How to ride between Dubai and Abu Dhabi
All the most interesting tourist destinations in the UAE are located in the cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi (the capitals of the same names of the Emirates). And naturally, tourists want to see both cities in one trip. In this article we will talk about how faster, cheaper and more convenient to move between these cities.
Attention! Prices, schedule and other information in this article are relevant on February 4, 2021. At the moment, to get to Abu Dhabi from Dubai, you need to pass an additional test for coronavirus and pass the quarantine 10 days (it used to be 14 days), if you are in the UAE less than 10 days. All the details in the article on the link above.
Distance between Dubai and Abu Dhabi
The nominal distance between Abu Dhabi and Dubai is 150 kilometers. But this figure should not be taken seriously.
Abu Dhabi is a large city with a total area of 972 square kilometers, which is about 1.5 times less than St. Petersburg.
Dubai city has an area of about 1300 square kilometers, and it is very "stretched" along the coast.
As a result, a very interesting situation is obtained, the distance between cities centers is 150 kilometers, and the distance between the borders is only 46 kilometers. See the map nearby, click on the map to enlarge.
To the question: "Whether to go from Dubai to Abu Dhabi or back?" answer: "From 46 to 160 kilometers depending on specific departure and destination sites".
The distance between ABU Dhabi International Airport and Dubai International Airport – 137 kilometers away from ABU DHABI INTERNATIONAL. Naturally, aircraft do not fly to such a route, because they will not even have a height to dial.
Consider the most interesting and popular ways to get from Dubai to Abu Dhabi and back.
The first and fastest way – a taxi
Taxi in the UAE required to use the counter. The cost of the trip will depend on the distance. It happens that tourists come out for 170 dirhams, and it happens for 350. There are cases when taxi costs even cheaper than the bus.
Taxi tariffs for all Emirates, see our article "Taxi in the UAE". The actual course of Dirhama in the article "Money in the UAE" or use the Dirhama calculator.
Travel time – from 1 to 2 hours, time depends strongly on traffic jams.
Approximate ride prices from different areas of Dubai to different places Abu Dhabi, see the table below.
Attention! Prices are given to travel direct road. If the taxi driver goes an alternative route, then the price is obvious will be higher.
Attention! If you want to navigate at the price of a return trip (from Abu Dhabi to Dubai), then add to prices + 7%, since taxi tariffs in Abu Dhabi above.
| From Dirah district | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 250-270 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 270-290 |
| Embankment Kornish | 300-320 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 250-270 |
| From the territory of the Bur Dubai | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 235-255 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 260-280 |
| Embankment Kornish | 290-310 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 245-265 |
| From Dounting district | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 220-240 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 245-265 |
| Embankment Kornish | 280-300 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 230-250 |
| From Dubai Marina | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 185-205 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 210-230 |
| Embankment Kornish | 245-265 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 190-210 |
| From Dubai Airport | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 265-285 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 290-310 |
| Embankment Kornish | 320-340 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 270-290 |
You can save
You can minimize taxi costs, if you do a dub on the metro, thereby reducing the distance of the trip to Abu Dhabi. You need to get to the station Ibn Batutta (Ibn Batutta), and from here from the shopping center to catch a taxi.
| From IBN Batutta Mall | Rating price, Dirhamov |
| Island Yas | 175-195 |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 200-220 |
| Embankment Kornish | 235-255 |
| Abu Dhabi Airport | 180-200 |
Theoretically, there are 3 stations for more west (Energy, Danube and Uae Exchange), but they have a very difficult taxi from them, these stations are not so lively. Look at the metro scheme in our article "Dubai Metro".
If you are going from Abu Dhabi to Dubai, then take a taxi to the nearest UAE Exchange Metro Station, it will be cheaper than the whole.
Uber and Careem will help?
Uber will not help, since they have prices even higher than the official taxi RTA.
CAREEM will cost more than a taxi RTA. However, CAREEM has fixed travel rates between cities. In the case of the Dubai-Abu Dhabi route – 330 Dirhams, but subject to the distance of the trip no more than 135 kilometers and duration not more than 90 minutes. If you go further or you will go longer, you will have to pay extra.
The second and cheapest way – bus
Attention! Unfortunately, public buses to Abu Dhabi have not yet go, they are temporarily abolished during the outbreak of coronavirus. As of February 2021, they have not yet resumed work. We wait!
This method uses most tourists due to its low cost. There are three bus routes between Abu Dhabi and Dubai: E100, E101, E102.
All buses with air conditioning. Each chair has a USB connector for charging smartphones and tablets. There is free Wi-Fi, RTA Free WiFi network, but for reviews of tourists, it works with interruptions.
Bus E100 Going between Ghubaiba Bus Station next to the Al Ghubaiba Metro Station and Abu Dhabi Auto Station (Abu Dhabi Central Bus Station).
This is the most popular bus between Dubai and Abu Dhabi – 122 flights a day! But he is a bit inconvenient what goes through the whole Dubai. As a result, in the morning and in the evening you will stand in traffic jams, which can increase the time on the way to 2.5 hours.
