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I was surprised to see how many people take a taxi to go from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. It’s around 250 AED (~70$) at a minimum and there is actually no reason to do that.
You also don’t need to rent a car – Dubai and Abu Dhabi are well connected with buses and it is super easy and cheap to take the bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi!
Quick summary:
- Bus: No E100 or E101
- Ticket price: 35 AED (~10$)
- Timing: every 15-30 minutes, from ~ 5 AM-12 PM
Table of Contents
Both buses have more four stops, so I marked all of them on a map so you can choose what’s easiest for you!
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Take the public bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi
Good news, it is super easy to go by bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi! There are two bus lines going the route and both of them run every 30 minutes from around 5 AM to 10 PM on weekdays
Bus E100
Bus E100 starts at Dubai Al Ghubaiba Bus station, stops at the Department of Ports&Customs, Al Jafiliyah Landside Metro Bus Station and then goes all the way to Abu Dhabi Bus Station. Especially Al Jadiliyah can be an interesting start point because it is on the red metro line too! However, it might be easier to find the bus stop and buy a ticket at Al Ghubaiba Bus Station
The journey takes a little over two hours, depending on the traffic on the route.
Take this bus if your hotel is in Bur Dubai or Dubai Deira!
Bus E101
Bus E101 also goes from Dubai to Abu Dhabi but starts at Ibn Battuta Bus Station. This bus station is directly connected to the Ibn Battuta metro station of the Dubai red metro line. Therefore, this bus is your best choice if you are staying in the southern parts of Dubai, e.g. Dubai Marina.
As this bus does not have to drive all the way through the city it is less likely to be stuck in traffic during rush hours and only takes around 1.5 hours (86 minutes) from Dubai to Abu Dhabi (and vice versa).
If there is a lot of traffic, it can even be a quicker choice to take Bus E101 if you are based in the north of Dubai! Just take the metro first and then hop on the bus at Ibn Battuta!
Closer to Abu Dhabi, Bus E101 takes two stops that are normally not relevant to tourists. Just wait until you reach the final station!
What is the bus like?
The bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi is a modern, comfortable bus with AC and reading lights. There is also a USB plug to charge your phone or tablet during the bus ride from Dubai to Abu Dhabi.
Seats come in a 2-2 configuration and do recline. There is no reservation for seats – so come early if you prefer to sit in front or at the back (or are trying to secure a row for yourself)
As often with air-conditioned buses, it can get cold on the bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. You can turn off your own AC – but if all the other people love freezing temperatures, this won’t help a lot. Better be prepared and bring a long sleeve and wear long trousers / a maxi skirt!
What I noticed (especially when compared to some bus journeys in South and Central America) was how quiet it was on the bus. There is no entertainment, people don’t generally talk to each other (most of them traveled alone anyway) and used headphones when listening to music. I actually liked that a lot!
Dubai to Abu Dhabi bus fare/ticket price
The bus is really cheap! No matter if you take bus E100 or bus E101, the Dubai to Abu Dhabi bus fare is a flat 25 AED one way – that’s around 7$ (48 AED if you go both ways).
Depending on where you start your journey, factor in additional charges for taking metro line (3-9 AED / 1-2.5$) – or for a taxi taking you to your final destination!
How to buy a bus ticket from Dubai to Abu Dhabi
You can use NOL cards (the public transportation card from Dubai) or buy a separate ticket at a counter. If you are getting on bus E100 at AlJafiliya bus station, you need to have an NOL card as there is no ticket office.
You don’t need to buy a ticket in advance – and there are no seat reservations. Just come with your NOL card (with enough credit) and tap in on the bus as you would with any local bus.
If you don’t have an NOL card yet, you can easily get one from the bus station staff and top it up with the necessary credit. It’s super easy and quick – and as soon as you return to Dubai, you can use it there as well! Most tourists should be fine with the silver NOL card (25 AED, comes with 19 AED credit).
Please note that Hafilat cards from Abu Dhabi CANNOT be used in the bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi (or from Abu Dhabi to Dubai!)
Dubai to Abu Dhabi bus timings
It is actually not that easy to find the exact bus timings for the trip from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. Generally speaking, buses run from 5 AM to 12 PM with some limitations on weekends (UAE weekend is Friday and Saturday!).
Given that the bus runs every 10-30 minutes, it is not super important – but I still searched until I could find some recent time table for the buses
Bus E100 bus timings (PDF timetable)
The timetables for buses are really difficult to find, so I uploaded them to my website as well!
Bus E101 bus timings (PDF timetable)
And here comes the timetable for Bus E101 as well!
What to bring on the bus with you
Large pieces of luggage will be stored in the luggage compartment (free of charge, no limitations) while you can bring your backpack/handbag into the bus cabin with you.
As mentioned, it can get a bit chilly on the bus, so be prepared to bring some warmer clothing with you!
Also, there is no food or drinks on the bus – so you might want to bring a small bottle of water with you. (Unless, like me, you are traveling during Ramadan…)
Don’t forget your USB cable if you want to charge your phone!
