Five to eight people, van or cars?

Why this size is awkward

Below five people a car does the job. Above eight, a van or minibus is the obvious answer. Five to eight is the band in between, where two sensible answers compete: one larger vehicle with everyone in it, or two cars that split the party and the bags.

A standard Dubai taxi takes up to four passengers, so five people already need two of those. The question is whether to book two cars of our own or one vehicle. It comes down to three numbers: people, bags and what your party does after it lands.

Seats in the tables are passenger seats and the driver is not counted. Bags are medium suitcases, roughly 65 to 70 cm tall. Hand luggage, prams, golf bags and anything oddly shaped are not in the count, so tell us about them and we confirm the fit in your written quote.

What each vehicle really holds

Two cars together give a second set of numbers. A luxury SUV and a sedan carry ten people and eight bags. Two V-Classes carry fourteen people and twelve bags. A V-Class and a sedan carry eleven people and nine bags.

The sum, party by party

Take one medium suitcase per person as the lowest case, and two per person as a long-trip case. Then see which vehicle runs out first.

Look at the seven-person row. The V-Class has seven seats and six bags, so seven people with a case each overflow it by one. That single bag is why a party of seven so often ends up in the van, with six empty seats.

Look at the bottom right too. Eight people on a two-week trip, with two cases each, outgrow the van, the Sprinter and two V-Classes. At that point the vehicle that fits is the 30-seater mini coach, which takes twenty bags, or a van with a separate luggage vehicle behind it. The HiAce, Sprinter, Coaster and 50-seater comparison covers that step in detail.

When one vehicle is the right call

Choose one vehicle when the party arrives together, goes to one hotel and wants to stay together. One driver, one arrival, one set of bags unloaded at one door. For five or six people with a case each, that is a V-Class. For seven or eight, it is the 13-seater van, with seats to spare.

The van has a high roof and a luggage area behind the last row. The V-Class has sliding doors on both sides, which suits a hotel drop-off lane. At the airport the driver takes the trolley and walks you to the vehicle, and your confirmation says where you are met.

When two cars are the right call

Choose two cars when the party is really two parties. Two families going to two hotels. Four colleagues and a client who needs a different finish. Two guests landing on different flights. Or one party that simply does not want eight people in one vehicle.

The cars also win on the arithmetic when the bags suit them. Eight people with a case each fit a luxury SUV and an executive sedan with no bag to spare, ten seats for eight people. Add a sports bag, though, and one car is over its limit. In that case a van is simpler.

Each extra hotel adds a stop and time, and the number of stops is one of the things that sets the price. If your party splits across hotels, two cars can be quicker than one vehicle on a loop. We say so on the quote when that is the case.

How to compare them without guessing

Ask for both. Send us the head count, the bags counted and the pick-up and drop-off, and request a fixed written quote for one van and a second for two cars. We do not put a figure in this guide, since it depends on the route, the date and the airport. Set the two quotes side by side and choose.

Our quote guide explains each line, including the parking, tolls and the waiting allowance. For an airport run, the Dubai airport transfer page explains how pick-ups work. If the plan is a few days of sightseeing, see van with driver, and for families the family holiday guide.

Child seats, prams and the odd extra

Child seats are free on request in our cars, SUVs and vans. Tell us each child’s age. A pram uses part of the luggage space, so count it as a bag when you work out the sum. If a family of six has a pram and a case each, that is seven against the V-Class’s six, and the van takes over.

Ready to ask? Send the numbers on the booking page, and say how many bags there are in all, not just how many people.

Related: HiAce vs Sprinter vs Coaster vs 50-seater · Dubai airport transfer for groups · Mercedes V-Class · 13-Seater Van · Luxury SUV · Van with driver · Get a quote

Keep reading

• V-Class or 13-seater van for 7 to 9: Seven, eight or nine people with bags: how the Mercedes V-Class and the 13-seater van compare on seats, suitcases, cabin and splitting the party, with three worked parties.
• Transport for 9 to 13 people: Nine to thirteen people and their suitcases: when the 13-seater van is enough, when the bags tip you into a bigger vehicle, and when two vehicles beat one.
• Van with driver: A V-Class, HiAce or Sprinter with a professional driver, by the hour, for the day or one way.
• Transport for 17 to 30 people: Seventeen to thirty people: one mini coach or two vans or Sprinters. A seat-count check, a luggage table for 26 people and a rule for choosing.
• Transport for 14 to 16 people: Fourteen to sixteen people is one over the 13-seat van. When a Sprinter fits, why the layout matters as much as the seat count, and when two vehicles are the better answer.
• Transport for 31 to 50 people: Thirty-one to fifty people on one coach: what a 50-seater carries, how leaders and guides eat into the seats, and the places a full-size coach cannot go.