Riyadh to Dubai

Cannot imagine it will be an interesting drive , but here goes - all you needed to do was ask the question on google to see what comes up:

http://www.simbacom.com/riyadh-ksa/useful/uae.html

Drive to the UAE

Contrary to what you may surmise by looking at maps of KSA, you DON'T need to drive to the UAE via the Dammam road.

For a few years there has been a perfectly good road that doesn't appear on any of the “older” maps, and in the process it takes off over 100km from the “old” journey via Hofuf.

First, the basics. You can comfortably drive from Riyadh to Dubai in about 10 hours (to Abu Dhabi in about nine hours). It's an easy drive, with the biggest danger being falling asleep at the wheel from the relentlessly unchanging countryside as you drive through the emirate of Abu Dhabi! From Riyadh to the border is about 520kms. From the border to Dubai Trade Centre (25o 13.69' N; 55o 17.41' E) is about 480kms. ........... check out the link above for more info.

Good luck with the drive, if you decide to go - come back and tell us all about the journey, will make an interesting post.  Drive safely

Take the wife and share the driving

Oops silly me forgot where I was

MaserMan wrote:

Take the wife and share the driving

Oops silly me forgot where I was

good one!

I will most likely travel in May for handover, along with my wife and kids. Will definitely share my experience with you all.
Cheers

It will be a long drive, keep on taking rest with regular intervals,Two drivers will be a good idea.

yes am thinking to let my wife drive few hundred km

be careful ,, there is an area in the road to Dubai does not have any gas station ..and its long one about 100 km. ,, you should ask the locals to avoid any troubles ..   cheers

A long drive like that will be sure taxing on a single driver. And yes there are some stretches of lonely road without even a service station nearby. Get a full check of the car. get a jerry can of Petrol, another can of water. Just in case. you will be travelling across the Rub al Khali.. its not called the Empty quarter for no reason.. May can get hot during the daytime. but then its always recommended that you do drive during the day.

also check the weather forecast and be careful for sand storms.

Jill and I did a tour of UAE and Oman last Feb. I drove to Bahrain then to Abu Dhabi to meet Jill. We travelled to Seeb and down the empty quarter to Salalah then back via Nizwa.
I left Jill at Abu Dhabi at 7am, arriving back at Riyadh at 7pm and I was doing about 130kph most of the time(but don't quote me).
Total distance 7894 km and Jill did about 2 hours of it. LOL

Directions to Dubai/Abu Dhabi (UAE) from Riyadh

Follow signs for KHARJ from Riyadh (Ring road/King Fahad Highway).

Continue driving to KHARJ until you reach KHRAJ town.

Watch out for a big water tower on the left.

At the next set of traffic lights (Al Rajhi Bank on left) turn left towards Harad.

Go straight (roundabouts) and follow the sign for Harad & Batha (KSA-UAE Border)

Petrol Stations to Boarder - Approx 110, 178, 350 and 420 KM.

Check point (Harad) – approx 270KM

Total Distance from Riyadh to Batha (KSA-UAE Border) approx 560KM.

Saudi Border (Batha) Check points

1st Check point handover Drivers Passport, Estimara, likely question - how many passengers?
The officer must return a ‘car paper' listing car registration details and number of passengers traveling

2nd Check point handover All Passports & Car paper (Exit Stamp)

3rd Check point inspection car paper and passports – now drive towards UAE border

UAE Border (Al Ghewfiat) Check points

1st Check point park your car and take all passports to get UAE Visas & take the car paper with you for stamping.

1b. it's quite possible that you/adult will be asked for retina scan.

2nd Check point all documents checked - car paper/estimara/all passports.

3rd Check point UAE Customs drive through the scanners, don't go into the last lane (ensure car paper stamped)

Drive out & park your car left side, get out of car & get compulsory third-party insurance. (SAR100)

4th Check point - checks all passports and give car paper away.

Abu Dahbi is only 360 KM and Dubai is 480 KM from Al Ghewfiat Border.

Follow signs for Abu Dahbi (E11 ) and when you get closer to Abu Dahbi you will see the sign for Dubai.

