Sharjah announces pariticpation in TUR 2008

This participation comes on the heels of its resounding success at International Tourism Bourse, (ITB 2008), where the Sharjah stand, organized by the SCTDA, secured the award for Best Arab Exhibitor, upon the evaluation of the Cologne Business School's research, study and assessment made during the period of the exhibition.

The evaluation study covered a large number of stands from a multitude of participants from around the globe, including GCC countries.

Since its launch eight years ago, the ITB-Cologne Business School awards have become highly sought-after, and are counted among the most important tourism awards worldwide, attracting a significant number of entries from all over the world each year.

The SCTDA will organize the Sharjah's delegation to the 25th Swedish International Travel and Tourism Fair (TUR 2008), the leading travel and tourism trade fair in Scandinavia, set to be held at The Swedish Exhibition Centre Gothenburg, March 13-16.

Scandinavian countries are among the most significant target markets which the SCTDA has been planning to reach and impress, and this year's event has attracted over 1,245 exhibitors from 100 countries, and will feature a strong presence of more than 1,985 industry decision-makers and extensive media coverage from over 465 media representatives.

Mr. Yasser Mohammed Zamzam, Senior commercial development executive at the SCTDA has reiterated the significance of the SCTDA-organized Sharjah participation in this important international exhibition, which is the leading international travel and tourism fair for Scandinavian countries.

He added that Sharjah delegation will include, in addition to the SCTDA, representatives from the Sharjah International Airport Authority, Radisson Sas, and Sharjah Millennium Hotel.

"At the beginning of the year the SCTDA announced its promotional strategy, which targets new markets with the aim of increasing the tourism profile of the emirate. The Scandinavian region is one of the most important markets for the SCTDA, as it can generate a steady inflow of tourists into the emirate throughout the year", Zamzam added.

Zamzam concluded by saying, "Our participation in TUR 2008 forms a part of our 2008 promotional strategy which features more than 20 international participations with the aim of boosting Sharjah's already established leading position on the world tourism map".

Through its relentless promotion of the emirate of Sharjah, the SCTDA has drawn tremendous international attention to the emirate, reaping the rewards of such exposure in the shape of an ever-expanding tourism sector and increasing numbers of visitors streaming into Sharjah every year.

The emirate recorded 1.45 million tourists in 2007, an 11 percent increase as compared to the figure for 2006.