Dubai: Two cruise ships docked at Khorfakkan Port on Sharjah’s East Coast this week, according to a statement by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority on Monday.
TUI Mein Schiff 2 and Costa neoRiveria arrived at the port with a combined 4,000 passengers.
The visitors were taken on a tour of the Heritage Village in Sharjah and were treated to traditional hospitality at an Emirati house.
Since the 2014-2015 season started, the Khorfakkan Port has received 13 cruise liners, carrying more than 30,000 tourists. More than 36 international cruise ships are scheduled to visit the emirate, with more than 80,000 tourists on board.
The increase in international cruise traffic to Khorfakkan creates opportunities for investment in the hospitality and tourism sectors in the region, the authority said in the statement.
Sharjah has been working with various destinations, government and private entities in the cruise tourism sector to bring in more international cruise ships and tourists to the Eastern Region.
In general, the emirate has been focusing on developing and strengthening the tourism infrastructure, facilities and services in the region to attract visitors from all over the world.
Sharjah attracted a million tourists in the first half of 2014, up 15 per cent over the same period in 2013. Hotel occupancy levels reached 74 per cent during the same period.
Europe is the emirate’s biggest tourism source market, followed by the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Asia.
