Dubai Metro Guide for Tourists: Lines, Stations, Nol Cards and Fares

The six Metro stations every visitor uses

#1

Downtown: Burj Khalifa, Dubai Mall, the Fountain, Souk Al Bahar The Downtown sights; 10-15 min walk via the Metro Link bridge

Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall (Red Line)

The busiest tourist station and the one with the longest walk: the mall is 10-15 minutes away along the air-conditioned Metro Link bridge with travelators, which is pleasant in January and a workout in August. Come for At the Top, the Fountain shows from 6 PM and Souk Al Bahar, and walk back to the train afterwards instead of joining the post-show taxi queue.

#2

Dubai Marina and JLT: Marina Walk, the yacht pier, JBR via the tram The Marina, JBR and our yacht cruises

DMCC and Sobha Realty (Red Line)

Two stations serve the Marina: DMCC at the JLT end and Sobha Realty further along. Both connect to the tram, which is the way to JBR Beach and The Walk. For the yacht pier behind Al Majara Tower, get off at DMCC and take the tram, a short taxi or a 10-minute walk; the shared hour from $32 checks in 20 minutes before departure.

#3

Al Barsha: the mall, Ski Dubai, the road to Jumeirah and Burj Al Arab Ski Dubai, shopping, a short taxi to the Burj Al Arab beaches

Mall of the Emirates (Red Line)

Halfway between Downtown and the Marina, with the mall a short covered walk from the station. It is also the practical stop for the Jumeirah coast: Burj Al Arab, Souk Madinat Jumeirah and Kite Beach have no station of their own, so the Metro to here plus a short taxi beats a long taxi from either end at rush hour.

#4

DXB: Terminal 3 for Emirates, Terminal 1 for many other airlines The cheapest way into the city, AED 5-7.5

Airport Terminals 1 and 3 (Red Line)

Both stations sit inside the terminals, so you walk from baggage claim to the platform without going outside; Terminal 2 has no station. Fares into Downtown are about AED 5-7.5 plus the AED 25 Silver card, against AED 40-60 by taxi. With a big suitcase and two or more people the taxi wins on comfort; alone with a carry-on, the train wins on everything.

#5

Old Dubai: the wind-tower quarter, the Textile Souk, the abra, the Gold and Spice Souks A late-afternoon walk through the Creek districts

Al Fahidi and Al Ras (Green Line)

Change to the Green Line at BurJuman or Union. Al Fahidi puts you at the old wind-tower quarter and the Textile Souk, Al Ghubaiba at the abra station for the AED 1-2 crossing, and Al Ras on the Deira bank at the Gold Souk and Spice Souk. Go after 4 PM, when the heat drops and the souks fill; the whole loop is one afternoon.

#6

Dubai South: Expo City, near DWC airport The Al Wasl dome and the pavilions; the end of the line

Expo City (Red Line branch)

The far south-western end of the Red Line, served by a branch from Jabal Ali. Expo City itself is a half-day of pavilions and the Al Wasl dome. DWC airport is nearby but has no station of its own; the public link from DWC is the F55 bus to Ibn Battuta station rather than this one, so do not plan on walking across from a flight.

Dubai Metro in one minute

The Dubai Metro is driverless, air-conditioned, clean and cheap, and for a visitor it is mostly one line. The Red Line runs the length of Sheikh Zayed Road from the airport to the Marina and beyond, stopping at the places you came for: Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall, Business Bay, Mall of the Emirates, DMCC and Sobha Realty for the Marina and JLT. The Green Line serves Old Dubai and the souks and meets the Red Line at BurJuman and Union.

A trip costs AED 3, 5 or 7.5 depending on how many zones you cross, paid with a Silver Nol card (about AED 25, with AED 19 of credit on it). Trains run every 3-7 minutes from about 5 AM to midnight or 1 AM depending on the day, with a later start on Sunday mornings. Gold Class in the front carriage costs double.

The honest limits: stations sit on the highway, so most journeys end with a 10-15 minute walk, a tram or a short taxi; the Palm, the Jumeirah beaches and the Creek side of Old Dubai are not on the Red Line; and the desert, Abu Dhabi and the balloon are not on any line. For those we run tours with hotel pickup from $45, which is the point at which the Metro map stops mattering. The wider picture, taxis and tram included, is in how to get around Dubai.

