Tag Archives: Sharjah

In keeping with the recent instructions from the governments of UAE, Saudi and Bahrain, seven carriers from the various Middle East countries have suspended their services to Doha with effect from June 6, 2017 until further notice. Among these airlines are Royal Jets, Etihad, Emirates, flydubai and Air Arabia from UAE; Saudia from Saudi and Gulf Air from Bahrain. While Etihad, Emirates and flydubai suspended all flights between Dubai and Doha, Royal Jets suspended their services between Abu Dhabi and Doha and Air Arabia suspended their flights between Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah and Doha. Saudia has suspended its flights between Saudi and Doha and Gulf Air between Bahrain and Doha. So all customers who have booked tickets on any of these airlines for flying to Doha will have to contact the airlines for alternative options, which will include full refunds on unused tickets or free re-booking to the nearest alternate destinations. For detailed information, the relevant airlines can be called or their websites can be looked up.

Expo Centre Sharjah has recorded a 7 per cent increase in the number of visitors coming to its exhibitions and events during the first quarter of 2017, in comparison to the number of visitors that came during the same period in 2016. According to the Expo Centre management, 302,474 people visited the Centre’s events, including 12 specialised exhibitions, in January, February and March. The meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) industry in the United Arab Emirates currently generates a total of $653 million (AED 2.4b) per year and is expected to continue growing at about 7 per cent per annum until 2020. Overall, the GCC’s MICE market is estimated to be worth some $1.3 billion (AED 4.8b) annually. Located on Al Taawun Street in the centre of Sharjah city, the Expo Centre now has 6 exhibition halls surrounding a central boulevard, with a combined gross exhibition area of 26,000 square metres (279,862 sq. ft.) indoors, plus a further 6,000 square metres (64,583 sq. ft.) of outdoor space. A 200-room Novotel Sharjah Expo is currently under construction adjacent to the expo site. Sharjah is also building a new 370,000 square metre (4 million sq. ft.) exhibition and conference centre in Al Tai district, near the intersection of Emirates Road and Mleiha Road. Expected to open in November, the new centre’s first major event is going to be this year’s edition of the Sharjah International Book Fair (1-11 November).

After 17 years in operation in the UAE and India, FLORA HOSPITALITY in partnership with a world renowned branding agency, is updating its image, as well as redefining its brand quality tiers in preparation for the next chapter of its evolution and expansion. In addition to its existing 11 properties in operation across Dubai, Sharjah and India, FLORA HOSPITALITY’s new pipeline includes four new properties in prestigious locations around Dubai and with a total investment of more than AED 970 million, this will double Flora Hospitality’s inventory from a 1,415 bedroom inventory to 3,000 bedrooms by the year 2020.

Sharjah International Airport handled 2.741 million passengers during the first quarter of 2017, registering 2 percent growth compared to the first three months of last year. The airport has experienced continuous growth during the past five years, handling 11 million passengers during 2016. Sharjah handled 969,633 passengers in January, 827,369 February and 944,038 in March 2017, peaking at 4 percent growth in January (compared to 2016 levels). Aircraft movements at the airport increased by 3 percent to 18,569 scheduled and non-scheduled movements in Q1 2017 compared with 18,054 in Q1 2016. Several airlines have added new Sharjah flights this year. Sharjah-headquartered Air Arabia launched a new services to Baku in March, operating four weekly flights from the Azarbajiani capital. The airline also launched a schedule of seasonal flights between Iran’s Kermanshah airport and Sharjah on the occasion of ‘Nowruz’, the new Iranian year. Later in the year, Air Arabia plans to operate a new seasonal non-stop service to the historic Turkish port city of Trabzon starting on June 23. Meanwhile, IndiGo, India’s largest budget-carrier, introduced a daily non-stop service from Kozhikode (CCJ) to Sharjah on 20 March and from Thiruvananthapuram (TRV) to Sharjah during April. Another Indian budget carrier, SpiceJet, plans to launch new flights to Sharjah by the end of 2017. Sharjah International Airport’s growth has been driven by its strategic location, the success of the emirate’s in-bound tourism industry and the expansion of Sharjah-headquartered Airquarter of 2017, registering 2 percent growth compared to the first three months of last year. The airport has experienced continuous growth during the past five years, handling 11 million passengers during 2016.

Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) has announced its Mleiha Desert Resort, first five-star desert resort at the heart of Mleiha, for which it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Al Wanis, a Qatari tourism company established in Sharjah, to develop the AED 60 million project. As part of its unceasing efforts to mark Sharjah as one of the region’s premier tourism destinations and attract maximum overseas investment, Shurooq will be the local partner with “Al Wanis”. Mleiha Desert Resort will offer a range full of hotel services, restaurants, cafés, a health club, swimming pool and many other hospitality facilities associated with a world-class resort. The new luxury hospitality project encompasses a total area space of 300,000 sqm, of which the “Mleiha Desert Resort” and all its unique facilities, features and unique hospitality services and experiences will encompass a total area space of 60,000 sqm. The resort will include 45 exclusively designed vacation villas, modelled on classical desert marquees, each with the luxury of its own decking and private swimming pool. The “Royal Suite”, which is one of the four living options at the resort, encompasses a space of 167 sqm, and includes two uniquely designed rooms and a private swimming pool. Additional options include the “King Suite”, expected to encompass a total space of 155 sqm, “Junior Suite”, encompassing a total space of 90 sqm and the “Standard Suite” which offers a unique living on a total space of 85 sqm.

