Okay this might be obvious to people who’ve been here a while, but when I first moved to Dubai I was completely car-dependent and it was stressing me out (parking, traffic, costs — you know the drill).
Then someone told me to actually give the RTA app a proper chance — not just for Nol top-ups but for planning whole journeys combining metro, bus and tram. I’d been ignoring it for months thinking the public transport wouldn’t work for where I needed to go.
Turns out? For a lot of routes, especially anything going through the Marina or towards Downtown, it’s genuinely faster during rush hour than sitting in traffic. And the metro is blissfully air-conditioned in summer, which right now in July is basically non-negotiable 
Small tip within the tip: if you haven’t linked your Nol card to the app yet, do it — makes tracking spending and topping up so much easier.
What’s an app or little trick that made your daily life in Dubai easier? Always looking for new ones — drop them below! 