Flights cancelled in the UAE? Reaching Muscat, Riyadh, Bahrain or Doha by road

Status on 17 October 2026

These are the disruptions on record when we last checked. They change by the day, so treat this box as background and confirm the current position before you travel.

• Saudi airports, October 2026. Khaleej Times, citing Cirium data, reported more than 4,000 of 8,883 departures from Saudi Arabia cancelled or grounded between 8 and 15 October. It attributed the disruption to Houthi attacks on Saudi airports.
• Riyadh. GACA suspended operations at King Khalid International after an attack on 10 October. A Notam quoted on 15 October said the airport would stay closed until 17 October.
• Dammam and Jeddah. Dammam’s King Fahd International was attacked on 11 October and cancelled 60 of 131 departures on 15 October. Jeddah cancelled 87 of 385.
• UAE airlines. On 15 October, Emirates cancelled all 8 of its departures from Saudi Arabia, Etihad 9 of 13, flydubai 13 of 24 and Air Arabia 6 of 17.
• UAE to Riyadh. Khaleej Times reported direct air travel between the UAE and Riyadh temporarily suspended on 15 October.
• Earlier this year. On 2 March 2026 the German Embassy reported UAE airspace closed, with some flights still leaving Abu Dhabi. Muscat International Airport stayed open, and Oman Airports confirmed normal operations on 10 March.

Road travel into a country whose airports are under attack is a safety decision first. Check your own government’s travel advice before you book anything. In March 2026, Germany’s Foreign Office had a travel warning in place for every country in the region, Oman and Saudi Arabia included.

Which airports can you reach by road from Dubai?

Airport	From Downtown Dubai	Driving without traffic	Borders on the way
Muscat International (MCT), Oman	about 400 km	4 h 42 min	Hatta, then Al Wajajah
Hamad International (DOH), Doha	about 707 km	6 h 51 min	Ghuwaifat and Al Batha, then Salwa and Abu Samra
King Fahd International (DMM), Dammam	about 823 km	8 h 7 min	Ghuwaifat and Al Batha
Bahrain International (BAH), Muharraq	about 845 km	8 h 30 min	Ghuwaifat and Al Batha, then the King Fahd Causeway
King Khalid International (RUH), Riyadh	about 1,055 km	10 h 41 min	Ghuwaifat and Al Batha

These are OSRM figures on OpenStreetMap road data. They leave out traffic, fuel stops and the queues at each border.

Muscat is the only one with a single border and no Saudi visa. Every airport west of the UAE needs a Saudi entry first, even when you are only driving through to Bahrain or Qatar. The October 2026 cancellations also hit Dammam and Riyadh themselves, so a long drive can end at an airport with few seats.

Dubai to Muscat International Airport: time, border and visas

The road leaves Dubai on the E44 to Hatta, crosses at Hatta and Al Wajajah, then runs down the Batinah coast through Sohar to the airport at Seeb. From Abu Dhabi it is about 475 km, and from Sharjah about 406 km.

In March 2026 the German Embassy listed Hatta and Al Wajajah as open around the clock. It also said the Oman crossings take vehicles only, so nobody walks across. Our Dubai to Muscat by road guide covers the route stop by stop.

What the March closure taught:

• Book the onward flight first. The embassy found flights from Muscat to Europe widely booked out, and suggested routings through Addis Ababa, Cairo and Jeddah.
• Expect help at the terminal. Oman Airports opened extra check-in counters and ticket sales counters inside the Muscat terminal.
• Check the flight before leaving Dubai. Oman Airports asked passengers to confirm schedules with their airline before travelling to the airport.

Visas for the Muscat route

GCC citizens need no Oman visa. The Oman Ministry of Foreign Affairs exempts citizens of more than 100 countries for 14 days, with a return ticket, a hotel booking, health insurance and enough funds.

Gulf News reports an OMR 5 visa on arrival at land borders for UAE residents in approved professions. The GCC resident eVisa takes 4 to 5 working days, which may be too slow for a same-week departure. Our Oman visa guide for UAE residents explains the profession rule.

Bus or taxi instead

The German Embassy described two cheaper options in March 2026. A bus ran from Dubai to Muscat for about AED 100 to 110, through Al Khanjry Transport from Abu Hail or Mwasalat RTA. Or travellers paid up to USD 200 for a UAE taxi through the border zone. A second taxi in Oman then took them the 3 to 4 hours to Muscat.

