2 and back no problem. Easiest is to follow the signs for the gates, 400+ is T2 all the rest are T1

For transiting from a flight landing in T1, personally I would want at least 2.5hrs between flights to feel comfortable.

Information from DAA (Dublin Airport Authority) here. More detailed information here

DUBHUB APP also available (I've never used this)

Below is a map of the T2 gates layout. Gates are organised over 2 floors. The top floor, gates 407-426 service all destinations other than the US. The bottom floor, gates 401-406 are for US destinations only. from back to front it's approx. 400m.



And here is a handy guide to transiting

Smoking past security
For all the smokers there is one smoking area past security, but it is in T1. If you're leaving from T2 it's a good 10-15min walk. The area is behind The Garden Terrace Bar, which is upstairs near the Burger King

Getting to and from the Airport

• By Car
  Dublin Airport is served by the M1 Motorway and is just minutes from the M50 (Dublin Orbital Motorway). Whist both are motorways, it should be noted that traffic, particularly on the M50, can be extremely heavy at times.
• Public Transport
  Dublin Airport is well served by both City and National bus services. There are express services to the City Centre and outlying areas in addition to the standard city bus service. A full updated list can be found on the Dublin Airport website.
• Rail
  Unfortunately no rail link currently exists, though there are plans to extend the LUAS (Dublin light rail) to the Airport in future.
• Taxis
  Taxi ranks exist at both terminals and generally taxis are plentiful. The fare to the City Centre should be in the region of €22-€30 depending on traffic and destination.

Parking
Short term parking is available at both terminals. These are run by the Dublin Airport Authority. There are 4 short term car parks in total:

• Car Park C is closest to T1
• Car Park A and the T2 Surface Car park are suitable for both terminals
• T2 Short term car park is closest to T2

Full details on the short term car parks, including GPS co-ordinates and height restrictions can be found here

Long term parking is supplied by the DAA and also by a private company Quick Park. All have regular shuttle buses to and from both terminals. Transfer time can be from 5m to 15m depending on the park. Recommendations would be to allow at least 45m from car park arrival time to desired arrival at check in area in the Airport.

Car Rental
Herts, Avis, Budget, EuroCar & Dooley have presence in both terminals. T1 also has desks for Enterprise and Sixt.
N.B. T1 rentals desks are in the arrivals hall, T2 desks are in the Multi-storey car park.

Airlines
Terminal 1

• Adria Airways
• Air Baltic
• Air Canada
• Air France
• Air Transat
• Blue Air
• British Airways
• Cityjet
• Ethiopian Airlines
• FinnAir
• Flybe
• German Wings
• Iberia Express
• Lufthansa
• Luxair
• Norwegian
• Ryanair
• Sas
• Swiss
• Turkish Airlines
• Westjet
• Wow Airlines

Terminal 2

• Aer Lingus
• American Airlines
• Delta Air Lines
• Emirates
• Etihad Airways
• United Airlines

Hotels Nearby
There are 2 hotels actually on/in the Airport

• Maldron Hotel Walk or free shuttle
• Radisson Blu Hotel Walk or free shuttle

Other nearby include

• Carlton Hotel Free shuttle every 1/2hr 24/7
• Holiday Inn Express Free shuttle every 1/2hr 24/7
• Metro Hotel Free shuttle every 1/2hr 4:00am to 11:30pm, ring outside those hours
• Travelodge Dublin Airport South Conflicting information on website, please check with them directly
• Hitlon Dublin Airport Free shuttle bus
• Glenmore House B&B, not hotel. Bus every 30m, €2 per adult, children free
• Premier Inn Dublin Airport
• Travelodge Dublin Airport North No shuttle service, No. 41 Dublin Bus
• Dublin Airport Manor
• Forty Four Main Street
• Carnigie Court Hotel

Also available Guidebook page on Aer Lingus