Private and VIP safari
Private desert safari in Dubai, your vehicle and your pace
The vehicle is yours. Priced per vehicle rather than per head, which flips the maths the moment your group reaches four, and buys a driver who works to your pace rather than a fixed route.
Per vehicle pricingUp to 12 guestsRoute adjusts to youFree Dubai pickup
01 / Private packages
Six private safaris, every one priced per vehicle.
Read these totals against your whole group rather than against a per person price. One vehicle costs once no matter how many of you are in it, which is the entire reason to book private.
Couple VIP Evening Desert Safari
A private evening safari timed and paced for two, sunset stop, unhurried photos, and VIP seating at camp.
AED 600 Private Land Cruiser
Check availability Private Evening Desert Safari
The standard evening safari on your own schedule rather than a shared one. Suits families and small groups.
AED 650 Private vehicle
Check availability Private Morning Desert Safari
A morning desert safari Dubai in your own Land Cruiser, cooler sand, quieter dunes, and back in time for the rest of the day.
AED 650 Private Land Cruiser
Check availability Desert Safari Private Land Cruiser
A dedicated Land Cruiser for your group, with a driver who tailors the dune route to how much bashing you actually want.
AED 750 Private Land Cruiser
Check availability Evening Safari By Private Mini Bus
For larger groups travelling together, one mini bus for 10 to 12 people rather than splitting across several 4x4s.
AED 800 Private mini bus
Check availability Private Safari With 4-Seater Buggy
Your own vehicle and guide, plus a 4-seater dune buggy session so the whole group drives together.
AED 1,300 Private 4x4
Check availability 02 / Included
What is included before you book.
Included on this safari
- Private hotel pickup and drop-off, free anywhere inside Dubai
- Your own vehicle and driver for the whole trip
- A dune route the driver adjusts to your group
- Camel ride and sandboarding
- Halal BBQ dinner on the evening packages
- Camp entertainment on the evening packages
- No sharing with other guests at any point of the drive
Check before booking
- Give us the exact head count. It changes which vehicle we send and whether the bus is cheaper.
- Say whether you want less dune bashing or more photo stops. On a private vehicle that is simply arranged.
- Say if anyone is pregnant, has back trouble or gets motion sick, and the driver takes a calmer route.
- Flag allergies and dietary needs at booking so the camp knows before the buffet is set.
- Confirm your pickup point. Hotel pickup and drop-off within Dubai is free on every booking.
03 / How the day runs
The same desert, on your terms.
The route matches the evening or morning safari. What changes is who else is in the car.
- 1Private pickup
Your vehicle collects only your group, from your hotel or address. No collecting four other parties on the way out.
- 2A route that adjusts
Tell the driver you want more dune bashing, less of it, or a longer stop for photographs, and that is what happens.
- 3Photo stops on your schedule
The single biggest difference guests notice. On a shared vehicle the stop lasts as long as it lasts.
- 4Camel ride and sandboarding
Included as standard on the private packages, at the camp.
- 5Dinner, on the evening packages
Halal BBQ buffet and the camp programme. The morning package has refreshments instead and ends before lunch.
- 6Straight home
Back to your hotel directly rather than after four other drop-offs, which on a shared safari is often the longest part of the night.
04 / Why this one
Private, VIP and deluxe, and what the words mean here.
VIP and deluxe usually describe camp treatment on a shared vehicle. Private describes the vehicle itself. They are different purchases and they are frequently confused, so every card above says which one it is.
Priced per vehicle. For six people that is one price rather than six.
05 / Safety and fit
What to know before the day.
Nothing on a safari starts until the briefing is done and the group knows the plan.
You can stop the drive
On a private vehicle, if someone in your group has had enough of the dunes, the drive changes immediately. On a shared one it does not.
Twelve is the ceiling
The mini bus takes 10 to 12. Above that we run more than one vehicle, and the pricing is worth asking about rather than assuming.
Better for young children
A private vehicle means your own pace, your own stops and no waiting on strangers. Families with small children consistently find this the easier booking.
Check your travel policy
Check that your travel insurance includes desert sports and off road activities before you travel. Many standard policies exclude them.
Q01Is a private desert safari worth the extra cost?
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It depends entirely on your group size, because private is priced per vehicle and shared is priced per person. For two people shared is cheaper. Somewhere around four the totals cross, and above that private is usually both cheaper and better. Send us your head count and we will put the two totals side by side.
Q02What is the difference between VIP and private?
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VIP normally describes camp treatment, better seating and a longer buffet, while you still share the vehicle with other guests. Private describes the vehicle itself. They are different purchases, and this is the most common confusion on safari bookings in Dubai. Every card on this page states which one it is.
Q03How many people fit in a private safari?
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A Land Cruiser takes six to seven, and the private mini bus takes ten to twelve. The buggy package is built around four. Above twelve we run more than one vehicle, so tell us the number and we will price the right combination rather than you guessing.
Q04Can I change the route on a private safari?
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Yes, and it is the main reason to book one. Ask for less dune bashing, more photo stops, a slower drive or a longer time at the camp, and the driver simply does it. On a shared vehicle the route is fixed because five other guests booked the same one.
Q05Is there a private morning safari?
