Sharjah Holiday Tour Package - Cultural Holidays

Sharjah Holiday Package:Overview

Sharjah is the third largest of the seven emirates in UAE, Sharjah covers approximately 2,600 square kilometers. In addition to Sharjah city, which lies on the shores of the Arabian Gulf, the emirate has three provinces on the scenic east coast; Dibba Al Hisn, Khor Fakkan and Kalba, plus the Islands of Abu Mousa and Sir Abu Nu’air.

Sharjah is a close neighbor to Dubai (it’s just a 15 minute drive from the centre of Sharjah to Dubai International Airport). So you must include Sharjah Cultural Site Seeing in your Dubai Package

The name Al Sharjah means light and sunrise, Sharjah is the Capital of Islamic Culture also identified by UNESCO as cultural capital of the Arab world. Sharjah is the best education and cultural holiday destination in Middle east and whole world.

It takes approx 3-4 days to cover sharjah fully to see all attractions in city as well as outskirts, Tourist Destinations line up, all the way from Sharjah to Daid to Khor Fakkan, Kalba and Dibba Al Hisn, all are part of Sharjah and offer perfect holiday getaway.

                                                                             (courtesy www.signatures-photographies.com)

Sharjah Holiday Package: Highlights 

• Visit Buhairah Cornish - the most photographed area

• Enjoy boating in lagoon

• Visit Sharjah Desert Park - Arabia's Wildlife Centre

• Visit World's One of the best Museum

• Al Noor Island 

• Sharjah Aquarium - Largest Government Educational center in UAE 

• Typical Sharjah Ajman city tour

Where To Stay at Sharjah

• The Radisson Blu Resort ( 5 star) - Location within walking distance of heritage area.

• Al Bait Hotel ( 2 star) - Located in the heritage area, behind Al Zahra Mosque. It offers two-star accommodation, and is quite simple, with a dormitory­-style set-up.

• Sharjah Rolla Hotel Apartments - In the adjoining Rolla Area of Sharjah, there are many cheap hotels and hotel apartments to stay. This is also within walking distance of Sharjah heritage Area. Another Benefit of staying in Rolla is the availability of many good restaurants, Vegetarian and Non-vegetarians.

Package Inclusion:

• 4 nights accommodation on twin sharing basis

• Both way airport transfer

• Daily breakfast

• Sharjah city tour

• Sharjah Aquarium with transfer

• Sharjah Desert Park tour

• All taxes

Package Exclusion:

• Any personal expenses

• Sharjah VISA

• Any airfare

Tourist Attractions Site Seeing in Sharjah

Sharjah is an emirate of contrasts, Here you enjoy lovely beaches, discover traditional markets (souks) or visit Best shopping malls ( Sahara Mall, Mega Mall etc) , explore heritage sites, museums, beautiful mosques, mountains and seas.

The emirate of sharjah is famous for its museums, beautiful mosques, well manicured parks, wildlife parks. Sharjah boasts of 17 museums, One wild life desert park, One dolphenarium, many gardens, more than 600 mosques. Sharjah also hosts Sharjah Biennial an annual ­international book fair from March 5 to June 5.

Sharjah also has a grand exhibition centre near Tawoon Mall area, known as Sharjah Expo ­Centre to host trade fairs.

About Buhairah Cornish - Sharjah

The most beautiful attraction of Sharjah is Buhairah Cornish, which is the most photographed area with a calm lagoon and circular drive around it, there are sky scrapers around the lagoon and green grass for kids to play with and lots of cafes strewn along the lagoon. In the middle of the lagoon, there is a 100 meter or 7 story high water fountain,

You can have boating in the lagoon and go around the beautiful fountain in the boat. In the middle of the lagoon, there is a protected area which is reserved s a small bird sanctuary. On Buhairah Cornish, there is also a major waterfront bustling area known as Al Majaz Waterfront, It hosts World Music ­Festival, it has 750 metre jogging track made out of 6,000 recycled tyres. It’s free to enter and runs from 9am to 2pm.

Al Qasba Canal Visit

Al Qasba is another great attraction in sharjah, It is around one-kilometre-long canal and the 60-metre-high Eye of the Emirates Ferris wheel. Al Qasba houses the Maraya Art Centre, a three-storey art space, In addition, al qasba has some great dinining restaurants, fast food corners, and kid's Play areas.

Sharjah Desert Park

Sharjah desert park is situated along the highway to Al Dhaid, Approximately 25 kilometres away.

