Full-day tour
Abu Dhabi and Dubai in one day, in your own car
10–12 hours, door to doorStarts and ends at your Abu Dhabi address
Ten to twelve hours, two emirates and one chauffeur doing the driving, the parking and the waiting while you do the looking.
The Abu Dhabi & Dubai combined tour is a full day of 10 to 12 hours in a private chauffeur-driven vehicle, from AED 1,300 for the car rather than per person. It starts at your hotel or address in Abu Dhabi, covers Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and either Qasr Al Watan or Louvre Abu Dhabi in the morning, then Burj Khalifa, Dubai Mall and Dubai Marina in the afternoon, and brings you back to Abu Dhabi the same evening. The vehicle, the chauffeur, the fuel, the tolls, the parking and the waiting at every stop are inside the price; entrance tickets to the museums and the tower are not.
Quick answers
The questions people ask first
Short, complete answers to the things that decide the booking. The longer list is further down the page.
How long is the day?
Ten to twelve hours door to door. We agree the pickup time with you the day before — a morning start is normal, because the mosque is calmest early and it leaves the afternoon free for Dubai — and you are usually back at your Abu Dhabi address in the evening. The window is 10 to 12 hours rather than a single number because it depends on how long you linger inside each place and on the traffic on the E11, and neither of those is something we would pretend to know in advance.
Are entrance tickets included?
No. The price covers the vehicle, the chauffeur, fuel, Salik and tolls, parking and all the waiting; admission to Burj Khalifa, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Qasr Al Watan is bought by you, online in advance or at the door. We do not resell tickets and we do not add a booking fee to them. What we do instead is drop you at the correct visitor entrance and hold the car there for as long as you are inside, so the ticket is the only thing you have to think about. Entry to Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is free.
Where does the tour start and finish?
In Abu Dhabi, at any address you name — your hotel, a private residence, a villa on Saadiyat or Yas Island — and it ends back at that same address in the evening. Virtus holds an Abu Dhabi ITC licence, which authorises us to collect passengers in Abu Dhabi, so we cannot pick you up in Dubai or at Dubai airport for this tour. If you are staying in Dubai we will tell you that straight away rather than take the booking and disappoint you on the morning.
The day
Abu Dhabi & Dubai Combined Tour with a Virtus chauffeur
Most visitors to the UAE want to see both cities and have one free day to do it in. The usual answer is a seat on a coach: a fixed departure from a meeting point you have to reach yourself, forty other people to wait for at every stop, and a lunch break you did not choose. This is the other version of that day. You get the whole vehicle and a chauffeur who has driven the route hundreds of times, you are collected at your own door in Abu Dhabi, and the only schedule that matters is the one your group agrees on in the car.
The shape of the day is deliberate. Abu Dhabi first, while the light is good and the Grand Mosque is at its calmest, then the drive up the E11 with lunch in Dubai, then the tower and the Marina in the late afternoon when the city looks the way people photograph it. Between those stops your chauffeur handles the parts that ruin a self-driven version of the same day: which car park has space, which entrance the visitor gate actually is, where you can be dropped so nobody walks half a kilometre in August, and where they will be standing when you come out. You never carry a parking ticket, never queue at a barrier and never look for the car.
Practical things worth knowing before you book. The price is for the vehicle for the day, so two people and five people pay the same number — pick the class by how many seats and how much room you want, not by budget. Entrance tickets are not included and Burj Khalifa in particular sells timed slots, so buy that one in advance and send us the time; it is the only fixed point the day has to be built around. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has a dress code and its own visiting hours, both of which we go through with you when we confirm the booking. And the day is long: 10 to 12 hours door to door, which is why the same chauffeur and the same car stay with you from the first stop to the last rather than handing you over halfway.
Where the day goes
The route, morning to evening
Three parts to the day rather than a timetable to the minute. Visiting hours, prayer times and the road decide the exact clock, and we would rather be honest about that than print times we cannot hold.
Morning
Abu Dhabi: the mosque, then a palace or a museum
We collect you at your Abu Dhabi address in the morning and start with Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, which is at its best and its quietest early. After that you choose one of the other two: Qasr Al Watan if you want the palace and its gardens, Louvre Abu Dhabi if you would rather have the art. Doing all three and still reaching Dubai at a civilised hour would mean rushing all three, so we would rather you saw two of them properly.
Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
The landmark the day opens with, and the one stop that has a dress code: arms and legs covered, loose clothing, and a headscarf for women. The mosque sets its own visiting hours and they change on Fridays and through Ramadan, so we confirm the current times with you while we plan the day.
Qasr Al Watan
The presidential palace at Ras Al Akhdar, open to visitors: the Great Hall under its dome, the House of Knowledge and the gardens in front of it.
Entrance ticket not included — buy it online or at the door, and the car waits while you go in.
Louvre Abu Dhabi
The domed museum on Saadiyat Island, and the stop where an hour is never quite enough. Choose it over Qasr Al Watan if your group would rather have art than architecture.
Entrance ticket not included — buy it online or at the door, and the car waits while you go in.
Afternoon
Dubai: the tower, the mall and the Marina
About ninety minutes up the E11 and the afternoon belongs to Dubai. Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall come first — most groups eat here, and if you have booked an At The Top slot this is where it fits — and then Dubai Marina and the JBR beachfront while the light drops. Your chauffeur parks and waits at each one; you keep nothing but your phone and your tickets.
Burj Khalifa
The tallest building in the world, standing over Dubai Mall. The observation decks sell timed entry slots, so if you want to go up, book the slot yourself before the day and send us the time — we shape the afternoon around it.
Entrance ticket not included — buy it online or at the door, and the car waits while you go in.
The Dubai Mall
The aquarium, the fountain lake and several hundred shops at the foot of the tower. This is where the afternoon takes its natural break, and where most groups eat.
Dubai Marina
Towers, water and the JBR beachfront — the part of Dubai that looks best late in the day. A slow drive through it and a walk along the promenade before we turn for home.
Evening
Back to Abu Dhabi
In the evening we drive you home to the same Abu Dhabi address you were collected from, about 90 minutes down the E11. There is no second pickup to arrange, no taxi to find at the end of a long day and no extra fare for the return leg — it was in the price from the start, because the day was always a loop rather than a one-way trip.
Back to Abu Dhabi
The same car and the same chauffeur, back to the address you were collected from. It is about 90 minutes down the E11 and most guests sleep through it.
The order above is our recommendation, not a rule. Tell your chauffeur on the morning if you would rather swap two stops, drop one or spend the extra hour somewhere you like — as long as the day still ends back in Abu Dhabi, it is your day.
Included
What is inside the price
Everything below is in the fare we quote. There is no line added at the end and no upsell on the day.
A vetted chauffeur
ITC-licensed, English-speaking, and briefed on your route before the day starts.
The same chauffeur throughout
One driver and one car for the whole block, so nobody re-explains the plan at every stop and your things stay in the vehicle.
The car waits at every stop
Your chauffeur parks and stays with the vehicle for as long as you are inside — mosque, museum, tower or lunch. No meter runs on a tour day and no waiting charge is added at the end.
Chilled water on board
Bottled water in every vehicle, and the cabin cooled before you get in rather than after.
Tolls, Salik and parking
Every gate on the route and the parking at both ends are already inside the fare. Nothing is added afterwards.
One fixed, all-inclusive fare
The number we quote is the number you pay. No meter, no surge pricing, no rounding up when you arrive.
Not included
What the price does not cover
Three things, said plainly here rather than discovered at a ticket desk. Everything else about the day is in the number we quote.
Entrance tickets
Admission to Burj Khalifa, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Qasr Al Watan is bought by you, online in advance or at the door. We do not resell tickets and we add no booking fee — your chauffeur drops you at the right entrance and holds the car while you go in.
Licensed guiding
Your chauffeur is a professional ITC-licensed driver, not a licensed tourist guide. They know the roads, the parking and which door to use, and they will answer what they can — but they do not deliver commentary inside the monuments. Bring your own guide and we will carry them as one of your passengers.
Meals and anything you buy
Lunch, coffee and whatever you pick up along the way are yours. There is no set lunch stop on this day: tell your chauffeur when you are hungry, name a restaurant or ask for one near the next stop, and the car waits while you eat.
