United Arab Emirates: Getting there & around

The country's main international airports are in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, though an increasing number of carriers are servicing Sharjah as well. Smaller international airports serve Ras al-Khaimah, Fujairah and Al-Ain. There are daily services to most major European cities from Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and also to major Middle Eastern and Gulf cities. There are also connections to the USA, North Africa, the Indian Subcontinent and Australia. There's no airport departure tax.

There are daily bus services between Dubai and Muscat (in Oman) as well as Abu Dhabi and Muscat. Regular bus services operate between both Dubai and Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, though there are no bus or taxi services to Qatar. Boats ply between Sharjah and Bandar-é Abbas in Iran; the voyage takes 12 hours each way.

Given the short flying time, there is no inter-city air service between the seven emirates.

There are now regular bus services between every destination you would wish to visit in the UAE, however, having your own wheels here is a definite advantage. Car rental is only slightly more expensive than in Western countries, and is relatively easy to arrange in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The highways are in excellent shape, it's only the odd errant camel, low-flying Mercedes and sheer boredom brought on by the often-featureless landscape that should trouble you. In the cities (especially in often grid-locked Dubai), however, chaos reigns supreme, self-preservation dictates that you should drive defensively - because no one else is. You drive on the right in the UAE, most of the time, and roundabouts are a test of courage.

Only Dubai and Al-Ain have public bus networks useful to travellers. Taxis across the country generally have working meters - if you get in one that doesn't, get out and wait for one that does.