Most petrol stations are modern in UAE (decent ADNOC service station is 125 KM from the Border -left side).

Return journey to Saudi

From Dubai follow signs for Abu Dhabi - E11 Sheikh Ziad Road (motorway). Petrol is expensive in UAE so fill
your car with enough petrol to get you to Saudi border.

ON E11 Sheikh Ziad Road look for sign Al Ghewfiat - don't miss this., its approx 60-70 KM from Dubai
If you miss the sign then look for Al Tarif or Sila or Al Sila (Border Town)

Last ADNOC service station is 353 KM from Dubai (125km from UAE border) – last chance to use a decent washroom.

UAE Border Check points

1st Check point present Estimara- The officer returns ‘car paper' listing car details and number of passengers traveling

2nd Check point Park the car and go to visa office (building) on your left (family can stay in the car)
a. Visit any serving counter to get exit stamp & pay 35 Dirham per passport (exact amount – Dirham only)
b. Ensure all passports including the car paper stamped
Saudi Border Check points
1st Check point show passports/car paper (Exit-Reentry Stamp)
2nd Check point Saudi customs check, park the car and get the luggage checked and get the car paper stamped

3rd Check point drive through as this window for visitors seeking Saudi insurance,

4th Check point just hand over the car paper to the official
if you want to travel via Kharj, look for signs to Riyadh/HARAD after the 2nd petrol station on your right,
otherwise stay on the road and follow the sign for Hafof.

Riyadh is 560KM from Border via Kharj and approx 625KM via Hafof/Al-AHSA.

Please drive carefully and watch out for sand dunes and camels, specially if traveling via KHARJ

Hey SaudiUK, that's a great deal of very useful information.
@all else, some good tipbits.
I still don't see why anyone would want to drive that journey, but if you are, best be well prepared and this post seems to make that possible.

just a quick question - will the Garmin GPS follow the same route both ways if we select Dubai as a final destination (just like I did for Bahrain).

I'm just curious because I will be taking this trip very soon and the way everyone's describing the directions (including keeping track of roundabouts), it seems like the machine might take me on a different route.

Obviously you can assume the maps are updated (2010).

@gowiththeflowUK- adventure! the ideas differ from person to person. I love road trips even though it gets tiring.

I know what you mean though! some eyes popped out when my friends heard I drove to Makkah and Bahrain..and even more when i told them i finished 900 kms in 6 hours!

@the_blade - I hear you on the adventure angle, hey if I had my way I would have rode back from South Africa to the UK on a motorbike but I couldn't get anyone brave enough to do the journey with me (this was pre-husband)!  So, as I said before, be well prepared, drive safely and have a great adventure!

hi i wanted to know about the working hours of the two border immigration offices... i am planning a trip, and would prefer travelling at night... if the Saudi & UAE borders are open 24 hours it would be great... would like to know their Ramadan working hours

I didnt read the whole thread I would just like to know how many km its form riyadh to dubai?

By aeroplane 1hr 40min plus exit reentry visa for Saudi Arabia and a Visa for UAE.

Distance - Riyadh to UAE border 560 KM
           UAE Border to Dubai Down Town - 480KM

Passport Control - open 24 hours (but night time driving is not recommended, you will see camels on the road!!!

hi, i have done this journey several times and it's a royal pain in the ass. i rely on a garmin and head out the dammam highway for about 100 km or so then veer off to right towards hofuf.
it is vitally important to take the correct bypass road around hofuf. if you get lost in hofuf you are in serious trouble.
after hofuf head to salwa and take a right at that roundabout.
the route is signposted reasonably well.
top up with petrol when possible and bear in mind that petrol in the uae is about 3 times more expensive than ksa.
if the vehicle is registered in your own name you will have to produce the 'estimara' at the saudi border for customs.
if the car is not in your name you will have to have a special green/white color from the ksa police granting you permission (mentioning your name as it appears in your passport) to drive the vehicle out of ksa.
you will do the saudi border easily without leaving the car.
once you get into the uae side you will have to enter the emigration building to get an eye scan for the uae visa.
once through the uae customs you will have to buy car insurance - immediately to your left after uae customs. park there and approach any kiosk. It's about SAR 100 for a week or two.
now you have the most boring 3 hour drive to abu dhabi adn note that you will not trigger the speed radar cameras if you stay at 139 kph or below.
i hate that part of the journey.
happy driving. if you need any further tips just send me a message
it's about 10 hours door to door without exceeding 140 kph