It is also known as Arabia’s Wildlife Centre and houses Arabian Peninsula’s rarest animals, such as the Arabian leopard, the Arabian wolf, sand cats and all kinds of other mammals, rodents, insects, fish and birds that are indigenous to the area. It’s indoor and fully airconditioned, so it can be visited at any time of the year. It’s open daily (except Tuesday), from 9am to 6pm.

Sharjah Museum

Sharjah Museum is one of the iconic structure in the Rolla are with its gold-dome. Museum depicts Islamic Civilization. Museum holds special exhibitions from time to time. Museum has more than 5,000 Islamic artefacts, including manuscripts from all over the the world, Museum displays discoveries, inventions, arts, gold, silver and textile handicrafts, jewellery including coins, old jewels etc.

Also have some special articles like world’s first ­fountain pen and arithmetic, algebra, tools that measure celestial bodies, medicines for treatment of cataracts and glaucoma etc.

Tickets :- Dh 5/- for adults and free for ­children.

                                                                                                        (Courtecy www.tessdemountable.co.uk)

Sharjah Art Museum

Enjoy the Sharjah Art Museum barajeel (wind towers) and have a tour of Oriental, historic and modern art exhibitions. Visit small traditional homes turned into museums and centres, Also visit Sharjah Centre for the Art of Arabic Calligraphy and Ornamentation, and learn calligraphy and Arabic writing. Keep walking around to find the “Al Khat” script square, which is where this centre is located, as all the traditional homes look the same but have signs on them marking what they house.

In this area, there are at least seven museums. Other places to visit include an old school, Al Eslah School Museum. Set up in 1935, it was the first formal educational institute in Sharjah and welcomed students from across the region.

You can spend whole day in the area, Visit the oldest souq in Sharjah, Souq Al Arsah, which houses many unique antique shops as well as carpets and ­traditional Emirati trinkets, such as money, military equipment, telephones, toys made of tin and even stuffed small crocodiles.

Natural-history Museum

Watch the oldest rock in the UAE, a 600-million-year-old lump of volcanic ash from Sir Bani Yas Island.

Also see the oldest rock in the world – a 3.9-billion-year-old gneissic rock from Acasta River, Northwest Territories, Canada. It was formed 700 million years after the origin of Earth, which is thought to be 4.54bn years old.

Sharjah Classic Car Museum

Along is the same route, there’s also the Sharjah Classic Car ­Museum. It has about 85 classic cars, from 1915 to the 1980s, as well as two motorcycles and bicycles.

Al Noor Island

This public park, created in Khalid Lagoon and accessed by bridge from the central city Corniche Street, is Sharjah's top spot if you're looking for some tranquil downtime to recuperate from shopping and museum exploring. The island blends art and nature into its design and features gardens scattered with modern art sculptures and installations, created by some of the world's most renowned artists. Perhaps the premier attraction is Al Noor Island's butterfly house, where an approximate 500 different butterfly species can be seen.

Al Qasba

This waterfront quarter is Sharjah's top nighttime destination, with plenty of cafés and restaurants. The seafront road is a favorite for promenading and taking in the evening atmosphere, but Al Qasba's biggest attraction is the 60-meter-high Eye of the Emirates observation wheel. Head up on this big wheel to get a soaring perspective over the city. Views from the top can stretch for 30 miles. It's particularly good for nighttime shots of Sharjah's lights and many illuminated buildings.

Shopping at Iranian Souq - Sharjah

Along the main Corniche Road, enjoy the shopping in the Iranian Souqs for Arabic coffee mugs, pots,spices, nuts, others

Blue Souq visit

Central Market or Blue Souq is the most bautiful market next to garden, it is named so because of beautiful blue tiles.It’s said to be one of the most-photographed buildings of Sharjah, It has more than 600 shops, selling rugs, antiques,gold, silver, it’s great place for shopping souvenirs. It’s open seven days a week, from 9am to noon and 4pm to 11pm.

Dr Sultan Al Qasimi Centre for Gulf Studies

Situated also on the Al Dhaid Road, is Dr Sultan Al Qasimi Centre for Gulf Studies, near the University City in Sharjah, The Centre has collection of old maps, including the oldest world map of Ptolemy, which was originally conceived in the second century and first printed in 1493. It’s open Sunday to Thursday from 9am to 4pm, and entry is free.

Bars & Nightlife of Sharjah

You cannot find any bars and clubs in Sharjah, since alcohol sale and consumption is banned in all of the Emirate. Most visitors looking for vibrant nightlife head to neighboring Dubai, where alcohol regulations are much more lax and party venues are aplenty.