The two lines and where they go

The Red Line starts at Centrepoint on the Rashidiya side near the airport, calls at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, runs through Deira and across the Creek, then down Sheikh Zayed Road: Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall, Business Bay, Mall of the Emirates, DMCC and Sobha Realty (the Marina and JLT stations), Jabal Ali, and on to a branch for Expo City. It is elevated for most of its length, so the ride itself is a skyline tour.

The Green Line is the Old Dubai line. Al Ras is the Gold Souk stop, Baniyas Square is the heart of Deira, Al Fahidi is the historic wind-tower quarter and the Textile Souk, and Al Ghubaiba is the bus station and the abra stations for the Creek crossing. The two lines cross at BurJuman and Union; change there and the souks are about 30 minutes from Downtown, changes included.

Station names carry sponsors and change every few years, so the screens and the maps may not match older guidebooks. Navigate by the district: the Marina stations are DMCC and Sobha Realty today, whatever they were called on your last visit.

Sponsor names change; check the current map in the RTA S'hail app.

Nol cards and fares

Buy the Silver Nol card at the ticket office or a machine in any station: about AED 25, of which AED 19 is credit, enough for three or four trips before the first top-up. The same card works on the tram and every bus, and it stays valid for years, so keep it for your next visit.

Fares are by zone: roughly AED 3 for a trip inside one zone, AED 5 across two and AED 7.5 across three or more, and Gold Class doubles each. The red paper ticket costs about AED 2 on top of the fare and holds 1-10 trips, so it only pays for a single journey. Tap in at the gate and tap out at your destination; if you forget to tap out, the maximum fare is deducted. Check the live fare in the S'hail app before you travel, as the RTA adjusts them.

Approximate fares on a Silver card; a red ticket adds about AED 2.

Gold Class and the women-and-children carriage

The first carriage of every train is split. The front section is Gold Class: leather seats, carpet, a view through the front window because the trains are driverless, and double the standard fare. Ask for the Gold option at the ticket office or machine before you sit there; a standard fare in the Gold section is fined.

Behind it is the women-and-children section, which men may not enter. It is a real rule with a real fine, and the section is well used at rush hour. Everyone else uses the standard carriages, which are comfortable outside 7-9:30 AM and 5-8 PM and packed inside them.

Is Gold worth it? On the long run from the airport to the Marina with luggage, yes: AED 15 instead of AED 7.5 for a guaranteed seat and room for the bags, and the front window for the skyline. On a 10-minute hop between Downtown and Business Bay, no.

Hours, frequency and the walk at the far end

Trains run from about 5 AM until midnight or 1 AM depending on the day of the week, and start later on Sundays, around 8 AM. Frequency is every 3-7 minutes, so you never plan around a timetable; you plan around the walk. Check the exact first and last trains in the S'hail app if you have an early flight or a late night, because the Sunday start catches people with morning departures.

The walk is the Metro's weak point. Stations are on Sheikh Zayed Road, so Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall is 10-15 minutes from the mall along the air-conditioned Metro Link bridge with travelators, and a Marina hotel is a tram ride or a 10-minute walk from DMCC. From November to March that is pleasant; from May to September it is the reason a taxi for the last kilometre is money well spent.

For the airport specifically: the Metro is the cheapest way into the city at AED 5-7.5, and with one carry-on it is also the quickest to Downtown. With two or more people and big suitcases, a taxi at about AED 40-60 to Downtown or AED 80-110 to the Marina is usually the sensible choice. The step-by-step versions are in DXB to Downtown and DXB to Dubai Marina.

Metro plus tram: the Marina, JBR and the yacht pier

The Marina has two Red Line stations, DMCC at the JLT end and Sobha Realty further along, and both connect to the Dubai Tram, 11 stops along Al Sufouh Road through the Marina and JBR. The tram is slow, but it is the only rail that reaches JBR Beach and The Walk, and it stops at the Palm Jumeirah gateway where the monorail climbs to Atlantis in about 15 minutes for roughly AED 20-30 return. One Nol card covers all of it.