I live in riyadh and planning to go to Abu Dhabi (by road) in October.
The comments I am getting are pretty confusing about road status etc.

will do more research before planning.

m

SaudiUK wrote:

Directions to Dubai/Abu Dhabi (UAE) from Riyadh

Follow signs for KHARJ from Riyadh (Ring road/King Fahad Highway).

Continue driving to KHARJ until you reach KHRAJ town.

Watch out for a big water tower on the left.

At the next set of traffic lights (Al Rajhi Bank on left) turn left towards Harad.

Go straight (roundabouts) and follow the sign for Harad & Batha (KSA-UAE Border)

Petrol Stations to Boarder - Approx 110, 178, 350 and 420 KM.

Check point (Harad) – approx 270KM

Total Distance from Riyadh to Batha (KSA-UAE Border) approx 560KM.

Saudi Border (Batha) Check points

1st Check point handover Drivers Passport, Estimara, likely question - how many passengers?
The officer must return a ‘car paper' listing car registration details and number of passengers traveling

2nd Check point handover All Passports & Car paper (Exit Stamp)

3rd Check point inspection car paper and passports – now drive towards UAE border

UAE Border (Al Ghewfiat) Check points

1st Check point park your car and take all passports to get UAE Visas & take the car paper with you for stamping.

1b. it's quite possible that you/adult will be asked for retina scan.

2nd Check point all documents checked - car paper/estimara/all passports.

3rd Check point UAE Customs drive through the scanners, don't go into the last lane (ensure car paper stamped)

Drive out & park your car left side, get out of car & get compulsory third-party insurance. (SAR100)

4th Check point - checks all passports and give car paper away.

Abu Dahbi is only 360 KM and Dubai is 480 KM from Al Ghewfiat Border.

Follow signs for Abu Dahbi (E11 ) and when you get closer to Abu Dahbi you will see the sign for Dubai.

Most petrol stations are modern in UAE (decent ADNOC service station is 125 KM from the Border -left side).

Return journey to Saudi

From Dubai follow signs for Abu Dhabi - E11 Sheikh Ziad Road (motorway). Petrol is expensive in UAE so fill
your car with enough petrol to get you to Saudi border.

ON E11 Sheikh Ziad Road look for sign Al Ghewfiat - don't miss this., its approx 60-70 KM from Dubai
If you miss the sign then look for Al Tarif or Sila or Al Sila (Border Town)

Last ADNOC service station is 353 KM from Dubai (125km from UAE border) – last chance to use a decent washroom.

UAE Border Check points

1st Check point present Estimara- The officer returns ‘car paper' listing car details and number of passengers traveling

2nd Check point Park the car and go to visa office (building) on your left (family can stay in the car)
a. Visit any serving counter to get exit stamp & pay 35 Dirham per passport (exact amount – Dirham only)
b. Ensure all passports including the car paper stamped
Saudi Border Check points
1st Check point show passports/car paper (Exit-Reentry Stamp)
2nd Check point Saudi customs check, park the car and get the luggage checked and get the car paper stamped

3rd Check point drive through as this window for visitors seeking Saudi insurance,

4th Check point just hand over the car paper to the official
if you want to travel via Kharj, look for signs to Riyadh/HARAD after the 2nd petrol station on your right,
otherwise stay on the road and follow the sign for Hafof.

Riyadh is 560KM from Border via Kharj and approx 625KM via Hafof/Al-AHSA.

Please drive carefully and watch out for sand dunes and camels, specially if traveling via KHARJ

Man you're just too good. awesome detailng.

Dear all,

just searched Riyadh to Dubai and found this forum. So detailed and so accurate were some post that i could not resist registering myself to RAISE QUESTION.

