Sharjah, August 25th, 2010 — Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Department (SCTDA) has said that the total number of guests staying in Sharjah’s hotel apartments in the month of July reached 68,363, a 14 percent increase as compared to the 59,888 guests reported for the corresponding period last year.

During the same period, the number of hotel apartments nights increased by 12 percent from July 2009 figures of 58,722 hotel nights to 65,626, while the emirate’s hotel occupancy rate rose from 64 percent in July 2009 to 70 percent in July 2010.

The SCTDA’s statistics show that GCC tourists remained the top visitors to Sharjah in July 2010, accounting for 45 percent of total tourist arrivals, followed by tourists from other Arab countries (20 per cent ), Asian tourists (18 per cent ), European tourists (12 per cent ) and tourists from the Commonwealth, USA, Africa and Pacific region (5 per cent ).

Speaking of the results, Mohamed A. Al Noman, Director General of the SCTDA, said that these achievements are the inevitable results of Sharjah’s distinctive tourist offerings and products. “The SCTDA is striving to promote Sharjah at all international, regional and local events and exhibitions in order to attract more tourists to the emirate,” he said

Regarding summer in Sharjah, Al Noman said, “This summer saw a number of activities in Sharjah, including the ever-popular Sharjah Summer Promotions, which is one of the pillars supporting tourism and commercial activities in the emirate. Tourists and residents visited the shopping malls and markets, looking to benefit from promotions that were suitable for all family members. The emirate’s hotels also witnessed remarkable activity in summer 2010 due to the special rates offered to Sharjah Summer Festival visitors.” “Statistics show that Sharjah has become a destination of choice for GCC tourists. More than 30,000 GCC tourists visited the emirate in July, a figure that emphasises the feasibility of presence in this important market and the necessity of providing more offers for GCC tourists. This will help promote the success of Sharjah’s tourism sector, and can be partly accomplished through the continuing organisation of the GCC promotional tours that the SCTDA has been involved with for the last nine years,” he added.

“Supporting Sharjah’s status as a leading tourism destination on the global tourism scene is one of the top priorities for the SCTDA, especially as the emirate has become a favourite tourism destination for many tourists across the globe. The promotional tours organised by SCTDA have become an important stage on which the Authority continues to showcase Sharjah’s various tourist attractions,” Al Noman concluded.

The SCTDA, in co-operation with Air Arabia and representatives from the emirate’s tourism sector, has also organised a promotional tour across a number of European capitals and held meetings with tourism companies in Turkey, Belgium, Greece, Kazakhstan and the Ukraine, where tourism and travel companies and agencies expressed significant interest in what makes Sharjah such a unique destination on the world’s tourism map.