Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) has announced a new initiative to promote Sharjah’s tourist attractions and services via hotels and hotel apartments in the emirate. The SCTDA is installing interactive touch-screen information terminals in all five- and four-star hotels as well as luxury hotel apartments in an effort to engage visiting tourists.
The new initiative falls under the SCTDA’s Sharjah Tourism Vision 2021 strategy that aims to attract 10 million tourists by 2021. The four pillars of Vision 2021 are promoting Sharjah as an Ideal Family Tourism Destination; developing an Innovative Tourism Approach; offering World Class Tourism Facilities and Capabilities; and Continuing to develop Sharjah’s status as an International Cultural Hub.
According to the SCTDA interactive information terminals will eventually be deployed to all hotels, tourist attractions, airport, shopping malls, museums and government departments in the emirate to help enhance Sharjah’s visitor experience. In addition to reducing the need for printed brochures, the new interactive information terminals will allow tourists and visitors to access comprehensive content about Sharjah allowing them to discover services, facilities and attractions that they may have otherwise missed.
The new interactive service focuses on highlighting Sharjah’s cultural attractions, but also offers information on a wide range of local services from education institutions to business and investment opportunities.
Sharjah’s tourism sector experienced strong growth in 2014, benefiting from the emirate’s status as Islamic Culture Capital for 2014, with more than two million guests checking into Sharjah hotels. The tourism sector is also expected to perform well in 2015, as Sharjah enjoys its year as the ‘Capital of Arab Tourism for 2015’. There are now more than 100 hotels in Sharjah offering 10,000 hotel rooms, including 50 hotels and 56 hotel apartments, with a number of new hotels and resorts currently under development.
Source: SCTDA