Reaching airports in Riyadh, Dammam, Bahrain or Doha by road

Every road west leaves the UAE at Al Ghuwaifat, about 453 km from Downtown Dubai on the E11, and enters Saudi Arabia at Al Batha. In March 2026 the German Embassy reported Al Batha open around the clock. Our Ghuwaifat and Al Batha crossing guide covers the post itself.

What the embassy noted for the Saudi side:

• Visa. A Saudi visa is required. A visa on arrival was generally available at the land border for SAR 395, but an eVisa before the trip makes the crossing faster.
• Hotel booking. The eVisa asks for a destination address, and border officers checked hotel bookings.
• Onward transport. There is little infrastructure on the Saudi side to arrange transport at short notice. Have your ride to the next city or airport fixed before you reach the border.

In October 2026, with Riyadh’s airport shut, Khaleej Times reported people flying from Dubai to Dammam or Manama and finishing by road. Travellers it quoted put Dammam to Riyadh at about 4 hours and Manama to Riyadh at 5 to 6 hours. One Dubai resident stranded at Riyadh came home on a bus that left at 4pm and reached Abu Dhabi at 9am the next day.

Bahrain is reached over the King Fahd Causeway from Al Khobar, which our causeway crossing guide explains. Qatar’s only land border is with Saudi Arabia, at Salwa and Abu Samra, so Doha means two border crossings and two sets of entry rules. Our GCC road trip visas guide sets out which passports need what. For a car with a chauffeur on these routes, see our Saudi Arabia transfers.

What to check before leaving: visas, border status and airline rebooking

1. A confirmed seat. Get the new booking in writing before you leave home. Every airport in these reports told passengers to confirm with the airline first.
2. Entry rights for every country crossed. One passport without a Saudi visa stops a car bound for Doha or Bahrain at Al Batha.
3. Passports valid for 6 months. Oman’s exemption and Saudi Arabia’s visa both ask for it.
4. The return to the UAE. A single-entry UAE visit visa ends when you leave, so visitors coming back later need a new visa.
5. Car papers, if you drive yourself. A UAE rental enters Oman only with the rental company’s certificate and extra Oman insurance, the German Embassy says.
6. Travel advice. Read your government’s advice for every country on the route, not only the destination.

If your flight moves to another UAE airport instead, as when some flights left Abu Dhabi on 2 March, the drive is shorter and needs no border. Our guide to connecting between UAE airports covers DXB, DWC, AUH and Sharjah, and our airport transfers run to all of them.

Moving a group or a corporate team at short notice

Start with the passenger list, because one missing visa stops the whole vehicle at the border.

Send us these details on WhatsApp.

• the number of travellers and every passport nationality
• who holds UAE residence, and in which profession
• pickup points in the UAE and the destination airport
• the new flight numbers and times
• how many large cases and any equipment

For vehicles, a Mercedes V-Class seats 6 with 4 large cases and a 13-seat Mercedes Sprinter takes 6 large cases. Larger coaches come through our partner network, subject to availability. For Saudi Arabia, the German Embassy noted that a UAE bus can drive through the border zone only with Saudi insurance and a driver holding a Saudi visa.

Cross-border trips are on request and confirmed per trip: we tell you on WhatsApp whether your route can run on your date. Companies that move staff often can set this up through a corporate account. Every route we quote is listed under cross-border transfers, with the Oman trips on our Oman transfers page. Inside the UAE, long drives between emirates run as intercity transfers.

Where to check official status updates

• Your airline. The only source that knows whether your own flight is operating.
• UAE General Civil Aviation Authority. Official UAE aviation news at gcaa.gov.ae.
• Oman Airports. Updates for Muscat International and Oman’s other airports on its news page at omanairports.co.om.
• Royal Oman Police eVisa portal. Oman visa applications and eligibility at evisa.rop.gov.om.
• Your embassy in the UAE. Embassies can publish notices on road routes out during a crisis, as Germany’s did on 2 March 2026.

Check these on the morning you leave, not the night before. Airport status and airline schedules changed at short notice during both the March and October 2026 disruptions.