Getting around Dubai without a car

Plenty of Australians in Dubai never buy a car. It works if you live near a metro station, carry the right Nol card and accept that from June to September, every walk is a short one.

The short version

One card, the Nol, pays for the metro, tram and buses. In 2026 a Silver card fare costs AED 3 within one zone and AED 7.50 across more than two zones [1].
Register your card if you're a resident: only registered Silver and Gold cards can buy 30, 90 and 365-day passes [1].
The metro has two lines, Red and Green, with Gold Class and women-and-children cabins. A 30 km Blue Line is due on 9 September 2029 [2][3].
Taxis are metered and regulated by the RTA. Book through an app and the minimum fare is AED 13 [5].
Flights home leave from DXB. DWC isn't expected to take over passenger traffic until the 2030s [6].

Which Nol card should you get?

Nol is Dubai's transport smart card, run by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). Tap on and tap off, and the fare is worked out by the zones you cross. Dubai has seven fare zones [1].

Card	Who it's for	1 zone	2 zones	3+ zones
Red Ticket	Paper ticket for visitors and occasional trips	AED 4	AED 6	AED 8.50
Silver	The everyday card. Anonymous or registered	AED 3	AED 5	AED 7.50
Gold	Gold Class cabins on the metro and tram	AED 6	AED 10	AED 15
Blue (Personal)	Registered card with your name and photo	AED 3	AED 5	AED 7.50

Fares are from the RTA's 2026 fare page [1]. Children aged five and under travel free on all cards [1].

Silver or Blue?

For most Australian adults, a registered Silver card is the pick. It's cheap, it's sold at every station, and once registered, it can carry the longer passes. The Blue personal card carries your name and photo. It's the card for discounts: students and some other groups get 50% off with it, and people of determination (people with disability) travel free [1]. If you have kids at university in Dubai, look at the Blue card for them.

A registered card is linked to you, which helps if it's lost or you need a refund. An anonymous card is just cash in plastic.

Passes: worth it if you commute

Pass	Silver, 1 zone	Silver, 2 zones	Silver, all zones
7 days	AED 50	AED 80	AED 110
30 days	AED 140	AED 230	AED 350
90 days	AED 330	AED 550	AED 830
365 days	AED 1,060	AED 1,770	AED 2,670

Gold passes cost double [1]. Anonymous cards can only load the 7-day pass. For 30 days or longer, the card must be registered [1]. A daily metro commute across two zones costs AED 10 return, so the 30-day two-zone pass pays for itself at around 23 return trips.

How Dubai's metro differs from home

There's no Opal or Myki-style daily cap, so passes do the job of a cap. Dubai is also strict about rules on board. Eating or drinking where it's banned costs AED 100, smoking costs AED 200, and carrying alcohol on the metro costs AED 500 [2]. That includes a bottle of water on the platform, so wait until you're out of the paid area.

The metro, tram and buses

Red and Green lines

The Red Line is the spine of the city. It runs along Sheikh Zayed Road through Downtown, Business Bay, Dubai Marina and Jebel Ali, and stops at both DXB Terminal 1 and Terminal 3. The Green Line loops through old Dubai: Deira, Bur Dubai, Al Karama and Dubai Healthcare City. The two lines meet at Union and BurJuman. The trains are driverless and air-conditioned, which in August is the main selling point.

Gold Class is a cabin at the front of the train with leather seats and better views. You need a Gold card or Gold Red Ticket to sit there [1][2]. The women and children cabins are next to it and are for women and children only [2]. Men who wander in will be asked to move, and inspectors can fine them, so watch the floor markings and signs on the platform.

The Blue Line, from 2029

The planned Blue Line will run 30 km with 14 stations. One branch starts at Creek on the Green Line and runs through Dubai Festival City, Dubai Creek Harbour, International City and Dubai Silicon Oasis to Academic City. The other starts at Centrepoint on the Red Line and runs through Mirdif and Al Warqa [3]. The opening target is 9 September 2029 [3]. If you're renting in Mirdif or Silicon Oasis now, plan on driving or taxis until then.

