According to a research conducted by Skyscanner.ae, Sharjah is one of the world's best and most affordable holiday destinations to enjoy five-star luxury.
The Emirate, which neighbors Dubai to the north, ranked fifth on the report published by Skyscanner.ae, one of the world's most popular and widely used travel search engines.
In the list that consisted of 100 cities offering affordable five-star accommodation, only the Egyptian resorts of Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, as well as Kuala Lumpur and Sofia were ranked cheaper than Sharjah.
The report said that Sharjah offered five-star stays at an average of 497 dirhams ($135) per night, while the cheapest - Sharm El Sheikh - offered luxury rooms for an average of 389 dirhams ($105) per night.
"From our data, it’s clear that deals can be found at five-star hotels in many sought-after destinations, in fact, there are five-star room rates in Sharm El Sheikh from just AED122 per night on our site now," said Skyscanner's senior growth manager Sam Ayles.
In the last few years, Sharjah has heavily invested in its growing tourism sector with a 1.5 billion dirhams ($410 million) expansion plan at Sharjah International Airport.
The plan includes the extensive ongoing expansion of the passenger terminal over the next four years, which will increase the capacity of the airport to 20 million passengers by 2027.
Sharjah is an emirate that mixes the modern and urban with tradition and culture
Sharjah is an emirate that mixes the modern and urban with tradition and culture. It's also the third most-populous emirate in the UAE and due to its global cultural affiliations, the city is visited by millions of tourists every year.
Geographically, Sharjah is located right next to Dubai and the emirate is full of astonishing green spaces. Sharjah is also a place that cherishes the outdoors and celebrates how communal and enriching it is for residents and visitors alike.
Sharjah should surely be on your bucket list of places to visit and here are 10 surprising facts you may not have known about the city:
1. H.H. Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, is the 18th ruler of the emirate from the Al Qasimi ruling family, which dates back to AD 1600.
2. Sharjah is the only emirate that shares its borders with all the other six emirates of the UAE.
3. Sharjah was the first emirate in the UAE to promote women’s rights and introduce education for women in 1942.
4. Did you know Sharjah translates to "rising sun"?
5. It's the 3rd largest emirate in the UAE, after Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
6. Sharjah was the first country in the GCC region to build an airport in 1932. Today, it's known as Sharjah International Airport.
7. In 1998, Sharjah was named by UNESCO as Arab Capital of Culture.
8. In 2015, Sharjah was crowned Capital of Arab Tourism.
9. Sharjah was named Capital of Islamic Culture in 2014.