Rating price – 25 Dirhams per person. Time on the way – 1 hour 50 minutes. Motion interval – from 10 to 30 minutes. Opening hours – from 5-00 am to midnight.
Bus E101 Going between IBN Batutta Metro Station in Dubai and ABU Dhabi Central Bus Station).
This bus is the most convenient, as it does not go through the whole Dubai, as it does E100. If you choose E101, you will be insured from Dubai traffic jams. Unfortunately, the E101 is rare.
Rating price – 25 Dirhams per person. Time in the way – 1 hour 30 minutes. Movement interval – 30 minutes or 1 hour.
Bus E102 Going between IBN Batutta Metro Station in Dubai and Mussaffa district in Abu Dhabi.
Mussefa district is located far from the main attractions, so the E102 bus is almost useless for tourists. BUT! This bus stops at Abu Dhabi International Airport, a stop on demand. You need to tell the driver in advance what you want to go away from the airport, it is better to say right when landing in Dubai. The E102 bus is the cheapest way to get from Dubai to Abu Dhabi Airport.
Rating price – 25 Dirhams per person. Time in the way – 1 hour 40 minutes. Movement interval – 30 minutes or 1 hour.
What to choose – E100 or E101
There is a big difference. E100 can get stuck in traffic jams. E101 is rare. It is difficult to predict what you get faster.
Arrived in Abu Dhabi, then
Further get to the desired attraction on a taxi or local bus. About the features of buses, read our article "Buses to Abu Dhabi and other Emirates".
Prices in the table below:
| Price on taxi | Price by bus | What bus | |
| Sheikh Zaid Mosque | 40 | 2 | 054, 094 |
| Embankment Kornish | eighteen | 2 | 033, 034 |
| Emirates Palace, Lookout 300, Sheikh Zaid Memorial |
twenty | 2 | 034, 071 |
| Louvre | thirty | 2 | 094 |
| Village Heritage, Flagpole uae, TC MARINA Mall |
23 | 2 | 071 |
| Yas Island – Ferrari WORLD, Yas Waterworld, Warner Bros, Yas Mall, Yas Marina |
70 | 4 | 180 (50+ minutes in the way) |
Island Yas – big problem
Many tourists want to get to the island of Yas – in Amusement Parks Ferrari World and Warner Bros, Yas Waterworld Waterpark, Yas Mall Shopping Center. And here is the main problem.
By taxi is expensive – from 175 to 270 dirhams, but quickly – from 1 to 1.5 hours.
On buses for long – from 3 to 3.5 hours (total time spent), but cheap – 35 dirhams per person (total costs).
Is there anything average? Is there a reasonable compromise?
There is a way get a little more expensive and much faster.
Need to ask the driver of the bus E100 or E101 to stay in Al-Shahama village (Al Shahama), it’s close to the island of Yas. Taxi from Al-Shahama to the island of Yas will cost about 30 dirhams. In this case, you can get from Dubai just more expensive, but in just 2 hours!
The only difficult moment is that taxi in al-Shahama find difficult. There are two options to solve this problem. The first – call a taxi or by calling 600-535353, or the application "ABU Dhabi Taxi", or through the WWW website.Darb.AE . The second option – go to the nearest cafe (they are there) and ask you to call you a taxi, better for politeness to order at least coffee.
There is a way to get free of charge, but with a bunch of minuses. Read our detailed review "Free buses from Dubai to Abu Dhabi".
By bus from Abu Dhabi to Dubai
Everything is obvious. Take a taxi to Abu Dhabi Bus Station (Abu Dhabi Central Bus Station). Sit down to the E100 or E101 bus, come to Dubai for 25 dirhams, then on the subway.
Third and free way – airlines buses
The two largest airlines of the UAE – Etihad Airways and Emirates have their own businesses for customers. If you have tickets to the air tickets to the aircraft of these carriers, then you can rent a free download between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Emirates buses run between Terminal 3 Dubai Airport and Abu Dhabi Center. 6 flights per day.
Buses Etihad Airways run between Abu Dhabi Airport and Dubai Marina Mall Shopping Center. 10 flights per day.
To land on the bus you need to make a ticket. It is recommended to book a place in advance and specify the schedule on the website or in the airline office.
Another airline Fly Dubai also has its bus tickets from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, but the passage of Paid – 40 Dirhams. These buses run between the Terminal 2 Dubai Airport and Al-Nasre Street in the center of Abu Dhabi.
Fourth way – with a tussing
Most likely, you want not just to get to Abu Dhabi (Dubai), but you want to see something specific. Then you can pay participation in a group excursion. Then the excursion bus will take away from the hotel, drives back to the attraction, will bring back.
Naturally, excursions have obvious cons: the trip will be more expensive, the time per attractions will be limited, spend your time on the bus while it will collect tourists in different hotels.
But there is a big plus – no need to learn anything, nothing to think about anything.
We recommend our detailed article "Excursions in Dubai".
