Sharjah taps into Asian market
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The number of Asian tourists to Sharjah has increased in the first few months of this year.
While the emirate had received 136,31 tourists from Asia until August, visitors from Singapore accounted for 7,121 as against 6,197 tourists during the same period last year, which is a 15% increase.
In a further bid to strengthen its presence in the Asian market, Sharjah had a strong presence at ITB Singapore. “Asia has lately emerged as the largest tourism market in the world with Chinese and other visitors,” said HE Mohamed Ali Al Noman, chairman of the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA).
As per the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the Asian region has been forecasted a 6% growth for the overall region during 2012, which is triple the growth of Europe. Tourism research organization PhoCusWright on the other hand suggested that Asia Pacific will remain the fastest-growing travel region in 2013 with the market expected to be worth an estimated $357 billion next year.
The Sharjah delegation included top Sharjah government officials as well as representatives of the travel and tourism industry including Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), Sharjah International Airport, Hotel Ramada and Golden Tulip.