Review: Dubai to Salalah Bus Journey, Bus Time, Ticket Fare and Experience

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Gulf Transport Company GTC Bus - Dubai to Salalah by Bus

Dubai to Salalah By Road

In addition to the flights, Salalah is accessible by road from United Arab Emirates as Oman and UAE shares a border. So all seven Emirates of United Arab Emirates; Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Fujairah, Sharjah, Dubai, Ras al-Khaimah and Umm al-Qaiwain (In Arabic: أبو ظبي, عجمان, دبي, الفجيرة, رأس الخيمة, الشارقة, أم القيوين) are connected to Oman and Salalah by road. So no matter where you are living in UAE, you can come to Salalah by Road. Other Gulf states like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait are also connected to Salalah by road through UAE. From Dubai to Salalah, the travel time is around 12 to 16 hours, depending on the type of vehicle.

Salalah during Khareef Season

Dubai to Salalah Bus Journey

Dubai to Salalah by bus is a very common mode of transportation and there is a daily bus departing from Deira 3 pm (Operator Name: GTC: Gulf Transport Company). This is 40 to 45 seats air-conditioned bus. This is the only direct Dubai to Salalah bus.

 

 

 

The other bus service is from Mwasalat, but it runs Dubai to Muscat and Muscat to Salalah Bus service.

 

Location of Deira Bus Station

GTC Station is present in Deira Dubai. To avoid the last minute confusion, check the location: Check the Contact Details and Location of GTC Office in Deira Dubai

 

Journey from Dubai to Salalah

We have traveled with bus (GTC) one time from Dubai to Salalah / Salalah to Dubai in Oct 2013. Bus from Dubai to Salalah departs in the afternoon 3 pm. The bus stop for GTC is in Deira, Dubai. It is highly recommended that you reach the stop at least 1 hour before the departure of the bus. There is no prior seat selection in the ticket, so the seats are occupied on first come first serve basis. If you come late may be your family will be split at different location across the bus.  This was the case with couple of families traveling with us.

The bus will have a direct journey to Salalah, but on the way there will 3 to 4 stops for praying, food and toilets break.

 

Tips:

  • It is recommended to carry water, food, book, small pillow or blanket for a comfortable ride in the bus.
  • You are allowed to have one suitcase for luggage and one hand carry and that will not be weigh like airlines.
  • There will not be Wi-Fi in the bus so check with mobile service provider in UAE for activating GPRS (4G) on your phone in Oman.
  • Arrive at least 1 hour prior to the bus departure time and be the first in the queue to select the best seats

 

The Last Hour Journey from Dubai to Salalah

We reached Salalah next morning at 7 am. The ride of the bus is the best in the last 1 hour before reaching Salalah as you will be passing through the famous Dhofar Mountains, which are around 3000 feet in altitude. These mountains are green and have fog in Khareef season (July / August each year). The view of Salalah city from this elevation is extraordinary at dawn. So I would highly recommend that you focus on the last part of the journey and don’t miss it.

 

Location of Bus Stop in Salalah

GTC Bus stop in Salalah is located on 23rd July Street, which is one of the main roads of Salalah. The bus station is located in City Center right next to the Central Market.

Recommended Hotels to Stay Near Bus Stop in Salalah

Since you are traveling by Bus, it’s better to stay near the bus stop. This will give you provision to stay in the center of the Salalah city, plus you can save the amount of Taxi fare to travel from the Bus stop to the Hotel. There are many Indian / Pakistani / Omani / Veg Restaurants at the walking distance from the bus station or the hotels nearby.

The hotels mentioned below are at the walking distance of the bus stop.

 

Both of these hotels are in front of the Iconic Sultan Qaboos Masjid, the largest masjid in Salalah and are near to K.M. Trading, one of the largest hypermarket in Salalah. There are many restaurants nearby to eat good food without paying much. Vegetarian and Pakistani / Indian restaurants are at walking distance from both of these hotels.

 

Recommended Apartments to Stay Near Bus Stop in Salalah

An Apartment is a great way to stay for a bigger family and reduce the cost of your stay. You can cook food in the kitchen and there will not a restriction of double occupancy like the hotel room. You can book Apartments at best rates near GTC Bus Stop, following are some of the apartments nearby:

 

Dubai to Salalah Bus Fare

The bus journey is pretty economical. In fact its unbelievable rates.  We paid OMR 18 (in 2013) for both ways ticket i.e. Salalah to Dubai and Dubai to Salalah. One way ticket was OMR 10. If you are staying away from Dubai office of GTC, the tickets can be booked by Beautiful Salalah International, Office in Salalah. They charge OMR 5 service charges for booking each ticket. Contact Beautiful Salalah International +968 9120 6678 or email info@beautifulsalalah.com

In my opinion, Booking via Beautiful Salalah International is the easiest way to book the ticket else you have to go to Deira office, find parking for your car, waste time in going to Deira office.

 

Experience of Salalah to Dubai / Dubai to Salalah by Bus : Great Value for Money

Luggage:

You can lock your bigger bags and put them in the bus luggage compartment. You cannot travel with a lot of hand carry as there is a small over head compartment. Although, you can put hand carry luggage on your seat or besides your leg, if it cannot accommodate in the over head compartment.

Seats:

Seats are okay as you can expect in a bus, don't compare with airline seats. The seats do not have big leg space so expect to be tired at the end of the journey. Keeping the luggage besides your leg will make your leg space even lesser. So pack a small hand carry or put the luggage in the bigger bags and put them in the luggage compartment.

No Seat Numbers:

There are no seat numbers on the booked tickets. Before the start of the journey, the passengers have to rush inside the bus well in advance and grab the best seats or if you are travelling with the family, you have to grab the seats together. Else all the passengers will not get the seats together. We have seen passengers sitting away from the family as the seats were not available together and passengers arriving early or managing to get inside the bus early have kept the places for them and not willing to move to another seat.

Stops on the way:

There will be several stops at restaurants during Dubai to Salalah or Salalah to Dubai journey for going to washroom and eating. The food served in these restaurants is not very hygienic and options are limited. It is advisable to take something with you for eating during the journey. Avail all these stopovers to get out of the bus, stretch your muscles and breath the fresh air. You can offer prayer on these stops as well.

Food and Water:

Food and water will not be served on the bus, you can bring your own food and water or else eat / buy at the stop over restaurants.

 

Why you should travel from Dubai to Salalah by Bus?

The advantage of travelling with bus is:

  • Cheaper ticket than airplane. Its a great value for money. For a big family this reduces the airline flights cost by two third.
  • No tension of driving from Dubai to Salalah.
  • No requirement of having driving license / vehicle registration / vehicle insurance.
  • No need to book hotel for travel night (as journey from Dubai to Salalah is on night time in the bus).
  • Specially useful for single passengers or friends or for those who loves to travel by road.

 

When you shouldn’t Travel from Dubai to Salalah by Bus?

If you can afford air ticket, then best is to travel by air. The journey will be of 2 hours only.

If you are good at ling journey driving, drive your own car. You don’t have to pay ticket for each passenger when traveling in your car but have to pay for each passenger in bus journey. Driving your own vehicle will also give you freedom during the travel to stop wherever and whenever you want (although most of the area on the way is dessert and barren). In your car, the journey will cost you only for the fuel (the price of Petrol in Oman is cheaper than that in UAE). The documents required to cross the border with the vehicle is the valid Vehicle License (on your name else you will need additional authorization letter from the leasing company), valid Driving License and Insurance for the vehicle in both the countries.

 

Have a safe and memorable trip to Salalah

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