Two cities. Now about an hour apart — and running.
Etihad Rail's passenger line between Abu Dhabi and Dubai launched on 30 September 2026, linking the two cities in about 64 minutes with 10 daily trains — city centre to city centre, no traffic, no parking. Here is every time, class, station and ticket tip you need for the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train.
One fast line links the UAE's two biggest cities. The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train runs city to city across the desert in about 64 minutes, with 10 trains a day — roughly half the time it takes to drive, and less than half the bus.
Abu DhabiMohammed Bin Zayed City
DubaiJumeirah Golf Estates
The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train is a direct, city-to-city hop: it leaves the Abu Dhabi station in Mohammed Bin Zayed City and runs to the Dubai station at Jumeirah Golf Estates, part of Etihad Rail's national network that reaches on to Sharjah and Fujairah. The same trains run the route in reverse from Dubai back to Abu Dhabi.
The ride itself is a smooth run across open desert between the two emirates — flat, fast and air-conditioned, with big windows onto the dunes and the occasional camel farm before the Dubai skyline rises on the horizon. Because it is a purpose-built high-capacity line rather than a shared motorway, the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train keeps the same ~64-minute timing at rush hour as it does mid-morning.
The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train is one leg of a national passenger railway that Etihad Rail is opening in phases across the UAE through 2026 and into 2027.
Passenger services began on 30 June 2026 with the Abu Dhabi to Fujairah run on the east coast (6 daily trains to Madinat Al Hilal). The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train itself launched on 30 September 2026, the same day Etihad Rail opened its Al Dhaid station in Sharjah — so Sharjah is already part of the network, not a future milestone. Liwa and Madinat Zayed, in the Al Dhafra region, follow on 30 November 2026, with Al Mirfa, Al Dhannah and Al Sila opening there on 30 December 2026. A second Sharjah stop, University City Station, is still to come on 30 March 2027.
For travellers that means the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train is not a one-off shuttle but part of a growing web that already reaches Sharjah and Fujairah, and will keep expanding into the Western Region and beyond. It is the first time the UAE's two largest cities have been linked by intercity passenger rail.
It reshapes a journey that until now meant the motorway or the coach.
Passenger trains are only half the story. Etihad Rail is the UAE's national railway, and the same line the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train runs on was first built for freight — long cargo services that link the country's ports and industrial areas from Ghuweifat on the Saudi Arabia border in the west to Fujairah on the east coast. The passenger network now shares that spine, and the wider plan is to connect across the border into the GCC rail network in future, so the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train is one visible piece of a much larger national and regional railway.
The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train's whole point is speed. Here is how the ~64-minute train compares with the other ways across, door of the station to door of the station.
Times are typical city-to-city. Driving assumes clear traffic on the E11 (Sheikh Zayed Road) — rarely a given at peak — plus parking at the far end; the E100 coach is the budget option at AED 25 but the slowest. The train removes the traffic and the parking, and you arrive rested rather than frazzled.
Etihad Rail runs two classes on the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train — both air-conditioned and spacious, with the step up to Premium buying more room and priority service. Fares run AED 39–109 (about $10.60–$29.70) depending on class.
Comfort Class · AED 39 (~$10.60)
Find Comfort fares
Premium Class · AED 109 (~$29.70)
Find Premium faresBoth classes on the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train are built for a short, comfortable intercity hop rather than a long haul: modern air-conditioned carriages, large panoramic windows, step-free level boarding straight from the platform, and dedicated space for luggage and for wheelchairs and buggies. The trains are designed to carry hundreds of passengers per service, so even a busy departure feels roomy.
Fares are set by Etihad Rail and vary by class: AED 39 (about $10.60) for Comfort and AED 109 (about $29.70) for Premium, Dubai–Abu Dhabi. Confirm the exact fare for your date in the search above.
At the time of booking, the search above shows the latest live prices and lets you compare classes before you commit.
Both classes on the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train use reserved seating, so a ticket ties you to a specific departure rather than a turn-up-and-go slot. With 10 trains a day now running, the simplest way to plan is to search your date and time in the box above, pick the departure that suits you, choose Comfort or Premium, and book the ticket in one step — the live schedule and price come straight from our booking partner.
Knowing which station you leave from and where you arrive saves time on either side of the 64-minute ride.
The Abu Dhabi station sits in Mohammed Bin Zayed City, near Mussaffah and directly opposite Dalma Mall — a central point for the capital, reached easily by taxi or city bus.
Etihad Rail — Mohammed Bin Zayed City, Abu Dhabi
The Dubai station, Al Yalayis Station, is at Jumeirah Golf Estates in the south of the city, near the Expo and Al Maktoum side, with a direct pedestrian bridge to Jumeirah Golf Estates Metro Station on the Dubai Metro Red Line, plus taxis and ride-hail.