Dubai Tram and buses

The Dubai Tram runs through Dubai Marina, JBR and Al Sufouh and links with the Red Line. It uses the same Nol card and has its own Gold Class surcharge [1]. Buses also run on Nol and fill the gaps between stations. Bus stops are air-conditioned, but services on some routes are infrequent, so check the RTA app's journey planner before you rely on one.

Taxis, Careem and Uber

Dubai's taxis are regulated by the RTA, metered and generally clean. You'll see the cream cars with coloured roofs, plus women-only taxis driven by women.

Hail on the street. Street hailing is still normal across most of the city.
Book through an app. RTA taxis can be booked through Careem (look for Hala) and Uber, alongside private limousine options.
Prices. From November 2025, app-booked taxis had a minimum fare of AED 13, and the per-kilometre rate was AED 1.97. Flag fall depends on the time of day, with surcharges in peak hours. Taxis from the airport start at AED 25 [5]. Prices are tied to fuel costs and change often.

Smartraveller has a specific warning for Australians: be careful using a taxi when you've been drinking. A dispute with the driver, or being sick in the car, can turn into a police matter [4]. Tipping isn't compulsory, but rounding up is common.

E-scooters, cycling and walking in the heat

E-scooters need a permit

You need a free RTA permit to ride an e-scooter in Dubai, and you must be at least 16 [7]. You can only ride in designated areas such as Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard, Jumeirah Lakes Towers, City Walk, Palm Jumeirah and Al Barsha. Wear a helmet and a reflective jacket, and ride alone with no passengers [7]. You can take a folded scooter on the metro if it fits the luggage rules. Use the wide gate and the lift, not the escalator [7]. Rental scooter apps check the permit when you sign up.

Walking

Dubai is built for cars, and the heat is the real barrier. From June to September, daytime temperatures routinely sit in the 40s, so a 10-minute walk to the station is a sweaty one. Plenty of stations connect to malls via enclosed air-conditioned walkways, for example Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates and BurJuman. When you're choosing a flat, "near the metro" should mean you can see a station from the lobby. From October to April, walking along Dubai Marina, the Creek or Jumeirah Beach is a pleasure.

Flights home: DXB vs DWC

Dubai has two international airports, and for now only one matters for Australians.

	DXB, Dubai International	DWC, Al Maktoum International
Where	Garhoud, close to Deira and Downtown	Dubai South, near Jebel Ali and Expo City
Getting there	Red Line to Terminals 1 and 3, taxis	Car or taxi
Flights to Australia	Long-haul flights to Australian cities leave from here	Not a practical option yet
Future	Operations to move to DWC in phases	First major phase expected in the early 2030s [6]

Dubai Airports expects DXB to handle about 70 million passengers in 2026. The move to DWC will happen in phases, once the first stage of the new airport can handle 150 million passengers a year [6]. Expect that in the 2030s, not before.

A note of caution. Smartraveller currently advises Australians to reconsider their need to travel to the UAE because of the unpredictable regional security situation, and warns that airspace closures and flight cancellations can happen with little notice [4]. In September 2026, Dubai Airports reported airline capacity at 84% of previous levels and some carriers still to resume [6]. Book flexible fares where you can, and register your trips with Smartraveller.

Setting up without a car: a checklist

Buy a Silver Nol card at any metro station on your first day, and top it up at the machines or in the app.
Register it once you have your Emirates ID, so you can buy 30, 90 and 365-day passes [1].
Download the RTA Dubai app for journey planning and card top-ups.
Get Careem and Uber on your phone for nights out and airport runs.
Choose your home by the line, not by the map. Red Line and tram areas are easiest.
Apply for an e-scooter permit if you'll ride one [7].
Keep a licence option open. If you'll want a car later, see our guide to the RTA licence swap.

Not sure if your commute works without a car? Ask the locals in Cooee UAE, our Facebook group for Australians in the UAE.

Getting around Dubai without a car: Nol cards, the metro and taxis