The car
Which vehicle will turn up
Pick the class that fits your party and your luggage. The chauffeur, the condition of the car and the fixed price are identical in all of them.
- Executive SedanOne to three passengers, luggage out of sight, an arrival that draws no attention. Where most weekday bookings end up.Up to 3 passengers2 large + 2 small bagsSee this class
- Luxury SUVFour passengers and real luggage space, in the class Uber Black riders in Abu Dhabi already know.Up to 4 passengers3 large + 2 small bagsSee this class
- Luxury VanFamilies, delegations and crews who would otherwise need two cars — kept together in one.Up to 7 passengers6 large + 4 small bagsSee this class
Good to know
More questions about this booking
The details that come up once the price is agreed.
Can we change the order of the stops?
Yes, and people often do. The itinerary is our recommendation after driving it many times, not a fixed programme: swap two stops, drop one you are not interested in, stay an extra hour somewhere you love, or add a stop of your own on the way. Tell the chauffeur in the car and they will re-plan the rest of the day around it. The only thing that does not move is the shape — it is a full day that begins and ends in Abu Dhabi.
What should I wear to Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque?
Modest, loose clothing that covers the arms and the legs, for men and women, and a headscarf covering the hair for women. Tight or transparent fabric is not accepted, and there is a dress check at the visitor entrance. The mosque also sets its own visiting hours, which are different on Fridays and during Ramadan; we check the current times before your day and build the morning around them rather than quoting you a schedule that may have changed. For the rest of the day normal comfortable clothes are fine — and shoes you can walk in, because Dubai Mall is bigger than it looks.
Is there a tour guide with us?
No, and we would rather be clear about it than let you assume otherwise. This is a chauffeur-driven car: your driver is an ITC-licensed professional who knows the roads, the parking, the right entrances and when each place is busiest, and they are happy to answer the questions they can. They are not a licensed tourist guide and do not give commentary inside the monuments. If you want a guide with you, book one and we will carry them along as one of your passengers at no extra charge, as long as everyone fits in the vehicle class you choose.
How many people can come?
One to seven, depending on the vehicle. An executive sedan takes up to three passengers, a luxury SUV up to four, and a luxury van up to seven with room for everyone's bags and shopping. Since the price is for the vehicle and not per seat, a family of five in one van pays the same as a couple in the same van — so choose the class by the space you want, not by the headcount alone.
What does AED 1,300 include?
It is the entry price for the whole vehicle for the whole day: the chauffeur, the fuel, Salik and every toll on the route, parking at each stop, chilled water on board and the waiting time while you are inside each place. It is not per person. The final number depends on the vehicle class you choose and on the exact day you want, and it is confirmed on WhatsApp before anything is booked. What it never contains is a surprise: no meter, no fuel surcharge at the end and no charge for the hours the car spends waiting for you.
Where do we eat lunch?
Wherever you like. There is no set lunch stop and no restaurant we are paid to take you to. Most groups eat in or around Dubai Mall in the middle of the afternoon because that is where the day naturally pauses, but if you would rather eat in Abu Dhabi before the drive, or stop somewhere on the way, say so in the car. Your chauffeur will suggest a few places near the next stop if you want ideas, and the vehicle waits while you eat. Meals are not in the price.
How far ahead should I book?
Two or three days ahead is comfortable, and a week is better in the winter season when the good days are taken early. We need the date, the number of passengers and your pickup address in Abu Dhabi to confirm a fixed price. If you also want to go up Burj Khalifa, buy that timed ticket as soon as you have the date and send us the slot — the tickets sell out long before our cars do, and the afternoon is easier to shape around a time we already know.
Other tours
Another day out?
- Abu Dhabi City TourA full day in one city: the Grand Mosque, Louvre Abu Dhabi, Emirates Palace and the Corniche, with the car waiting at each.See this tour
- Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque tourA half day with your own car and chauffeur: the mosque at its calmest, then the Corniche on the way home.See this tour
Book Abu Dhabi & Dubai Combined Tour on WhatsApp
Send the date, how many of you and your pickup address in Abu Dhabi. You get one fixed price for the vehicle back — no deposit, no app, no account.
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