The new $1 billion Concourse D will open at Dubai International next Wednesday.
The opening date was confirmed to Gulf News on Monday night by Sinead Al Sibai, the vice-president of marketing for Dubai Duty Free.
The opening of the new concourse at the world's busiest airport for international passengers will increase yearly capacity from 75 million passengers to 90 million and cater to over 70 international airlines.
"We are really excited. It's going to open 24th of February," Al Sibai told Gulf News.
Operator Dubai Airports also confirmed it is planning to open the new concourse next Wednesday.
"This is indeed the target date and we are just finalising all last minute preparations to insure the facilities are 100 per cent ready for opening day," a spokesperson told Gulf News by phone on Tuesday.
Concourse D, part of Terminal 1, is the last major project of Dubai Airports' $7.8 billion Strategic Plan 2020 expansion to increase annual capacity at Dubai International to 90 million passengers. The operator conducted a major test of the new concourse on February 6 with 2,000 residents from the UAE taking part in an operational trial.
More than 70 international airlines at present using Terminal 1's Concourse C will be moving over to the new concourse, with Emirates progressively taking over Concourse C, which will be simultaneously refurbished.
Passengers travelling with airlines flying through Terminal 1 will still enter and check-in at the same area they do today. However, they will take an overground driverless train to the new concourse. The process will be similar to how passengers get between Emirates Concourse A and B at Terminal 3.
Emirates passengers will also continue to check in from the airline's desks at Terminal 3 and from there will be able to proceed to Concourse C after immigration and security checks. Some passengers will already be familiar with this as Emirates have been using Concourse C gates for some time.
Concourse D will be different to the existing layout of the airport's facilities, featuring open check-in areas so that passengers can roam around the airport right up until boarding.
The bright and airy 65,000 square metre space was revealed to Gulf News in an exclusive preview on Monday. Light streams into the central atrium thanks to a glass ceiling, whilst the décor is modern but unobtrusive, in shades of light wood with touches of yellow and Dubai Airports' signature sky blue.
The layout aims to reduce the distance passengers have to walk from the entrance to the gate, passing through shopping and eating on the way. It's a change from the linear structures of the other concourses at the airport, which can entail walking long stretches at a time.
Perfumes and cosmetics are the first thing passengers will see once they disembark from the train, which takes them past the runway with spectacular views of taxiing aircraft.
Further shopping — including a fashion "boulevard", premium electronics, watches, jewellery, beverages and tobacco — as well as restaurants radiate out from a large seating area in the atrium. There is seating for 8,000 passengers, Dubai Airports says. The 21 gates providing direct access to aircraft are gathered just beyond; 11 gates on the floor below connect passengers to flights by bus.
Concourse D also features the first Pret A Manger in the UAE and the first casual restaurant ever by celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, five airline lounges, a large Marhaba lounge that is open to paying customers, and a web-shopping feature where passengers can buy duty-free items online and collect them in the concourse.
By Alexander Cornwell and Natalie Long
