Dubai has convenient, inexpensive public transport. For most tourist routes the metro and taxis are enough, and the old city is at its nicest crossed by water. In this guide we’ll cover every way of getting around — from the metro and the Nol card to the abra, the tram and water buses.
Metro
The backbone of the system is two metro lines — the Red and the Green. They connect the airport, Deira, Downtown, Business Bay and Dubai Marina. The trains are fully automated, driverless, and run frequently and exactly on schedule.
The front carriage is split into Gold class (premium comfort) and a women-and-children area. The metro runs from early morning until midnight, and longer at weekends; at night it is closed.
For a detailed look at the lines, stations and prices, see the dedicated guide: Dubai Metro: map, lines and prices, as well as the metro map with stations and zones and fares by zone.
Types of Nol card
Travel is paid for with a Nol card: you buy and top it up at any station. A single card works on the metro, the tram and the bus alike. The cards differ by validity and cost:
| Card | Who it suits | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| Red Ticket | For 1–10 rides | Paper, cheap |
| Silver | A tourist on a week-long trip | Universal |
| Gold | For Gold class | Premium-comfort carriage |
The conclusion after the table is simple: a red ticket is enough for a couple of rides, but if you travel a lot, get a silver card — it works out cheaper by the second or third day.
Taxis and apps
The official taxis are cream-coloured, with the fare on the meter. Alongside them, Careem and Uber operate — booking through an app is handy when there’s no rank nearby, and the price is shown in advance. At rush hour it’s cheaper and faster to head down into the metro than to sit in traffic on Sheikh Zayed Road. For a detailed look at the route from the airport, see the from Dubai Airport to the city article.
Abra and water transport
Wooden abra boats carry passengers across Dubai Creek between Deira and Bur Dubai. The ride costs a symbolic 1 dirham and is itself an attraction: from the water you can see the old trading city sitting alongside the towers.
Besides the abra, modern water buses and ferries (Water Bus, Dubai Ferry) and water taxis run along the creek, the canal and the coastline — a convenient and scenic way for a tourist to get around.
Tram and monorail
In the Marina and JBR area, the surface-level Dubai Tram runs, linking up with the metro. To the Palm island you can take the monorail to The Pointe promenade. Both are handy for short trips along the coast.
Buses, rentals and scooters
City buses cover the areas the metro doesn’t reach and are paid for with the same Nol card. Renting a car makes sense for out-of-town trips — for example, on a desert safari. In some areas, rental e-scooters are available for short rides in permitted zones.
Comparison of options
To pick the right one for the situation, compare the main options:
| Option | When it’s handy | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| Metro | Long routes by day | Cheap, no traffic |
| Taxi | At night, with luggage | Door to door |
| Tram/monorail | Along the coast | Connects to the metro |
| Abra/ferry | Old city | Cheap and scenic |
After the comparison the logic is simple: main routes by metro, short and night trips by taxi, the coast by tram, and the old city by water.
Tips
A few small things make getting around more comfortable: avoid rush hour on Sheikh Zayed Road, keep your Nol card topped up, and have your hotel address on your phone. To check which stations are where, the districts map is handy: almost every major neighbourhood has its own point on the map. And to plan your trip overall, the where to stay in Dubai and how much a trip costs guides will help.
