Sharjah tourism sector records 5% growth

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), said the tourism sector scored growth in 2008, according to a detailed statistics on the performance of the emirate's tourism sector for the year ending December 31, 2008.

During this period, the tourism sector continued the substantial growth over 2007, with the overall number of guests climbing from the 1.45 million in 2007 to 1.53 million in 2008, achieving growth of over five per cent.

This increase in tourism pushed the overall occupancy in Sharjah's hotels to 86 per cent in 2008, up from 85 percent in 2007. Occupancy in hotel apartments rose to 86 per cent, up from 85 per cent in 2007. The total occupancy of hotels and hotel apartments in the emirate was 80 per cent in 2008, maintaining the same rate of 2007 and showing sustained growth despite the global financial crisis.

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