Our cruises leave from the marina pier behind Al Majara Tower, Dubai Marina. From DMCC it is a tram stop, a short taxi or a 10-minute walk. The 1-hour shared yacht tour from $32 departs hourly from Level P of the tower with check-in 20 minutes before; the yacht party ($99, 21+) boards at 8:30 PM for the 9 PM departure, comfortably inside Metro hours on the way there but not always on the way back at 1 AM, so plan a taxi home. Both are paid in advance because the slots sell out; a private boat from our charter fleet starts from AED 400 per hour and leaves from the same pier. The exact walk is in how to get to the yacht pier.

Downtown to the Marina is the classic Metro run: Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall to DMCC, 2-3 zones for AED 5-7.5, no traffic. At 6 PM the train can beat a taxi by half an hour; the reverse trip, timed for the Fountain, is in Dubai Marina to Burj Khalifa.

Etiquette and the rules that catch visitors

The Metro is policed politely and fined firmly. The rules are posted at every station, and these are the ones visitors break by accident:

• No eating, drinking or chewing gum on trains or in stations, including water in the heat; drink before the gate.
• Men stay out of the women-and-children section at the front of the train; it is marked on the platform floor and on the doors.
• A standard fare in Gold Class is fined; ask for the Gold option before you board if you want the front seats.
• Tap out at the exit gate, or the top fare is charged to the card.
• Let passengers off first, keep bags off the seats at rush hour, and leave the priority seats to those who need them.
• Luggage is allowed, and the airport stations are built for it; just avoid the 7-9:30 AM and 5-8 PM crush with two suitcases.

Where the Metro does not go, and what to do instead

The Palm has no Metro: use the tram from DMCC or Sobha Realty to the Palm Jumeirah stop and the monorail (about 15 minutes to Atlantis), or a taxi from the Marina at about AED 35-50. The Jumeirah beaches, Burj Al Arab and Kite Beach are taxi territory, cheapest from Mall of the Emirates station. The souks and the abra are on the Green Line, and the Old Dubai guide turns those stations into a half-day walk.

Then there are the three trips the Metro cannot help with at all. The Lahbab Red Dunes are 45-60 km east of the city with no public transport; our full-day desert safari (7 hours, from $45, or $65 with the 30-minute quad bike) collects you at your hotel in Dubai, Sharjah or Ajman in an air-conditioned 4x4 and returns you after the camp dinner, with no prepayment. Abu Dhabi is about 140 km down the E11: the E100 and E101 buses take about 2 hours and leave you at a bus station, while the Abu Dhabi city tour from $45 picks up at 8:00 AM with a licensed guide and covers the Grand Mosque, the BAPS Mandir, the Corniche and Yas Island in 9 hours. The sunrise balloon ($275) collects you before the first train runs, which is the only way to make a dawn take-off, and it sells out one to two weeks ahead.

DWC airport is the other gap: no station, and the public route is the F55 bus to Ibn Battuta station and the Red Line from there. Every booking with us is agreed on WhatsApp with the hotel name as the pickup point, so the Metro map is for the days in between.

FAQ

Recommended Dubai tours for this guide

Recommended tour

Full-Day Desert Safari in Dubai

It is the slow-travel version of the classic safari: more time on the dunes, sunset without the crowds and a full evening programme at a premium camp with air-conditioned tents, unlimited drinks and a large BBQ buffet with vegetarian and gluten-free options. Everything is arranged from the hotel door — a licensed English-speaking driver, the 4x4, the camp and the shows.

Duration

7 hours

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Full-day desert safari

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families, couples and first-time desert visitors who want the full evening programme

From $45 per person No prepayment

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Recommended tour

Dubai Marina Shared Yacht Tour

It is the most stylish way to see the skyline without paying for a private charter: a premium yacht with spacious decks and 5-star hospitality, a red carpet at the pier and the crew helping with photos against JBR and Ain Dubai. Full pre-payment secures your slot — the hourly departures sell out — and the yacht leaves strictly on time.

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families, couples and anyone who wants the Marina skyline from the water without a private charter

From $32 per person Full prepayment

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Abu Dhabi City Tour from Dubai

It is the classic capital day in one organised loop: the mosque before the midday heat and crowds, the newly opened BAPS Mandir, the skyline from the Corniche, Bedouin history at Heritage Village and a photo op at Ferrari World. Transport, a licensed guide, mosque registration assistance and bottled water are included; the $45 shared tour covers all free-entry sites, and a private VIP car for up to 7 people is $245.

Duration

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Area

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families, seniors and first-time visitors who want the capital's landmarks in one day

From $45 per person No prepayment

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