Etihad Rail — Jumeirah Golf Estates, DubaiBoth Abu Dhabi to Dubai train stations sit a little outside the historic city centres, so plan the last mile at each end. The Abu Dhabi station in Mohammed Bin Zayed City is an easy taxi or city-bus ride from the corniche and downtown, and its position by Dalma Mall makes it simple to find. In Dubai, Al Yalayis Station at Jumeirah Golf Estates is on the southern, Expo side of the city near Al Maktoum International — a direct pedestrian bridge connects it to Jumeirah Golf Estates Metro Station on the Dubai Metro Red Line, alongside taxis and ride-hailing. Factor a short transfer into your door-to-door time and the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train still comes out well ahead of driving.
Connectivity around both stations is set to improve as the network grows. Etihad Rail has flagged plans to tie the railway into wider public transport and, in time, to the airport — a future link to Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi is part of the longer-term picture. For now, taxis and ride-hailing are the reliable way to and from each station at all times of day, and checking your onward option before you travel keeps the whole trip smooth from door to door.
A brand-new line, so a little planning helps. Here is what's worth knowing before you travel.
Trains have reached Dubai since 30 September 2026, with 10 services a day. The same network also runs from Abu Dhabi to Fujairah, and now to Sharjah's Al Dhaid station too.
Comfort is the everyday seat; Premium buys more space, a quieter cabin and priority boarding — a small step up that's worth it for a work trip.
Both stations sit a little outside the old city centres — line up a taxi, city bus or ride-hail for the short hop to your final destination at each end.
Boarding is level and step-free with room for cases, but there's no checked-baggage service — you carry your own, so pack so you can lift it.
The big win over driving is skipping Sheikh Zayed Road at rush hour — the train's 64 minutes is fixed whether or not the motorway is jammed.
Fares start at AED 39 Comfort / AED 109 Premium, but times and seat availability shift by date — use the search above to see the latest before you travel.
The honest comparison of the main ways between the two cities, so you can choose for your trip.
| Mode | City-to-city time | Typical cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Train (Etihad Rail) | ~64 min | AED 39–109 | Fixed time, no traffic or parking, Comfort & Premium classes, 10 trains/day |
| Car | ~1h 20m | Fuel + Salik tolls | ~150 km on the E11; flexible, but rush-hour traffic and Dubai parking add up |
| Bus (E100) | ~2h 15m | AED 25 | Cheapest, but the slowest and busiest at peak times |
| Taxi / ride-hail | ~1h 20m | AED 250+ | Door to door, but the priciest and still stuck in the same traffic |
For a long time the only realistic ways between Abu Dhabi and Dubai were the car and the E100 coach — quick in theory, but both hostage to Sheikh Zayed Road traffic and, at the Dubai end, to parking. The train changes that: a fixed ~64 minutes whatever the motorway is doing, and you step off in the city rather than circling for a space.
The coach still wins on price at AED 25, and a car makes sense if you need it at both ends or are carrying a lot. But for a straightforward city-to-city trip, the Abu Dhabi to Dubai train is the fastest and calmest option — and the one most travellers are now choosing since the Dubai station opened.
The Etihad Rail Abu Dhabi to Dubai train takes about 64 minutes city to city, between the Abu Dhabi station in Mohammed Bin Zayed City and the Dubai station at Jumeirah Golf Estates, with 10 trains a day (5 in each direction).
The Abu Dhabi to Dubai train launched on 30 September 2026, with 10 daily trains covering the route in about 64 minutes. The Abu Dhabi to Fujairah stretch of the same network opened earlier, on 30 June 2026.
The train is operated by Etihad Rail, the UAE's national railway. It is the first intercity passenger rail service linking Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Etihad Rail trains offer two classes: Comfort (standard) and Premium (first class). Comfort includes standard seating, complimentary Wi-Fi, power/USB charging, luggage space and complimentary drinks and snacks; Premium adds more space and priority service.
On the Abu Dhabi–Dubai leg the train runs city to city. The Abu Dhabi station is in Mohammed Bin Zayed City, opposite Dalma Mall, and the Dubai station is Al Yalayis Station at Jumeirah Golf Estates in the south of the city.
Fares are AED 39 (about $10.60) for Comfort Class and AED 109 (about $29.70) for Premium Class between Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Search live tickets and exact pricing for your date in the box above.
Yes. The train covers Abu Dhabi to Dubai in about 64 minutes, against roughly 1 hour 20 minutes by car in clear traffic and about 2 hours 15 minutes on the E100 bus, with no parking or traffic to deal with.
The Abu Dhabi station sits in Mohammed Bin Zayed City near Mussaffah and Dalma Mall, reachable by taxi or city bus. The Dubai station, Al Yalayis Station at Jumeirah Golf Estates, connects by a direct pedestrian bridge to Jumeirah Golf Estates Metro Station on the Dubai Metro Red Line, as well as taxi and ride-hail.
See live times and fares for Etihad Rail and the wider network, and book the class that suits your day.
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