I have Nissan Sunny 1300 cc in very good working condition. I am planning to take my family to Dubai next week on Eid Adha holidays.

Road directions are clear. IS it OK to go in small car like Nissan.

Any other tip as i have small kids but willing to explore this adventure.

take care

optamistic wrote:

Dear all,

just searched Riyadh to Dubai and found this forum. So detailed and so accurate were some post that i could not resist registering myself to RAISE QUESTION.

I have Nissan Sunny 1300 cc in very good working condition. I am planning to take my family to Dubai next week on Eid Adha holidays.

Road directions are clear. IS it OK to go in small car like Nissan.

Any other tip as i have small kids but willing to explore this adventure.

take care

1300 cc with family, you can stil make it but considering the fast driving ~170-180 and some people even drive Camry at 220. Those guys passing by will def not please you much.

But if you have no alternatives, then go for it.

best of luck

Hi guys,

I will be going to AbuDhabi from Riyadh with my wife next weekend InshaAllah for around 10 days,.. hopefully will be fun

any suggestions for the safe route?? Kharj one??
also, where can i get that mud-like thing or some solution to protect car from little stones.

any suggestions to make long-drive a bit easy will be welcome

better to take riyadh-hofuf-salwa-batha/alghuwaifat track. Drive during the day as some track are not fenced and very dark at night.

I lived in Dubai for a few years until transplanting 3 weeks ago. I have my car in Dubai still and some things that were too big for the plane coming here. In 3 weeks, Ill be flying to Dubizzle, and driving the hummer back. Ill let you all know.

the_blade wrote:

better to take riyadh-hofuf-salwa-batha/alghuwaifat track. Drive during the day as some track are not fenced and very dark at night.

Yeah, no way  I willd rive during the night.

By default googlemaps/tomtom will showwhich route?

Someone mentioned that there is a short-cut route that saves 100 KM but unsafe.. I dont want to take that one but not sure which one is that.
Whether it is one that starts from dammam highway and then takes turn for Hufouf or one that strats from Kharj and then big tower on the left etc.

can you clarify pls?

Jimmybranco wrote:

I lived in Dubai for a few years until transplanting 3 weeks ago. I have my car in Dubai still and some things that were too big for the plane coming here. In 3 weeks, Ill be flying to Dubizzle, and driving the hummer back. Ill let you all know.

@jimmy: hey do share your experience with us. For me, I am leaving just next week

thanks

I plan to travel by bus to Abu Dhabi this coming Hajj holidays. Can I get my visit visa on Abu Dhabi border? My residence permit says "Systems Analyst". I usually get my visit visa upon arrival at the airport just like last Ramadan holidays. But since this is the first time I will travel by bus, I want to make sure that the same rules applies.

Any advise will help me tremendously.

I thought of driving my own car (a Jeep Cherokee), which I used to drive from Riyadh to Bahrain (about 4-1/2 hours drive) but on second thought...I am alone and would be too much for me to drive long hours (approximately 10 hours). So I decided to take the bus instead. Is it a must to have UAE Dirhams with you before travelling or is there currency exchange counter at the border?

Please advise.

Hey!
I have traveled MANY times from Riyadh to Dubai and back I love those road trips...
And nope you don't really need to have Dirhams, they usually accept riyals on the border...but just to be on the safe side I would advise you to keep atleast 300-500 AED.

I'm done and back to Riyadh safe and sound from my travel to Abu Dhabi. Travel by bus is not bad at all especially going out of Riyadh. I got off the bus at Mafraq area nearly 12 hours from departure. But the return is a nightmare. It took us all of 16 hours plus to reach SAPTCO bus terminal in Riyadh.

The first surprised I encountered was the departure. We are supposed to leave at 6:30pm from Abu Dhabi but the bus coming from Dubai was late as it reached Abu Dhabi almost 8:00pm.

The second surprised was at the Saudi border. It took us approximately 2 hours to complete the formalities including baggage check (by scanner) plus K9 dog sniffer while we are off the bus and at the waiting lounge.

