There once was a time when Dubai had an abundance of free parking spaces. In fact, parking was once free for a few hours every day. But times change (and rightfully so) and paying for parking is almost unavoidable, with payment required between 8am-10pm daily (except for Sundays and public holidays).
That being said, it’s important to pay for parking in Dubai. Not only is it the law, it’s also far cheaper than any fines you might get for not paying for parking. Compared to many other modern cities around the world, parking in Dubai is quite affordable with most spaces costing a mere 2 AED per hour.
Whether you’re a tourist or a resident, it’s super easy to pay for parking because Dubai has made many options for you to do so.
SMS
You can send a text message to 7275 with your car’s plate number, the zone you’re in and the number of hours you wish to park for.
Eg. N12345 373C 2
(plate N12345, zone 373C, 2 hours)
If you choose this option, there’s a 30 fil charge added on top.
RTA app
This is the recommended method because you can avoid the 30 fil charge and the app has a number of other features to make paying for parking easy.
You can create a parking account in the app and use this to pay for parking. You can also pay via Apple Pay or credit/debit card.
But what makes the app super useful is that it auto locates you and helps you choose the right parking zone (you may need to adjust it slightly, but it’s usually spot on). Rest assured, you can also manually enter the parking zone if need be.
What would life in Dubai be without WhatsApp? It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Dubai’s RTA has enabled drivers to pay for parking via WhatsApp.
Start by adding RTA’s chatbot Mahboub to your contact list with this number +971 58 800 9090.
Then start talking to Mahboub and enter in your plate number, parking zone and hours you wish to park.
As for payment, there will be a deduction from your prepaid credit card or a charge will be made on your postpaid line. Alternatively, if you’ve set up an eWallet with the RTA, you will be charged that way.
COINS
Although these machines are slowly being phased out, you may still find coin operated parking machines across Dubai. It’s as easy as choosing your parking time, inserting the required coins and then taking the printed ticket and placing it on your dashboard, clearly visible to the parking inspector.
Remember, whether it’s your own car or someone else’s - you’re responsible for paying for parking.
And given how affordable and easy it is to pay for parking in Dubai, there’s no excuse to avoid it!
You know what else is easy? Finding a rental car in Dubai using Shazza, where the city is your fleet.
Comments