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Iraq

Baghdad: how to get there and around

Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.

OverviewFlightsHotelsTrainsBusesCar rentalTours

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, 41 m (135 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Baghdad International Airport / New Al Muthana Air Base (BGW), 18 km (11 mi) from the centre. It has 1 railway station on record, including Baghdad railway station.

Key facts

Population7.2 million
Elevation41 m (135 ft)
Area673 km²
Time zoneAsia/Baghdad (UTC+3 now)
CurrencyDinar (IQD)
Dialling code+964
Driving sideRight
Plug typesAC power s and sockets: British and related types, BS 1363, Euro
UN/LOCODEIQBGW
People are calledBaghdadi
Coordinates33.341, 44.401
Baghdad

Open Baghdad in Google Maps

Daylight in Baghdad runs from about 9 h 59 min a day in late December to 14 h 25 min in late June (computed for 33.34° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.

Getting there

Baghdad is served by one airport with scheduled flights. The closest large one is Baghdad International Airport / New Al Muthana Air Base (BGW), 18 km (11 mi) from the centre, whose 13,124-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft.

Flights to Baghdad: every airport, routes and times

By rail: stations on record include Baghdad railway station. Trains to Baghdad

Buses to Baghdad · Driving and car hire

Nearby cities, and how to get between them

Twin towns and sister cities: Amman, Beirut, Cairo, Damascus, Sanaa, Tehran, Jeddah, Concord, Rabat, Pavlodar, Pyongyang, Dubai, Gaziantep.

Common questions

Which airport serves Baghdad?

Baghdad International Airport / New Al Muthana Air Base (BGW), 18 km (11 mi) from the centre.

How big is Baghdad?

About 7.2 million people live in Baghdad, across 673 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).

What time zone is Baghdad in?

Asia/Baghdad, currently UTC+3.

What currency is used in Baghdad?

The Dinar (IQD). Traffic drives on the right.

Which cities are near Baghdad?

Mosul (353 km), Erbil (319 km), Karbala (88 km), Sadr City (8 km), Kirkuk (237 km).

Where these facts come from

  • GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
  • Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
  • OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
  • Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines

Data compiled 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.