Leaving Iraq, via Baghdad Airport

Procedures at Baghdad Airport are ever-changing but here’s roughly what to expect based on our most recent 2022 trip, taking transport modes used by ordinary Iraqis. [2023 updates can be found at the end]

If you’re departing in the early hours of the morning (a time many international flights leave), there should be little traffic on the roads but, if you have a daytime departure, Baghdad’s infamous traffic could delay you considerably. Therefore, we recommend ensuring you leave adequate time to reach the outer precinct of the airport - the Abu ibn Firnas roundabout, which we usually aim to reach a good three hours before our flight departure, because airport procedures can be protracted.

A taxi from the street to the airport should cost between IQD10,000 and 15,000 but expect to pay around IQD15,000. You should agree the fare before getting into the taxi. A friendly haggle, with smiles, should help get any initial quoted fare down a bit but, if you get a stubborn driver who won’t negotiate, we suggest trying another taxi.

We asked a part-time taxi driver we know to collect us from our hotel in downtown Baghdad and we paid him IQD25,000. He would have been very happy with IQD20,000 but we appreciated his punctuality and turning out at 4.30am, so we thought he deserved extra.

There was no traffic and we arrived at the Abu ibn Firnas roundabout in around 30 minutes. Our car was allowed to drive us to close to the bus and airport taxi terminal. From there, we took the airport minibus to departures, which costs IQD10,000. The bus departs only when it’s full and fares are usually collected just before the bus leaves. It’s pretty far so we don’t believe you can walk it!

What follows is a rough breakdown of the journey, from Abu ibn Firnas to boarding our plane:

First security check: the minibus stopped and passengers remained inside. A security guard checked everyone’s passports and tickets, with a verbal check of each person’s destination.

Second security check: the minibus stopped and everyone had to get out, leaving all bags inside the bus for a K9 sniffer dog check. Women are usually directed to a curtained off area for a pat-down by female security. [There was previously also a luggage scan at this point but not on this occasion.]

Third security check: When the minibus stopped at the airport departures, everyone disembarked with luggage for a K9 sniffer dog security check before entering the airport. All bags must be placed in a long thin line and passengers stand behind a poorly-fenced off area. Women may be asked to enter a curtained off area for a pat down. Security guide a sniffer dog up and down the line of bags and, once this is complete, passengers can reclaim their bags and proceed towards the airport.

Fourth security check: At the airport entrance, a security guard checked our tickets and passports while we were queuing for an airport luggage scan where, again, women may be directed to a curtained off area for a pat-down.

Fifth security check (three separate checks): Before we reached check-in there was another security check, which started with Covid-19 documentation being checked by personnel behind several white tables. This was a visual document inspection, where names were verbally double-checked. Then a security guard visually checked our passports and tickets and verbally asked for our destination. After passing him, there was another luggage scan, where women may be directed to a curtained box for a pat-down.

It was now time to check in for our flight, get shot of our hold luggage and proceed to passport control.

Passport control: There were only a couple of passport booths open and we queued with Iraqi passengers. In our experience, passport control personnel often study the entry stamp intently or fetch another officer to also check it. We think this is because western visitors are still fairly few and far between. Even if you had an early start and are feeling frustrated, we suggest trying to be patient and amenable.

Once you’re through passport control, you can enjoy the departures lounge which has only improved over the years we have been using it, with small new improvements noticeable on each journey. There are two cafes and a shop which sells a modest range of duty free, an ever-improving general stock and even some small touristy souvenirs.

There is usually an additional security check and luggage scan before you board your flight, so keep an eye on the departures board or listen out for announcements (which are generally in English and Arabic), as flight calls usually start early.

Final security check: When boarding is announced, don’t wait too long before proceeding to the gate as there is an additional and more comprehensive luggage scan, usually including footwear, (which should be removed but not placed in trays). Exact restrictions here may depend on your final destination but lighters are usually confiscated and sometimes food. Ladies are likely to be directed to a curtained box for a pat-down.

Note: Airport procedures can be variable and may not be exactly as depicted here. In 2021 and early 2022, procedures were rather more unwieldy and this may be the case when you travel, especially if there have been any recent security issues in Baghdad.

2023 update

We hailed a yellow taxi from the street to go to the airport, with kind help from hotel staff. The driver asked for a very reasonable (local) price of IQD10,000. However, when we reached the Abu ibn Firnas roundabout, he disgraced himself by saying it was $10 not IQD 10,000, probably because he thought we had no Arabic. We argued the point pleasantly but firmly and he acquiesced, but had no change. It was a decent rate as prices are normally closer to the IQD 15,000 mark, especially if you’re foreign.

This taxi driver was unfamiliar with airport processes and tried to drive in beyond the Abu ibn Firnas roundabout. We said nothing, to see what would happen, and he was stopped at the first checkpoint and sent back out to the roundabout. There were Iraqi military stationed on the roundabout and a soldier unnecessarily but charmingly walked us to the entrance and pointed towards the distant (unmarked) minibus area. It’s about a four-minute walk. There were some taxis at the entrance gate offering direct rides to the airport itself - which we had not previously seen - but we didn’t stop to ask about their prices.

The area around the minibus/taxi area had been somewhat developed since our last visit, with the little cafe there looking improved, at least from a distance.

However, the minibus terminal was more chaotic than usual, possibly because it was Ramadan. Without waiting for the bus to be full, the minibus driver took us and some African workers to the airport but issues (including that the workers had no money) meant there were some arguments and several odd and apparently unnecessary stops along the way. The security processes were roughly as above, but without the third security check.

For unclear reasons, the minibus did not stop outside the airport departures entrance but on the lower deck of the carpark opposite, from where minibuses collecting arrivals usually depart. This was a first and, we suspect, a one-off. We paid our usual IQD 10,000 fare but the workers did not. We walked up a dingy stairwell (which could be annoying with heavy luggage) and across the road to the departures entrance.

All the security checks were roughly as described above (luggage scans seemed a little less rigorous than before - lighters were not confiscated, for example), with an additional final passport check before we walked down to board the aeroplane.

In general, the previous - long-standing and exceedingly strict - systems seemed to have relaxed slightly, rendering Baghdad International Airport more like a normal airport than it was. However, Iraq tends to lack consistency, and no two experiences at this airport, in particular, have ever been identical.