Eid Al Adha parking rules and Metro timings announced

Some bus services to Abu Dhabi will be suspended or operate on amended routes during the holiday

Parking in Dubai will be free of charge during Eid Al Adha. Antonie Robertson / The National

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority has announced revised Metro and bus schedules for Eid Al Adha, while motorists will also be able to park free of charge to mark the festival.

Charges will be waived in public parking areas, except in multistorey car parks, during the occasion. The Eid holiday will begin on Thursday, June 5, and end on Sunday, June 8.

All Dubai Metro stations on the Red and Green lines will run from 5am until 1am from Wednesday, June 4, to Saturday, June 7, the authority added. The Dubai Tram will run from 6am to 1am on the same days.

It comes as employees in the public and private sectors are to be granted leave from Thursday, June 5, to Sunday, June 8, with work resuming on Monday, June 9.

Revised bus routes

Route E100, from Al Ghubaiba to Abu Dhabi, will be suspended from Wednesday, June 4, until Sunday, June 8. The authority has advised the public to use route E101 as an alternative, with the service running as normal from Ibn Battuta Bus Station to Abu Dhabi.

Route E102, meanwhile, will run directly from Al Jafiliya Bus Station to Zayed International Airport, skipping the Ibn Battuta and Musaffah stops.

Commuters are encouraged use the S’hail app to view up-to-date schedules during the Eid holiday.

Closures

All RTA Customer Happiness Centres will be closed until Monday, June 9. However, the following Smart Customer Happiness Centres will remain operational 24/7:

• Umm Ramool
• Deira
• Al Barsha
• The RTA’s head office

Service provider centres will be closed from Thursday, June 5, until Saturday, June 7. A partial service will resume on Sunday, June 8, at the following locations:

• Tasjeel Al Twar
• AutoPro Al Mankhool
• Tasjeel Al Awir
• Al Yalayis
• Shamil Muhaisnah

Full services will resume on Monday, June 9, with centres open during normal operating hours.

What is Eid Al Adha?

Eid Al Adha – which means “festival of the sacrifice” – is the latter of the two Eid holidays celebrated across the Arab world, coming after Eid Al Fitr.

Eid Al Adha commemorates how the Prophet Ibrahim was asked by God in a dream to sacrifice his son, Ismail, as a test of his faith. As with other religious holidays in the Emirates, it is a time for friends and family to gather, often over meals, and reflect on their lives and faith.

It is customary for families who have the means to have a goat or sheep slaughtered and share the meat with relatives and the less privileged.

Eid Al Adha in 2024 - in pictures

The Eid Al Adha morning prayer around the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Makkah, at the start of the holiday marking the end of the Hajj pilgrimage. AFP

A shepherd with a flock of a sheep in Iraq's southern city of Basra on the eve of Eid Al Adha. AFP

Worshippers at Baitul Makmur Grand Mosque, during Eid Al Adha celebrations in Meulaboh, West Aceh, Indonesia. Reuters

Devotees greet each other after offering Eid Al Adha prayers in Kolkata, north-east India. AFP

Palestinians attend Eid Al Adha prayers in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. EPA

Worshippers pray at Eid Al Adha celebrations in Naples, southern Italy. EPA

Women enter the hall of a mosque for a mass prayer, during Eid Al Adha celebrations in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur. Reuters

A sacrificial bull is loaded on to a trailer during Eid Al Adha celebrations in Istanbul. EPA

Security personnel frisk devotees entering Jami mosque in Herat, western Afghanistan, to offer Eid Al Adha prayers. AFP

A Kashmiri girl has her hands decorated with henna ahead of Eid Al Adha, in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir region. EPA

Worshippers attend prayers on Eid Al Adha at the Sir Ali Muslim Club Ground cricket ground, in Kenya's capital Nairobi. Reuters

A Muslim worshipper in the Byzantine-era Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, during the first day of Eid Al Adha in Istanbul. AP

Balloons are released during an Eid Al Adha service at Al Sayeda Zainab Mosque in Cairo. EPA

Baghdad residents take a ride at an amusement park at sunset, as they celebrate Eid Al Adha in Iraq's capital. Reuters

Eid Al Adha prayers at the Jama Masjid, in India's capital New Delhi. AP

Eid Al Adha prayers, held on the athletics track of the Dinamo Stadium, in Romania's capital Bucharest. AP

Eid Al Adha prayers at Moskovsky Prospekt during celebrations in St Petersburg. AP