If you're in Dubai, Pop Over. (Sharjah)

Member Name: CokaCola

Product:	Sharjah
Date:	17/08/09 (17 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Plenty of bits and pieces at cheap prices in the souks, malls and attractions too

Disadvantages: Small, Stricter General Atmosphere than Dubai.

Sharjah is one of the United Arab Emirates and is the third largest after Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Sharjah, although very few people have heard of it and it is not really thought of as a tourist destination is an absoloutely brilliant place to visit and there is a surprising amount to do in what is a very wealthy and cultural Emirate.

To get to Sharjah, there are several options. Sharjah does have it's own international airport, with flights mainly serving other middle eastern destinations, although Air Arabia which is based at Sharjah operates flights to as far away as Athens in Greece and places on the Indian Subcontient. Sharjah is not really served by the west, so flying for UK tourists probably isn't the best option directly, it is better to fly into Dubai and then visit Sharjah by another means.

Sharjah is the only Emirate in which the sale, possesion and consumption of alcohol is banned . According to Wikipedia, it also has conservative dress requirements although to be honest I saw tourists when I was there and really didn't see much evidence of such strictness? There are plenty of places to visit in this Emirate, the Mega Mall for example is a fashion centre and sells many clothing brands, and also has an indoor theme park, cinema, restaurants and a giant dinosaur skeleton.

The Arabian Wildlife Centre is another popular attraction. Unlike Dubai Zoo, this facility does seem to have a conservation mission in mind and the animals are kept in much cleaner conditions. There is even a children's farm for the youngsters.

Sharjah has plenty of shopping markets or Souks, these are largely filled with Iranian Immigrants who also operate the taxis largely it would seem. some of the bigger Souks include the Blue Souk and the Gold Souk.

I'd say that if you're in Dubai, this is a short drive away and the taxis in the UAE are cheap, so it's not too expensive to visit. You could pop over here for even half a day, it's worth a look around.

Summary: Worth a look if you're in Dubai.