Qasr Al Sarab Transfer: Cost, Options and Travel Times from Abu Dhabi and Dubai

The resort lies in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi emirate, south of Liwa Oasis and off the Hameem road, inside the dune belt of the Rub al Khali. It is a genuine desert location: the nearest town with fuel and shops is Madinat Zayed, roughly 90 km back towards the coast, and the nearest large hospital is in the same town.

Times assume normal daytime traffic. Add 30 to 45 minutes leaving Dubai on a Thursday afternoon or Abu Dhabi during the morning peak.

There are five ways to make the journey. The table below gives realistic one way costs from Abu Dhabi airport for a couple with luggage. Prices are 2026 estimates and every option other than the metered taxi is quoted per vehicle, not per person, so larger groups pay proportionally less.

Quick answer: for two people arriving at Abu Dhabi airport, a pre-booked private transfer at AED 450 to 650 each way is the best balance of cost and certainty. For four or more, a private 7 seater or a Land Cruiser tour that ends at the resort is cheaper per head than two taxis and removes the return problem.

Abu Dhabi's silver taxis are regulated by the Integrated Transport Centre and run on a single meter tariff: a flagfall of AED 5 by day or AED 5.50 at night, AED 1.82 per kilometre, and AED 0.50 per minute of waiting. Pick ups at the airport carry a surcharge of AED 20 for a standard car. Put those figures against a 205 km journey and the meter should read between AED 380 and 450 on arrival, a little more if you hit traffic leaving the city.

Three things to know before you get in. First, not every driver will accept the fare: it is a four to five hour round trip for them with no guarantee of a passenger back, so some decline at the airport rank. Booking through the Abu Dhabi Taxi app or by calling 600 535353 an hour ahead works better than hailing. Second, tell the driver the destination is the Anantara resort on the Hameem road, not "Liwa", which some map apps route to the oasis villages 40 km further on. Third, the taxi will not wait, and there is no taxi rank at the resort, which brings us to the return problem below.

Dubai taxis are a different matter. Journeys out of Dubai into another emirate are charged on inter-emirate bands rather than the standard meter, and a Dubai taxi to Qasr Al Sarab will cost AED 700 or more one way. A private transfer is cheaper from Dubai in almost every case.

A pre-booked private car is the option most resort guests end up choosing. The driver meets you in arrivals with a name board, the price is fixed in advance, and the same booking can cover the return. In 2026 a saloon car from Abu Dhabi airport is quoted at roughly AED 450 to 650 one way by the main transfer platforms and local limousine companies, with an SUV or 7 seater at AED 550 to 800. From Dubai the same vehicles run AED 750 to 1,100.

Look for three things when you compare quotes: whether the price includes waiting time if your flight is delayed, whether child seats are included or charged extra, and whether the company actually operates in Abu Dhabi rather than subcontracting a Dubai driver who has never driven the Hameem road. The last point matters more at night, when the turn off is easy to miss.

Qasr Al Sarab's concierge will arrange a chauffeured transfer from Abu Dhabi or Dubai in a luxury saloon or SUV, charged to your room. It is the most straightforward option, but it is also the most expensive: expect the rate to start around AED 800 from Abu Dhabi and AED 1,200 from Dubai, and to rise for larger vehicles and peak dates. The resort sets these prices and changes them without notice, so ask for the current figure when you book your room rather than relying on any third party quote, including this one.

The resort transfer makes most sense for guests on a package where it is already bundled, or for anyone who values having one bill and one point of contact more than the difference in cost.

Self drive is entirely practical. The route is dual carriageway or motorway from either city to the Hameem road, and the final approach from the turn off to the resort gates is a sealed, signposted road through the dunes. A normal hire car copes without difficulty, and a 4x4 is only worth hiring if you plan to drive off road, which the resort and Arabiers both advise against without a guide.

