What time does the Dubai Marina water taxi run?

The Dubai Water Taxi starts at midday, but only on one short leg: Marina Mall North to Marina Walk and back, 12:00 to 23:15 from Monday to Thursday. The boats that reach Marina Promenade, Marina Terrace and Bluewaters do not start until the late afternoon. RTA’s water taxi flyer, dated May 2026, gives each leg its own hours, and they differ by day of the week.

Before late afternoon, one shuttle runs

The Marina Mall North – Marina Walk shuttle has the longest hours and the most boats. The times are the same in both directions.

Boats leave every 10 minutes from 16:00 to 21:55 (Saturday to 22:25), and every 20 minutes outside that window. Friday is the only day that starts later, and Friday and Saturday are the two days with a boat after midnight.

If you arrive at Marina Promenade or Marina Terrace at midday, no water taxi calls there yet. Walk to Marina Mall or Marina Walk, or wait for the afternoon boats below.

The other legs start in the late afternoon

Every leg that touches Marina Promenade or Marina Terrace runs every 32 minutes, every day.

The flyer lists the way back from Marina Promenade and Marina Terrace only as the full route. It gives no separate time for a single stop back to Marina Mall, so check at the station before you rely on one.

Bluewaters: fewer boats back on weekdays

Route BM3 links Marina Mall South with Bluewaters. It is a separate boat from the BM1 Marina shuttle, leaving from the Marina Mall South station.

The return is the slower direction from Monday to Thursday. Look up the next boat back before you leave Marina Mall South.

What it costs and who rides free

An adult pays AED 7 a stop, on BM1 and BM3 alike, up to AED 21 for the full Marina route. Riders who pay nothing are children under 5 and People of Determination. RTA takes cash, nol, credit and debit cards at every station.

Each boat seats 20 with a space for wheelchairs. On every RTA boat, children travel under 12 only with an adult, and in a life jacket, and staff can ask for the child’s ID at the ticket office.

Where this page stops

RTA’s flyer warns that Ramadan and public holiday timings may differ, that some routes may be temporarily out of service, and that bad weather can reroute or cancel trips. The times above are the regular timetable.

The Sunday end time for the full route from Marina Terrace is an hour later than on other days. That is how the flyer prints it, and we have not changed it.

The flyer’s charter column is blank, so this page gives no charter price.

Where these figures come from

The times, frequencies, free riders and payment methods are from RTA’s Dubai Water Taxi flyer, a PDF on rta.ae. We read its timetable and fare table directly. The per-stop fares, the seat count and the children’s rule are from RTA’s About Marine page.