Bus Service Dubai to Abu Dhabi and Return Back

In this blog I hope I would be of help not only to the tourists in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, but also to the residents in these cities. Most tourists and residents usually travel between Dubai and Abu Dhabi via a car drive where you can reach within a timeline of 1 hour or 1 hour 15 mins. People who can afford can try this where it will cost depending on the taxi or private car and your exact destination in Abu Dhabi which will range from 150 AED to 300 AED.

I am not of such rich calibre as I prefer I can use this money for my activities to have fun. I got to know that there is a bus service from the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai. I have seen and used the buses within Dubai on a daily basis, but I was happy to know that this service is taking place to Abu Dhabi too. First time I was lost as many didn’t know the exact information even my close friend who is a resident in Dubai for almost 5 years as no clue of it. With the help of the RTA I was able to get some information which I will share with you in this blog. Keep this number 8009090 and also the email ask@rta.ae always handy as any doubts apart from my information you can just feel free to contact them and they will give you all what you need from buses, taxis, metro, water taxis and all transportation relevant information in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The happiest answer which gave me a big smile was that the ticket one way is only 25 AED. So for both ways, the journey between Dubai and Abu Dhabi and return cost me only 50 AED. Meanwhile another icing on the cake is that the bus fares in Abu Dhabi city is only 2 AED per trip. Dubai usually uses a mandatory NOL card system where you can use in the buses and metro, but Abu Dhabi city makes it much easier making you pay your 2 AED to the driver itself.

There are 02 bus locations to Abu Dhabi from Dubai. One is the Al Ghubaiba Bus station just opposite the Al Ghubaiba Metro station and the other is at Ibn Battuta Bus Station just opposite the Ibn Battuta Metro station. It depends on where you stay in Dubai usually if you are inside the city like Deira or further in Downtown then Al Ghubaiba is the closest. In case you are near to Dubai Marina, Jebel Ali or Barsha near MOE then Ibn Battuta will be faster for you.

The buses are very comfortable almost very much bigger than the city buses. Just like a big private tourist coach. The seats are so comfortable and I felt that I was in a plane. You can have a small nap too while on the drive as it is such a relaxing ride. There is no pre booking for this bus service and you can buy the tickets at the bus ticket office or in Ibn Battuta the metro station too offers the bus tickets. In case you have a NOL card and you have adequate credit loaded of 50 AED then you can use it and does not need another extra ticket on spot as the punch in and out will deduct the journey fee from the card. The journey from Al Ghubaiba will take approximately around 2 hours and from Ibn Battuta it’s only 1.5 hours. The bus does not provide any child seats, but I travelled with my kid who was an infant and he was comfortable in my seat with me. The bus also offers a separate space where you can store your luggage and there is also a small food service where a steward is available for you to buy any soft drinks, water and small snacks like noodles, chips or buns to enjoy on your way to Abu Dhabi. The front seats are for women and children same as the normal buses. Please check the signage before you sit.

The buses usually are available on a 30 mins frequency throughout the day. In Al Ghubaiba bus station from Sundays to Wednesdays the service is from 5am to 12 midnight and Fridays until 12.45am the last bus, but on Thursdays only till 11.30pm. Saturdays the service starts early from 4.15am till 12.30 midnight. The bus number is E100 and usually stops at Samha, Abu Dhabi, Shahama Village, Abu Dhabi and the last stop the Central Bus Station in the city of Abu Dhabi opposite Al Wahda Mall. Usually the last station is where we need to get off.

On the other hand for passengers using the Ibn Battuta bus station can look for bus number E101 which operates from Sundays to Wednesdays from 5am to 10pm, and on Thursdays and Saturdays until 11.15pm. Meanwhile on Fridays they start only from 6am till the last bus at 11.15pm. Here the usual frequency is between 30mins to 1 hour depending on the times.

The return from Abu Dhabi to Dubai or if you are based in Abu Dhabi and want to enter Dubai you can get the bus at the Abu Dhabi central bus station opposite Al Wahda Mall for the same price of 25 AED. The busses from Abu Dhabi depart between 04.30am to 12 midnight from Sundays to Thursdays. On Fridays and Saturdays, the service starts only from 5am until 12midnight. The bus number is 100 and it will stop in Samha, Abu Dhabi, Al Jafiliya Landside metro bus station, Dubai, Department of Ports and Customs Dubai and end in Al Ghubaiba bus station.

At the same time if you want to arrive faster to Ibn Battuta bus station you can hop on to E101 from Abu Dhabi Central bus station which will only stop in Samha and direct to Ibn Battuta Dubai. It operates from Saturdays to Thursdays from 6.45am to 1am and on Fridays starts at 7.45am until 1am. The busses operate in similar frequencies ranging to 30mins to one hour and the tickets can be purchased freshly at the ticket office premises. You can contact 800 55555 if you need any transportation help in Abu Dhabi.

I had a wonderful and peaceful journey with my wife and kid travelling between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. It was very comfortable and I almost saved 75% per person which I spent for food and activities in Abu Dhabi which was worth than just having spent that on a car drive. During the bus ride, I was able to also window sight see many unbelievable and creatively designed buildings of Abu Dhabi and also some calm desert environments. I left Dubai at 6.30am and reached back to Dubai that day by 10pm after having had the best of Abu Dhabi and on the next day I emailed RTA and got the exact schedule which I had shared for you to download in this blog. This will help you plan you journey better. As per their customer service representative information to me they had confirmed that this schedule remains throughout the year no matter it may be Eid or any public holidays. The only variation would be a 5-10 mins earlier or later from the expected take off time.

It’s now your chance to save some money just as I did in my vacation in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Also check our Abu Dhabi to Dubai Bus Timings which may help to plan your journey better