Dubai and Abu Dhabi flights are still landing normally, but the US and UK are giving very different advice about going there right now

Yes, flights to Dubai and Abu Dhabi are operating normally right now, but the US and UK governments are giving noticeably different advice about going there at all. The US State Department currently rates the United Arab Emirates a Level 3 ‘Reconsider Travel’ risk, its most recent update dated 29 August, over the threat of armed conflict and terrorism tied to the wider Iran-Israel-Gulf standoff. The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, by contrast, stops short of advising against travel to the UAE altogether — its most recent update, 24 July, tells British nationals to ‘stay alert’ rather than reconsider the trip. Both governments agree on the same underlying risk: since 8 July there have been strikes and retaliatory attacks by Iran at locations across the region, and further escalation, including sudden airspace disruption, remains possible.

Is it actually safe to fly to Dubai or Abu Dhabi right now

For a tourist walking around Dubai Marina or Abu Dhabi’s Corniche today, yes — neither government is describing a street-level danger inside the cities themselves. The risk both flag is different: that a new strike or intercept elsewhere in the region triggers rapid, short-notice airspace restrictions, flight diversions or route suspensions by international carriers, the way it did earlier this year. DXB, DWC and AUH are all functioning normally with no citywide closure or blanket flight suspension in effect as of today, but conditions have changed quickly before in 2026 and both governments say they can change quickly again.

What the US is telling its citizens

The State Department’s Level 3 rating sits one step below its highest warning and tells Americans to reconsider travel because of the threat of armed conflict and terrorism. It traces back to the hostilities that broke out between the US and Iran on 28 February, after which the Iranian government publicly stated an intention to target US-associated locations inside the UAE, and the State Department briefly ordered non-emergency government staff and their families to leave the country. The US Embassy in Abu Dhabi has kept issuing periodic security alerts through the year as the situation shifts, most recently on 19 September.

What the UK is telling its citizens, and why it is a different call

The FCDO actually had the UAE at its own ‘advise against all but essential travel’ setting from late February through May this year, during the worst of the direct US-Iran exchange — then lifted it. Today’s guidance is calmer in tone: stay alert, sign up for FCDO email updates, keep your departure plans under review, and if local authorities ever tell you to shelter, get indoors and away from windows, since the FCDO’s own advice is that ‘the greatest risk is from falling debris caused by intercepts’, not a direct strike on a tourist area. That the UK’s advice is now lighter than the US Level 3 rating is not a contradiction — the two governments simply weigh the same facts differently, and it is worth checking both if you hold more than one passport or are travelling with someone who does.

What changes for your trip if tensions spike again

If the situation escalates, the practical impact for a tourist is airspace and schedule disruption, not street danger — expect the possibility of your inbound or onward flight being delayed, rerouted around closed airspace, or in the worst case grounded for a window of hours, as happened to multiple carriers earlier this year. Build slack into any onward connection through Dubai or Abu Dhabi this autumn rather than a tight same-day transfer. On insurance: most standard UK travel insurance policies are voided the moment the FCDO advises against travel to your specific destination, and since the FCDO is not currently doing that for the UAE, an existing policy should still hold — but check your policy’s separate war and terrorism exclusion clause, which many carriers apply regardless of what the government is saying that week.

Are Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports open right now?

Yes. DXB, DWC and AUH are all operating normally with no system-wide closure in force, though both the US and UK warn that could change quickly if the regional conflict escalates.

Should I cancel my trip to the UAE?

Neither government is telling tourists to cancel outright. The US rates the UAE Level 3 ‘reconsider travel’; the UK stops at ‘stay alert’. Check your own government’s current page before you fly, since advice has moved quickly in both directions this year.

Will my travel insurance still cover me?

Most UK policies are voided only once the FCDO actively advises against travel to a destination, which it is not currently doing for the UAE — but check your policy’s war and terrorism exclusion separately, since many apply regardless of government advice.

Cover photo: Galina Kolonitskaia via Pexels (Pexels License). Section photos: Dreamer Dude via Pexels (Pexels licence); Denys Gromov via Pexels (Pexels licence); DΛVΞ GΛRCIΛ via Pexels (Pexels licence); Drinu Cutajar via Pexels (Pexels licence); Yender Fonseca via Pexels (Pexels licence).