Tag Archives: Novotel Sharjah Expo

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).

Air Arabia has expanded its international route network with a new service to Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. Starting 23 March 2017, the airline will operate four weekly flights from its primary Sharjah International Airport hub. On Thursdays and Sundays, the flight will depart Sharjah at 07:55 and arrive at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku at 10:50 local time, with the return flight scheduled from Baku at 11:30 destined to reach Sharjah at 14:10 local time. On Tuesdays and Saturdays, the flight will depart from Sharjah at 14:55 to land in Baku at 17:50 local time, and make its return journey starting 18:50 at Baku and land at Sharjah International Airport at 21:30 local time. The launch of the new flights follows a joint cooperation between Air Arabia, Azerbajian Airlines and local authorities aimed at promoting the new route connecting Baku and Sharjah. Sitting on the crossroads of Europe and Asia, Azerbaijan’s largest city also serves as the country’s financial nerve centre. Baku invites business and leisure travellers to its unique urban setting where ancient stone mansions co-exist with newly developed skyscrapers and mosques that stand as architectural marvels.

A formal agreement to build the Novotel Sharjah Expo, an exclusive business hotel, was signed between Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Chairman of Basma Group and Günther Hinterberger, Managing Director, Klampfer Middle East, in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Chairman of United Investment, and Khalifa Al Shaibani, Director-General of United Investment. The Dh120 million Novotel Sharjah Expo is being developed under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, and will serve as the official hotel of Expo Centre Sharjah. The upcoming hotel is being seen as a new milestone for business and MICE tourism in Sharjah. The Chairman of Basma Group said, “We in Sharjah are constantly striving, under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, to improve our emirate in a way that makes it keep pace with changing times and represent a beacon of modernity and authenticity at the same time. It is this endeavor that spawned the idea to build Novotel Sharjah Expo.” The business hotel is the latest addition to Sharjah’s hospitality and tourism industry and will comprise 200 rooms that fall under three categories – standard rooms, club floor rooms and executive suites. The Novotel Sharjah Expo is strategically located close to Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Dubai, as well as to the vital leisure areas in Sharjah. The hotel will feature a business centre with workstations and two meeting halls including a large meeting-cum-function hall of approximately 200 square metres.