Fifth and most elegant way – hydroplan
Hydroplanes do not function in the UAE as public transport. They are used for organized tours from Dubai to the sights of Abu Dhabi. The most popular such tour is the flight from Dubai in Ferrari World Park on the island of Yas in Abu Dhabi.
The price of such a tour includes itself flight and tickets to the park. Such a flight makes it possible to watch a bird’s eye view to the most beautiful objects in the UAE – the Grand Prix trace 1 on the island of Yas, Hotel Yas Viceroy, Artificial Palm Jumeirah Island, Burj Khalifa Tower, Burj Al-Arab Hotel and much more.
At the time of publication of this article, the cost of such a tour – about 500 US dollars per person. It is very expensive, but insanely interesting.
Sixth and so far inaccessible way – train
Rail transport in the UAE is unpopulated, it is associated with the difficulties of laying railways in the desert. Now only three rail transport systems are fully functioned in the UAE: Dubai Metro, Dubai Tram and Monorails on Palm island, on which tourists go to the Aquapark Atlantis and Aquarium The Lost Chambers.
But soon everything will change. Now the railway line is built in the UAE of 1200 kilometers long – from the border with Saudi Arabia in the West to the border with Oman in the East. This branch will pass through Dubai, and through Abu Dhabi.
The train will be the most convenient and fast way to travel between these cities. The speed of passenger trains will be 200 kilometers per hour. It certainly does not reach Chinese high-speed trains, but for the Middle East it is a record.
But while this project is in the "sluggish implementation" stage, which is not surprising with oil prices by 40-50 dollars per barrel.
In June 2018, Dubai Media Center announced a new project – the Hyperloop train, which moves in a vacuum tube with speeds up to 1200 kilometers per hour. Time in the way between Abu Dhabi and Dubai will be only 12 minutes! On November 9, 2020, the first and successful public test of the demo branch of this system took place (length of only 400 meters).
But this super-project is unlikely to be implemented soon. Wait and see.
RESULTS
If you want to get quickly and comfortably, then take a taxi right from the hotel in Dubai (Abu Dhabi) to the object of interest in Abu Dhabi (Dubai).
Prices – from 170 to 340 dirhams, look at the tables higher in this article, the time on the way is 1-1.5 hours;
If you want to get cheap, Then use E100, E101, E102 buses, full information above in this article.
The price of a trip – 25 Dirhams per person, travel time (general) – 2-2.5 hours to objects in the center of Abu Dhabi, 3-3.5 hours to the island of Yas.
Compromise option to the island of Yas – take a bus E100 or E101, go to al-Shaham, get to the island of Yas to Taxi. The method works only from Dubai in Abu Dhabi, it does not work back.
The price of a trip – 25 Dirhams per person for the bus + 30 dirhams for a taxi to the island of Yas, travel time (general) – about 2 hours.
What else do you need to know
– If you choose a taxi Uber, then you can get a 20% discount for 4 trips. Discount coupon is given when buying a SIM card DU Tourist Plan. We talked in detail in the article "How to call from the UAE Döshevo";
– If you choose a taxi CAREEM, then you can get a discount 100 dirhams. The discount coupon is given when buying a SIM card Etisalat Visitor Line. We talked in detail in the article "Internet in the UAE cheap";
– buses E100, E101, E102 recently paid only by dirhams and only NOL card. Read our article "NOL cards – features and tariffs";
– on a taxi theoretically can be reached by euros or dollars, but the taxi driver will recalculate at a very unfavorable course. Better pay for dirhams, read our article "Currency exchange in the UAE".
Comfortable movement in the Arab Emirates, and read our articles about this country (Links below).
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So much interesting and useful information. thanks a lot!
The following information is incorrect: for travel on the bus, listening to Ibn Batuta to Abu Dhabi cash no longer accept. Payment is made by silver NOL card, the cost of one end is 25 dirham. Correct. Yes, and also an important point: the balance on the silver map of the NOL should be at least 7.50 Dirham, otherwise payment on this map will not pass, the machine will show that the card is not valid.
Alexander – Glavred site
Thanks Natalia!!
And about cash you we missed. Corrected.
About 7.5 dirhams. The situation is as follows. In Dubai, transport cards work specifically. There when you enter the subway or bus, then the maximum price of the trip is removed from the card. Then, when you apply a card at the exit, the system considers the real cost of the trip and returns to the map difference.
Accordingly, there should always be 7.5 dirhams on the map (silver).
Alexander – Glavred site
Once again, Low bow for comment, Natalia.
Google shows that from Abu Dhabi (Yas Island) to Dubai can be reached as well as from Dubai to Abu Dhabi (Yas Island). Also on a taxi, we get to the airport and from there each hour go buses E102, I am moving to the Metro Dubai, and then on the old scheme. Correct if I’m wrong and google is lying!
Alexander – Glavred site
At the bus E102 stop at the airport on demand. May turn out so that you will stand there for hours and wait for it. Risk is noble, but uninteresting. It’s my opinion.
Perhaps the stop at the airport will be mandatory. The E102 bus is completely new, in the summer only running.
It is still better to get to the ABU Dhabi bus station and there to sit on E100 or E101.
