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The number of tourists visiting Sharjah, which has a host of attractions, has reached 250,000
The third largest of the seven states that form the United Arab Emirates, Sharjah (Al-Shariqa) probably has the most colourful history of all the emirates.
From the time of the early trading with the East, to the settlement of the Qawassim seafaring tribe and into the first half of the 19th century, Sharjah was the most important port on the lower Arabian Gulf, being the only emirate to have land on both the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.
It was here that the British chose to set up their military base and the Trucial Coast's first international airport was established in 1932, since when Sharjah has been a major Middle East tourist destination.
Arabic is the official language, while English is popular as the commercial language. The number of tourists entering Sharjah and the UAE in general in 1981 was only about 4,000. However, Sharjah has developed and so have its tourist attractions. Today, the number of tourists visiting the emirate has reached 250,000.
Since its inception in 1996, the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) has been working to develop and promote tourism in Sharjah.
Active efforts
Founded by His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, the SCTDA team members are dedicated to the promotion of Sharjah as a tourist and business centre.
Nedal Al Asa'ad, Media Manager, SCTDA, outlines its strategy for this year, which includes the summer advertisement campaign that is a continuation of last summer's campaign.
"We are promoting Sharjah the city itself," he says, "not just the tourism aspect of it. The focus, in fact, is on culture and heritage. Its 14 museums and the only wildlife centre in Arabia make Sharjah the perfect family destination, especially for tourists from the neighbouring GCC countries."
Amal Nour El Din, Marketing Executive, concurs with this, adding, "This strategy has proved very effective. We are trying to provide people with as much information as possible about the emirate, by advertising in international travel magazines, participating in travel and tourism exhibitions such as the Arabian Travel Market, the International Tourism Exchange (ITB Berlin), as well as by sponsoring/hosting international sports events such as the F1 Power Boating World Championship held last weekend on the Khalid Lagoon."
Both agree they are still in the awareness-building phase of the entire 'Promote Sharjah' campaign and are very positive about its efficacy since Sharjah has so much to offer.
In addition to a rich cultural tradition, reasonably priced hotels by the beach, the clean and quiet east coast, the opening of more state-of-the-art malls such as the City Centre, Carrefour, and a few more due to open this year such as the Sahara and Mega Mall, all of which will cater to people's shopping requirements.
Nedal asserts, "It's not enough to just have some activity such as an ad campaign and then stop. We will be concentrating more on media exposure at both the local and regional levels."
Museums
The SCTDA has figures that show that 19,299 people of all nationalities visited Sharjah museums in July, with the Discovery Centre recording the highest number at 6,629, followed by the Sharjah Science Museum with 3,407 and Sharjah Islamic Museum with 2,054.
All the museums in Sharjah, at the behest of Dr Sheikh Sultan, have a 'hands on' approach that allow visitors to interact with many exhibits, allowing them to learn in an atmosphere of fun and education. It is a place where the entire family can visit and enjoy together the pride of the traditional past.
Dr. Sabah Jasim, Director of Antiquities at the Archaeological Museum, feels, "foreign tourists evince more interest in our museum. Encouragingly, several schools, both in Dubai and Sharjah have made a visit to the museum as part of their curriculum.
"We even have students from the University of Oman visiting us! It is good for people to come and see their past, represented by objects and artefacts in the museum."
"We had 25,200 visitors in the summer of 2000," says Hana Saif Al Swaidi, Manager, Sharjah Natural History Museum, "and 27,300 in the summer of 2001. We also have several activities planned for the near future from participating in the Ramadan Festival with educational and scientific exhibitions, to conducting the Emirates Butterfly Exhibition and the Geology Exhibition next year. We will also be conducting school exhibitions and workshops throughout the year."
"The 'Promote Sharjah' campaign has certainly boosted the number of visitors and inquiries we've had between June and August," says Nabila Mounir, Senior Instructor at the Sharjah Science Museum.
"We have had an increase of 20 per cent over the number of visitors we had last year, with 8,500 people coming in over the summer."
The focus now is on gearing up for the schools. Last year, the museum had 18,460 students visiting it. The museum started off five years ago with three demonstrations to visitors and 20 workshops to schools; today it has 12 demonstrations for the public and 35 workshops for schools.
Once the museum has succeeded in striking a chord in a visitor, they can pursue their interest at the Learning Centre, which offers more in-depth programmes on many of the topics presented in the museum.
Hotels and resorts
Giving further credence to the claim that more people are now visiting Sharjah is Simon Atallah, Manager, Beach Hotel, who says they have had an increase of 20 per cent in the number of tourists visiting the hotel this year. Most of them are from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, with a full house on weekends.
He attributes this to the hotel's prime location on the beach, not far from the city, with health club and water sports facilities.
"The number of people visiting Sharjah has definitely increased as the figures show," he says, "with a high demand for hotels on the beach. If we had no beach we would have nothing! The advantage we have is we're cheaper than beach hotels in Jumeirah as well as being closer to both Dubai and Sharjah, while offering all the same facilities and services of a high standard at good rates."
"The atmosphere Sharjah offers is perfect for families - peaceful, safe, with lots to see of historic value, and cheaper possibilities for shopping!"
Nasser Nassef, Director of Sales and Marketing, Marbella Resorts, says they have had a lot more visitors this year from the GCC, especially Saudi Arabia.
"We have really worked hard to accomplish this," he says, "by establishing a personal contact with travel agencies, offering good rates and running a strong and focused advertising campaign.
"In addition to this, we visit the GCC three to four times a year promoting not only our resort but also Sharjah itself. We expect many visitors again when we conduct our Eid Family Carnival on the second day of Eid Al Fitr, which will be a day-long event with sumptuous food, games, music and ent
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