If you are willing to spend time in Sharjah itself then visit at restaurants or outdoor cafe, enjoy a meal accompanied by freshly squeezed juices. One of the most popular after-sundown spots in the city is the Al Majaz Waterfront, where quite a few establishments located right by the water offer unobstructed views of the daily fountain light show in the lagoon.

Famous Cultural Round About - Sharjah

The Kuwait Round about was built in the mid-1980s in recognition of Kuwait's contribution in building the emirate of Sharjah, His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, has written a book in commemoration of Kuwait's help in structuring the city, titled, The History of Kuwait: The Life and Death of Abdullah Sabbah.

Now a days it is also callled Cultural Roundabout, It also carries an interesting story. In 1987, the Government of Sharjah built the Cultural Palace and soon after, a large flame was lit on a roundabout. The roundabout was named Shula, which means 'flame', it used to lit by a gas pipe, The flame was then taken down and replaced with a sculpture of Holy Quran.

The Quran was designed by a Spanish architect, A verse of the Quran can still be seen engraved inside with gold plated calligraphy.

The name of the roundabout was also changed several times, It was called Book Roundabout previously

Sharjah Aquarium

Why you should visit Sharjah Aquarium

Sharjah Aquarium is located near Fish Market It houses the diverse marine creatures, more than (150) species, including beautiful clownfish, delicate seahorses, moray eels, sea rays and reef sharks. Contemplate the splendor of marine creatures of all sizes in the rocky shores, coral reefs, lagoons and mangroves. Sharjah Aquarium is the first and largest government educational center in UAE. Covering an area of 6500 m², it consists of two floors equipped with 20 aquariums, filled with 1.8 million liters of water.

                                                                                                    (Courtecy universes-in-universe.org)

Typical Sharjah Ajman City Tours Highlights:

Pick-up from your hotel.

Visit Fort of sharjah at Rolla, Souk Al Arsa, Souk Al markaz. Cultural Square in Al Wahda Road, Ajman Museum, While Returning from Ajman, Visit Ajman and Sharjah Corniche, Place of Sheikh of Sharjah, Souq Al Arsah market on corniche Road, Shopping in Blue Souq ornaments market, Evening Dinner at King Faisal Food Street

Beautiful Mosques of Sharjah

Al Noor Mosque, the most Beautiful;

Al Noor Mosque is located beside the Khalid lagoon on Buhairah Corniche is the most beautiful and most famous. It is open for expats and tourists at 10am on Monday for them to know about UAE culture and religion.”Al Noor Mosque on Buhairah Corniche is famous for its architecture which resembles the ‘Blue Mosque’ in Turkey. It is bedecked with 34 elegant cascading domes in the exterior

What makes Al Noor Mosque magnificent is the architectural design, which is influenced by the classical Turkish Ottoman architecture exhibited in the exceptional Sultan Ahmed Mosque, popularly known as the Blue Mosque in Turkey.

Specifically, Al Noor Mosque is bedecked with 34 elegant cascading domes in the exteriors that always catch the eyes of visitors and faithful. “The central dome is surrounded by several half domes and finally at each corner by four small cupola domes,” Madgwick says.

On the order of Shaikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, the construction of Al Noor Mosque started on April 6, 2003 and was completed after two years. It has a Ladies Section and can accommodate 2,200 people — 400 in the Ladies Section alone.

Situated on the Corniche, Al Noor Mosque is a living testimony to local residents, whose families have lived in this oldest settlement in the emirate.

King Faisal Mosque

King Faisal Mosque earns the honour of being the largest among Sharjah’s mosques and named after King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, former Ruler of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Sprawling in a 12,000-square-metre area in the heart of Sharjah on King Faisal Road, it is near the Central Souq, Al Jubail Bus Station and the Sharjah headquarters of Dubai Islamic Bank. King Faisal accommodates 17,000 people, 12,000 of whom can sit inside. It has a Ladies Prayer Hall, which many female faithful find accessible to go. Local resident Amirah Al Tayer says that she often goes to this mosque on Eid as it is in the heart of the city. “It is very convenient for my family as we live nearby,” she says.

Built in 1984 and opened to believers by 1987, King Faisal Mosque holds lectures at night during Ramadan on Hadith, Fiqh, Aqidah and how to pray.

Al Maghfirah Mosque,

It is also a most important mosque which stands elegantly in the Al Seef area near Radisson Blue Hotel. Built in 1999, it opened for the general public in 2002 under the guidance of Shaikh Sultan.

This mosque accommodates 3,000 people in all, 2,000 of whom can sit inside.

Sharjah to Dubai

A drive from Sharjah to Dubai takes approximately 30 to 60 minutes, based on the traffic. You can also take a bus to Dubai from Al Jubail bus station.