WiFi onboard the bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi
If you are wondering whether there will be WiFi on the bus:
In theory “yes”, there is now WiFi on the buses from Dubai to Abu Dhabi and vice versa!
In reality, that’s not the case. At least the two times that I traveled from Abu Dhabi to Dubai by bus (and vice versa) there was a network called “RTA free WiFi” and I could connect without a password. However, this WiFi does not have an internet connection at any time.
So download something before your journey or use mobile data (I had an LTE connection during the whole bus trip with the local du SIM card)!
Is it safe to take a bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi (as a solo female traveler)?
Absolutely! I traveled both directions myself and I wasn’t the only solo female traveler on the bus. There were men and women from different countries and everyone just took care of their own issues.
Dubai, in general, is incredibly safe for solo female travelers and so is Abu Dhabi.
It’s probably a good idea to be at the bus station not at the very last minute so that you don’t have to share your row with a male traveler you don’t know. And as the temperature is rather chilly due to the AC it’s also a good idea not to go in hot pants.
Other bus options than the public bus
There are also buses from Dubai and Abu Dhabi airport to the other city that is run by the airlines (Emirates and Etihad). These buses are only for passengers arriving with one of these airlines and they are usually free of charge.
I have read a blog post about how to scam your way into these buses. But seriously, who does this if the price of the public bus is just 7$?! So, be an honest person and take the public bus! 🙂
Big Bus and City Sightseeing Buses also offer transportation between Dubai and Abu Dhabi on some of their tickets. If you have one of these tickets anyway, you can use their service. But given the quality of the public bus network, it’s not a really important offer!
Other transportation options from Dubai to Abu Dhabi
Even though I firmly believe that taking the bus is the best way to travel from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, of course, there are other options to get from one city to the other:
Taxi
As mentioned, you can take a take from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. Starting fare for taxis in Dubai is 6 AED and then there is a surcharge of 1.60 AED per kilometer. Given that Dubai and Abu Dhabi are roughly 150km travel time, you can estimate your taxi fare to by around 250 AED.
You can check exact fares online in a taxi fare calculator!
Rental Car
Renting a car in Dubai is fairly easy – and relatively cheap. Gas prices are also considerably cheaper than in many other countries.
However, you will then have to deal with Emirati drivers yourself – and you need to find parking lots everywhere. I would only recommend hiring a car if Abu Dhabi is only part of your journey and you plan to travel further anyway! You can check rental car prices with Auto Europe for example!
In the future: The Hyperloop
At the moment it is still a tale from the future – but according to news, the Hyperloop will connect Dubai and Abu Dhabi with amazing speed!
The ambitious goal is to finish the first 10km part of the Hyperloop in 2020 already – we will see if this will actually be on time (Dubai projects often take way longer).
Once the Hyperloop will start its service, it is planned to reduce the travel time from Dubai to Abu Dhabi to just 12 minutes!
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Extremely well written. I have not yet traveled, however it has given me confidence that I can do it.
A big thank you.
Hi Vijay, thanks for your kind words! The bus is definitely super easy to take! I have been traveling with busses all over the world already and the bus from Abu Dhabi to Dubai and vice versa was one of the easiest one convenient intercity busses I came across ANYWHERE.
This was extremely helpful! Lots of detail and great advice. Thank you.
Hi Tanya – happy to hear that the article helped you! Let me know if you have any other questions on how to get from Dubai to Abu Dhabi by bus! 🙂
Very helpful thanks! We did the trip today (Jan 2020) – the bus fare is now 35UAD but a taxi is now more like 250. Only took 1.5 hours as no-one wanted the earlier stops, so we went straight through. Fantastic service, highly recommended.
Hi Kathryn, thanks for the information about the changed prices! I will directly update this in my article!
Thanks, I will try this bus in late January!
It’s really easy to take and super comfortable, don’t worry!
Thanks Sarah for your valuable info, we will try bus from Dubai to Abu Dhabi during Dubai Expo 2020
Hi Ruri! Oh, I’d love to come back to Dubai for Expo 2020! I am sure it will be amazing! Let me know if you need any help with the bus!
Dear sir/Madam
This demesse i want to information i need bus tomorrow moring from dubai abu dhabi how much the cost
hi,
the bus timing you wrote is from 5 am to 12 pm? we cant travel at night via bus? or do you know when is the last bus from dubai to abu dhabi, my flight will be landing at 21:35. i wanted to travel directly to abu dhabi.
appreciate if you can help.
Thanks
Hi Mariam – the bus only runs during the daytime from what I know. I think you might be able to catch a bus if you land at 21:35, but it’s gonna be tough.
I am trying to find out the time when the LAST bus leaves Al Gubaiba bus station for Abu Dhabi on JANUARY 14 next week. thanks
Hi Philip, please check the bus schedule as I am not sure when the last bus leaves this bus station!
Very informative and practical; a confidence booster for a solo traveler like myself.