• Fill the tank in Madinat Zayed or at the last fuel station on the Hameem road. There is no fuel at the resort and the nearest station is about 60 km away.
• Download offline maps. Mobile signal is patchy for the final 40 km.
• Aim to arrive before sunset on your first visit. The turn off is well lit but the approach road has soft sand at the verges, and camels cross the Hameem road at dusk.
• Check the speed cameras. The E45 is camera controlled at 120 km/h and the Hameem road at 100 km/h; fines are attached to the hire car and passed on with an admin fee.
• Budget roughly AED 60 of fuel each way from Abu Dhabi and AED 100 from Dubai at 2026 pump prices, plus the daily hire rate.

The trade off is what you cannot do once you are there. Guests who arrive in a hire car and then want to drive the big dunes have to book a guided drive anyway, which is why many independent travellers combine a hire car for the transfer with a half day Liwa Sunset Champagne Tour collected from the resort.

Arabiers runs two kinds of journey to the resort. The first is a plain private transfer in a 7 seater such as a Toyota Previa, Honda Odyssey or Highlander, from AED 490 one way from Abu Dhabi, for guests who simply need to get there. The second, and the one most guests choose, is a Qasr Al Sarab day tour: a private Land Cruiser collects you in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, spends the day in the Empty Quarter with dune driving, Moreeb Dune and a camel farm, delivers you to the resort for lunch, dinner or cocktails, and either returns you to the city or leaves you at the resort to check in.

• Qasr Al Sarab Lunch and Liwa Day Tour
  Eight hours, private Land Cruiser, AED 1,890 per vehicle. Dune drive in the morning, lunch at the resort, drop at the resort or return to the city.
• Qasr Al Sarab Sunset Cocktail and Liwa Day Tour
  Eight hours, maximum four guests, AED 1,890. Afternoon dunes and sunset cocktails on the resort terrace.
• BBQ Dinner at Qasr Al Sarab Liwa Day Tour
  Full day with private chef and butler, AED 2,990 per vehicle. The most complete arrival you can arrange.

All three include pick up from any emirate, a driver holding Empty Quarter permits, water on board and free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure. Because the price is per vehicle for up to seven guests, a family of four arriving on the lunch tour pays less per person than two private transfers would cost, and gets the desert on the way in.

Getting to Qasr Al Sarab is easy to arrange. Getting back is where guests run into trouble, and it is the single most common reason people contact us from the resort. There is no taxi rank, ride hailing apps do not have cars in the area, and a taxi called from Madinat Zayed or Abu Dhabi will charge for the empty leg to reach you, which turns a AED 400 fare into AED 700 or more with a wait of two hours or longer.

Three ways to avoid it:

• Book the transfer as a return from the start. Private transfer companies and Arabiers both price the return leg at the same rate as the outbound.
• Use the resort concierge, accepting the higher rate, and confirm the pick up time the evening before.
• Book a Liwa tour for your departure day. A Liwa Day Tour can collect you from the resort after breakfast, spend the day in the dunes and drop you at your Abu Dhabi or Dubai hotel or airport that evening, which turns the return journey into part of the holiday rather than a cost.

The Liwa cluster of Arabiers tours is built around the resort, so the transfer question usually answers itself once you decide how many nights you are staying.

Guests who want a night under the stars rather than in the resort can pair a resort stay with the Liwa Overnight Camping Empty Quarter tour, which runs October to April and is collected from and returned to the resort on request.

The resort is open all year, but the transfer is more pleasant and the desert far more usable between October and April, when Liwa daytime temperatures range from 22 to 35°C. Summer transfers are fine in an air conditioned vehicle; it is what you can do once you arrive that is limited, with dune activity confined to dawn and the hour before sunset. For a month by month breakdown see our Liwa weather guide.

Two events affect availability and price. The Liwa International Festival at Moreeb Dune, the winter motorsport and heritage festival, runs from 11 December 2026 to 2 January 2027; rooms and transfers for those dates should be booked months ahead, and weekend traffic on the Hameem road is heavy. The Liwa Dates Festival is a separate agricultural fair held in July at Liwa Oasis and has little effect on resort demand.

Need a transfer or a tour to Qasr Al Sarab?

Send us your arrival details and group size and we will quote a private transfer or a Land Cruiser tour that ends at the resort. Pick up from any emirate, Emirati drivers with Empty Quarter permits, free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.

See Liwa and Qasr Al Sarab tours