Sharjah hotels and hotel apartments registered a 63 per cent increase in visitors from China during 2016, according to new figures from Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA). More than 86,000 Chinese visitors stayed in Sharjah hotels last year, compared to 53,000 during 2015, making China the emirate’s sixth largest inbound tourism market. The UAE’s recent move to introduce visa-on-arrival for visitors from China is expected to further boost tourism numbers during 2017. China is the world’s largest outbound tourism market worth an estimated $168 billion, with 120 million Chinese travelling abroad during 2016. The country is a priority target market for Sharjah and the tourism authority is planning to welcome 200,000 Chinese visitors per annum by the year 2021, as part of its tourism development strategy. China is already the emirate’s fastest growing inbound tourism market, with hotels registering a 78 per cent increase in hotel guests from China during 2015 (compared to 2014 levels). The SCDTA has been driving an active marketing campaign to attract more visitors from China, opening up a representative office, recruiting Chinese staff and adding a Chinese language website to Sharjah’s tourism portal. Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority has recently taken tourism roadshows to Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. This month, the authority hosted 15 major outbound Chinese travel companies from China’s east coast on a familiarisation visit (‘fam trip’) to Sharjah. Visiting travel agencies were introduced to Sharjah’s tourism destinations, heritage and cultural attractions and the emirate’s areas of outstanding natural beauty. The travel trade visitors also attended workshops together with key local tourism stakeholders. The UAE is China’s second largest trading partner and largest export market in the Middle East …

In order to strengthen its footprints in the Gulf region, IndiGo Airlines has added Sharjah to its international route, effective March 20, 2017. The airline will operate its new daily non-stop flights between Sharjah-Kozhikode-Sharjah and a second daily flight to operate non-stop between Sharjah-Thiruvananthapuram-Sharjah effective April 8, 2017. The introductory fares start as low as 243 AED for one way from Kozhikode to Sharjah. The new flights will cater to both leisure and business travellers. Sanjay Kumar, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo, said, “We are extremely pleased to expand our international network with Sharjah. Middle East has been an important market for IndiGo with rising business and tourism stemming from the gulf market. We are determined to provide the best travel experience to all those who wish to fly these destinations. We are looking at providing affordable fares on these new routes to our 6E travellers. We are now available on all Travelport platforms and interfaces reaching a vast number of travel agents around the globe.”

Sharjah hotel occupancy grew by 5.5 percent during January compared to the same month in 2016, according to the latest report from STR, a firm that provides global data and analysis for the hotel industry. Average occupancy levels across the United Arab Emirates increased by 0.5 percent during January to reach 81 percent, although average room rates at hotels across the UAE fell 8 percent in January to reach AED 712 ($195) due to strong market growth in room supply. The UAE’s hotel occupancy rates are among the highest in the world. STR has also reported that the overall hotel occupancy across the Middle East region decreased 2.7 percent to an average occupancy level of 68.4 percent during January, while the average daily room rate fell by 8.4 percent to $177.81. Meanwhile, hotels in Europe reported a 5.1 percent increase in occupancy to an average of 57.1 percent, hotels in Africa saw a 4.5 percent increase in occupancy to reach an average of 50.6 percent, and hotels in Asia Pacific reported a 0.8 percent decrease in occupancy to an average of 64.8 percent. According to the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), Sharjah hotels and hotel apartments registered a 19 percent increase in room nights booked during the first nine months of 2016, totaling 2.94 million room nights. Sharjah offers more than 100 hotels and hotel apartments, including properties managed by some of the leading hotel groups in the world including Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, Louvre Hotels Group, Premier Inn Hotels, Rotana Hotels and Resorts, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, and Wyndham Worldwide. A number of new hotel and resort developments are currently underway in Sharjah, including the construction of …

India has emerged as the fourth largest market for global visitors to Sharjah, according to the figures revealed by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA). The Authority led a marketing campaign targeting India’s outbound tourism over the past few years, attending key travel events and visiting cities across the country. In a first, the SCTDA led a delegation of Sharjah-based tourism and hospitality organisations to the 23rd edition of the SATTE travel trade show, in New Delhi, India. Sharjah’s delegation to SATTE and India International Travel Mart in Mumbai included Ramada Sharjah, Golden Tulip Sharjah, Sheraton Sharjah Beach Resort & Spa, Sharjah National Hotels, Air Arabia, SATA (Sharjah Airport Travel Agency), Cozmo Travels and Auras Tours. According to the Indian Ministry of Tourism, 18.33 million Indians travelled overseas during 2014 and the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) expects that Indian outbound travel could grow to 50 million by the year 2020.

The Government of Sharjah has approved a $400 million (AED 1.46b) budget for the expansion of Sharjah International Airport, according to MEED (Middle East Economic Digest), quoting Adel Abdullah Ali, Air Arabia’s Chief Executive Officer. According to the airline CEO, the expansion project is expected to begin this summer and will increase airport capacity from 8 to 18 million passengers a year. A master plan for the expansion of the airport was submitted by American engineering firm Bechtel in 2013, recommending a new terminal, construction of new roads around the airport, plus additional services such as a new hotel and a shopping mall. In 2014, Sharjah International Airport opened a new AED 500 million (US$ 136m) airport runway, significantly expanding the airport’s aircraft capacity. The new runway allows large and new-generation ICAO Code F aircraft such as the Airbus A380 and Boeings B747-8 Intercontinental and B747-8 freighter. The old runway now serves as a taxiway. The airport handled 11 million passengers from January to December 2016, registering a 10 percent year-on-year increase on 2015. In January 2017, the airport handled 969,633 passengers, showing a 4 percent increase on January last year. Sharjah International Airport’s growth has been driven by its strategic location, the success of Sharjah’s in-bound tourism industry and the expansion of Sharjah-headquartered Air Arabia. The airport’s ideal location, close to Sharjah city, Dubai city and the main highways connecting the country’s seven emirates, has made it a convenient hub for both business and leisure travelers.