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Yes, and the morning safari only runs private. It is four to five hours with a dawn pickup, sunrise on the dunes, camel ride and sandboarding, and refreshments rather than a BBQ dinner. It is covered in full on the morning safari page.
Q06Can we add a buggy to a private safari?
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Yes. One of the packages above includes a four seater dune buggy session alongside the private 4x4, which suits a family who want both the driven experience and a turn at driving. The buggy safari page explains how that works.
Q07Do I pay a deposit?
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Cash, card and bank transfer are all accepted, and you can pay on the spot at the base. Nothing is due when you book. Cancel more than 24 hours before your slot and you get a full refund. Inside 24 hours we will always try to move you to another date rather than charge you.
What guests say
Rated 4.9 by guests who came with us.
Real Google reviews, alongside our TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice award.
- Glauco Google review
★★★★★The service offered by Ali is exceptional, very fun and safe. I recommend it to everyone visiting Dubai. The desert tour is fantastic! Don't miss it!
- Rupang Shah Google review ★★★★★
Great experience with them at the Dubai Sand Dunes - Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a unique experience in Dubai!
- Camso Diallo Google review ★★★★★
Very good ride. We enjoyed it. Thanks
- jamal hakim Google review ★★★★★
nice experience with such a bumpy and challenging route with beautiful sunset!!
- Yusuf Slaimankhel Google review ★★★★★
Was a really good and amazing experience, staff was also nice and helpful
- Nalin Chandika De Silva Google review ★★★★★
The best ride we ever had. Best service. Highly recommended. Love from Sri Lanka
- Baby Alhamdou Ibrahim Google review ★★★★★
Today I went to desert I did bike riding with my family it was good experience i will recommend for all tourists
- Vaibhav Sharma Google review ★★★★★
Today I booked for quad bike and it was a very good experience. Very good service and great bike. Thrilling and great experience.
- amar powar Google review ★★★★★
Had amazing experience on desert safari! Everything perfectly. Highly recommended. Mr Watto was best for pickup to drop off
- Folashade Agbeke Google review ★★★★★
Today I went to desert I did bike riding it was good experience I recommend you to book with them. Very friendly and worth every penny. I'll definitely come back again with my friends.
- Adnan Khan Google review ★★★★★
Today i booked the buggy tour and it was amazing. Cannot recommend this enough. Our driver Ali was kind and courteous and we were well looked after
- Mike Google review ★★★★★
Well arranged. Good support, good buggies. We really enjoyed ourselves.
- jubin vaidya Google review ★★★★★
It was a great experience with buggyrents.com. The driver was very pleasing and entertaining. They have new buggies and I recommend everybody to book and enjoy
- abiola awobokun Google review ★★★★★
Went with my kids and we had a lovely experience. Professional staff, safe and exciting. We had fun and will definitely come back.
- Pervaiz Muhammad Google review ★★★★★
It was very good experience with them. They are too much cooperative. I recommend all guys to book from them, you will remember this tour.
- FAUSTIN KAMBERE Google review ★★★★★
It was good experience buggy was they given me good service I recommend plz book tour with this company
- INFORMATION CENTER Google review ★★★★★
Very professional team and a well organised desert experience from pickup through to drop off.
Private or shared
Working out whether private is actually cheaper for you
This page has the only piece of arithmetic on the site that reliably changes what people book. It is worth doing before you choose.
The two prices are not comparable as printed
A shared safari price is what one person pays. A private safari price is what the whole vehicle costs. Put next to each other on a screen, the shared number always looks better and frequently is not.
The only comparison that means anything is the total for your actual group. Multiply the shared price by the number of people travelling, then read the private price as it stands. For two people shared wins comfortably. By four the gap has closed. By six or seven the private vehicle is usually the cheaper booking outright, and it is also the better one.
What you get beyond the arithmetic
Even where the totals are close, the private vehicle buys things the shared one cannot. The pickup collects only you rather than working through four hotels. The photo stop lasts as long as you want it to. If a child has had enough of the dune drive, the drive changes.
The drop-off matters more than people expect. On a shared safari you are returned in whatever order suits the route, and being the last stop can add a long time to an evening that already ran to 10pm. A private vehicle takes you straight back.
Ready to lock in a date? Send your group size and we will confirm availability the same day.
VIP is a different purchase entirely
This is where bookings go wrong. VIP and deluxe packages in Dubai almost always mean better camp seating and a longer buffet while you are still sharing the 4x4 with other guests. Private means the vehicle is yours and says nothing about the camp.
If what is bothering you is sharing a table, buy VIP. If what is bothering you is sharing a car, buy private. Buying VIP hoping to solve the second problem is the most common mistake we see, and every card on this page names which of the two it is so that it does not happen here.
Groups above seven, and adding a buggy
A Land Cruiser tops out at six or seven. Beyond that the private mini bus takes ten to twelve, and above twelve we run more than one vehicle. Large groups should always ask rather than assume, because the combination that costs least is rarely the one that looks obvious from a price list.
One private package includes a four seater dune buggy session alongside the 4x4, which is the answer for a family where some want to drive and some want to be driven. The buggy safari page covers that in full, and you can also add a quad to any private booking.
Book your Dubai desert safari
Send the date and how many of you there are, and we will come back with shared and private totals so you can see which one works out cheaper.
Scroll inside the panel to read the full guide