UAE Tourism: Searching for a Squared Enclave

Tourists are attracted to different things in different places.

George Walther (who I have never heard about until today) is a visitor to the UAE and he recently wrote in his blog about his UAE travel hopes:

“I’m going to visit the enclave of “Nahwa” a tiny territory that’s part of Sharjah, one of the United Arab Emirates. So, there’s lonely Nahwa completely surrounded by the Omani territory of “Madha.” But wait, it’s not that simple! Madha, part of Oman, is itself cut off from the rest of Oman and is itself completely encircled by the United Arab Emirates. Isn’t that reason enough to go?

For more on his travel plans check George Walther’ ‘Speaking from Experience’ web site and his 23 May 2007 post, ‘A Squared Enclave; Isn’t That Reason Enough?’

Image: Nahwa.

UAE Tourism Video: Fujairah on YouTube

The blurb says about the producer of this six minute film on Fujairah:

“George Jacob is a Dubai based film maker and founder of Moviemedia in Dubai. Core business is corporate videos, marketing videos, training films, induction films, safety films, television content generation, tv commercials etc. Having been in the Arabian Gulf for the last 29 years, he is well versed with the nuances and challenges of making films in the region. Moviemedia provides crewing and logistic support services to out-of-towners and they are more than happy because he goes the extra mile to meet the client's requirements.”

Check out the tourism film on Fujairah at:

Travel and Tourism Video for Fujairah

Geoff Pound

Image: Etisalat building, Main Street, Fujairah.

More Hotel Beds for Fujairah

While the hotel construction business is booming north of the Fujairah township the walls have gone up around the construction site for this five star hotel (ground and eight floors).

It will be located on Fujairah’s corniche, a kilometre south of the Hilton Hotel.

More beds. More tourists for Fujairah.

Geoff Pound

Image: Promotional picture from the site.

Diving Deeper in the UAE?

Further to our last posting, on some Fujairah hotels attracting people to stay because of the wonderful diving facilities available, I am reminded of this skilful piece of advertising.

To promote a scuba diving course, an advertising agency installed these posters (pictured) at the bottom of Antwerp's public swimming pool.

The posters read, "Not deep enough?"

Geoff Pound

Image: Underwater Scuba Diving Commercial.

Further Hotel for Fujairah

Yet another huge hotel is opening on Fujairah’s eastern coastline, north of Al Aqah beach and just near Dibba.

This week Nikko Hotels International announced it will open Hotel JAL Fujairah Resort & Spa on May 15, 2007.

The new five-star resort will be the first in the Nikko Hotels International group (owned by ACICO in Kuwait) in the Middle Eastern market. This will be followed by a further hotel projected to open in Dubai in 2008.

The Fujairah resort is being built along a third of a mile of private beach and will have 257 guest rooms, all facing the Indian Ocean.

Each of the new hotels along the Fujairah coast is targeting a certain market. The Hotel JAL Fujairah Resort & Spa is talking up Fujairah’s ideal scuba diving and snorkeling sites and it is featuring their state of the art diving centre.

Source: Hotel JAL Fujairah Resort & Spa

Image: Experiencing another world.

Fujairah’s Amazing Coastline

I took my rellies for a day at Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort this week for some sun and some pampering.

My visitors remarked on two things—the friendliness of the staff (I am not being paid to say this but the recruiting and PR teams are doing a good job) and the number of people we heard with European accents (especially German and Russian) as we swam and sat around the pool.

This week Patrick Antaki, the hotel’s General Manager, stated that Le Meridien team is returning to strut its stuff at the International Tourism Exchange in Berlin this month. Eager to maintain its title of the ‘Middle East’s Leading Beach Resort’ at the World Travel Awards for the second year, the hotel will be showcasing its facilities and its superb location on the Fujairah coastline.

By the number and sound of the European guests plus the friendliness of Le Meridien staff, attendance at such exhibitions is paying off.

Fujairah has one of the leading beach resorts in the world. The magnet of Le Meridien indicates that one of the greatest assets of Al Fujairah is its coastline.

Geoff Pound

Image: View from the sea of Le Meridien, against the background of the Hajar Mountains.