The third one was the stopover we made at Al Ahsaa (Hofuf)for nearly an hour and a half. Our ticket shows direct to Riyadh and we are not made aware that we will be making stopover at Al Ahsaa.

The final nail at the coffin was when we enter Riyadh and surprised to find out all roads were blocked due to oil tanker explosion earlier in the day. To say it was chaos is an understatement.

Anyway, it was such an experience to travel by bus. Going was relatively a breeze from boarding at SAPTCO station, to the borders of KSA and UAE, all the way to your final destination, in my case Abu Dhabi.

And yes, you don't necessarily need Dirhams as they accept Riyals too to pay the visa fee of (UAE 105/-/SAR 110/-). While exit visa is UAE 35/-.

Notes to remember: Do not forget to bring your iqama with you. However, copy will do as they will check your residency visa if you are allowed to enter UAE. At the KSA border, the bus driver will collect all your passports and exit/re-entry visa for stamping. While at the UAE border, you have to get off and proceed to a building where you will present your passport and copy of iqama on the counter and you will be given a form to fill up. Please make sure you have the address where you will stay in Dubai or Abu Dhabi ready. Afterwhich you will proceed to a small room for eye scan and stamping of the filled up form before going back to the counter to pay the visa fee.

If you are going to Abu Dhabi, make sure to get off at Mafraq (near Bawabat Al Sharq Mall) where private enterprenuers in their private cars are waiting if you need a ride to go to Abu Dhabi city center (no taxi is available in that area). The cost is UAE 50/.- all the way to Madinat Zayed (Lulu Hypermarket). Make sure the bus driver knows that you will get off at Mafraq. If you fail, you will veer further away from Abu Dhabi and worst you will end up in Dubai.

Travel time from UAE border to Mafraq is about 3 hours plus.

SAPTCO office in Abu Dhabi called Bilad Al Sham is at Mafraq just beside Mafraq Police and Patrol Station. It is also very Etihad tower. This is where you should go if you are going back to Riyadh from Abu Dhabi as their bus stop by their office to pick up passengers from Abu Dhabi. The tel number of SAPTCO office in Abu Dhabi is 00971 2 582 6331. While the SAPTCO office in Dubai is 00971 4 271 0620.

Cost of round-trip ticket (RUH-AUH-RUH) is SAR 270/.- only. You can book/get your ticket on any SAPTCO offices in the city not necessarily in Haraj area (their main station). There is one in Batha at the back of Al Tassaj chicken house and one also beside Al Khozama hotel in Olaya. However, you need to present your exit/re-entry and iqama.

pkmusd wrote:

the_blade wrote:

better to take riyadh-hofuf-salwa-batha/alghuwaifat track. Drive during the day as some track are not fenced and very dark at night.

Yeah, no way  I willd rive during the night.

By default googlemaps/tomtom will showwhich route?

Someone mentioned that there is a short-cut route that saves 100 KM but unsafe.. I dont want to take that one but not sure which one is that.
Whether it is one that starts from dammam highway and then takes turn for Hufouf or one that strats from Kharj and then big tower on the left etc.

can you clarify pls?

The short route is the one that starts from Kharj where you will pass by NADEC and Al Marai. The road is now safe as it is newly asphalted and lighted (not all the way are lighted though). It surely cuts off approximately 100kms.

Malem50

Sounds like you had some fun!

I am one of the luck ones as a UK passport holder there is no visa fees for me into the UAE

Martin Fin wrote:

Malem50

Sounds like you had some fun!

I am one of the luck ones as a UK passport holder there is no visa fees for me into the UAE

Or for Americans, either.  I must admit I was *stunned* (for once, pleasantly stunned lol).

Hi All,

Just returned back to Saudi after completing a road trip to dubai.Please send me a message and would be glad to share all posible information.

MYRK wrote:

Hi All,

Just returned back to Saudi after completing a road trip to dubai.Please send me a message and would be glad to share all posible information.

Why not share it HERE on forum as Malem50 has done?  The purpose of a forum is to publicly share information, not send private messages.