Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Dubai (DXB) to Istanbul (IST)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Dubai (DXB) to Istanbul (IST)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Dubai (DXB) to Istanbul (IST)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Dubai → Istanbul
A medium flight from United Arab Emirates to Türkiye. You gain 1 hour on arrival.
The city that rose from the desert
Dubai is a coastal city on the Persian Gulf that grew in a few decades into a dense spine of towers strung along a single highway. Most of what visitors come for sits near the water or that main road: the beaches, the malls, Dubai Creek, the old trading waterway, and the tallest building in the world. It is hot for much of the year and built around cars and taxis, though a driverless metro runs the length of the city. Distances look short on a map but stretch out in the heat.
Nearby airports
| 116 km / 72 mi |
Surrounding hubs
| 347 km / 216 mi | |
| 378 km / 235 mi | |
| 487 km / 303 mi |
The city on two continents
Istanbul straddles the Bosphorus, the only major city set on two continents, with most of its life on the European side and a fast-growing Asian side across the water. It is huge and hilly, layered with Byzantine and Ottoman history around the old core and dense modern districts running for miles. Ferries, trams, and metro lines tie it together, though traffic across the bridges can be heavy. Its two airports sit far apart on opposite sides of the city, so the one you use shapes the trip.
City access
Istanbul Airport is the large main hub, well to the northwest of the city on the European side. It connects by metro and airport buses, but it is a long way out, so allow a generous hour or more into the center depending on traffic. It sits far from the second airport, so the two are not easy substitutes.
Nearby airports
| 64 km / 40 mi |
Surrounding hubs
| 424 km / 263 mi | |
| 467 km / 290 mi | |
| 518 km / 322 mi |
Find out which side of the plane to sit on.
Pick your airports, set your departure time, and you're done.
We calculate the sun's position based on your flight path and departure time, then tell you which side of the plane gets direct sun and which stays shaded. No guessing, just math.
Enter your flight
Pick your departure and arrival airports and set your departure time at the departure airport. FlightSide estimates the duration and you can adjust it if you know the exact schedule.
We track the sun along your route
Your flight path is broken into hundreds of points. At each one we check where the sun is and which side of the plane it faces.
You get a recommendation
Which side of the plane to sit on, left or right, depending on whether you'd rather avoid the sun or enjoy it. The percentages and the map are there if you want to see why.
Want to go deeper? Accuracy, edge cases, polar routes — see the FAQ →
Notes from the product.
Small updates, route observations, and clearer explanations for how the app keeps evolving.
Over the top, and other ways to fly
FlightSide now has Explore, a map of popular flights grouped by the path they fly, and a Guide with step-by-step walkthroughs for checking, sharing and using FlightSide offline.
Type less, wait less, wonder more
Airport search now understands metro codes and old city names, FlightSide loads noticeably faster, and a new Feeling lucky button chooses a flight for anyone without one in mind.
A closer look at the route, not just the seat
FlightSide now shows the two cities and key details about the flight alongside the seat recommendation: confirm you picked the right airports, read the time change off two clocks, and check the return leg.