Tourist office Sharjah
The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), the emirate's government tourism body, runs no tourist information desk for walk-in visitors in Sharjah city. Its head office in Crescent Tower on the Buhairah Corniche takes enquiries Monday to Thursday from 07:30 to 15:30, as does its second office in Khorfakkan on the east coast. Sharjah Airport Authority's Information Desk at Sharjah International Airport and the customer service counters of Sahara Centre, a shopping mall, are 2 places in the city where visitors can ask in person.
Tourist information points in Sharjah
Questions for SCTDA go to its head office or through the Visit Sharjah contact page, which gives the addresses and hours of both SCTDA offices. Face-to-face help in the city comes from the airport authority and from one shopping centre.
Information Desk at the airport
Location: Sharjah International Airport
Opening hours: no opening hours are published
Not run by SCTDA: the desk belongs to Sharjah Airport Authority, which in 2022 added a Smart Information Desk linking travellers remotely to its customer service staff.
Sahara Centre customer service counters
Location: Sahara Centre on the Dubai-Sharjah Highway, in front of the main entrance and at the East Atrium on the ground floor
Opening hours: shops open Monday to Thursday 10:00 to 23:00, Friday to Sunday 10:00 to 00:00; no separate hours are published for the counters
Not run by SCTDA: Sahara Centre's customer service team staffs them and keeps the shopping directory and retailers' brochures there.
Visit Sharjah in detail
Visit Sharjah in detail
Sharjah, named Cultural Capital of the Arab World by UNESCO in 1998, keeps close to a quarter of all UAE museums, most of them grouped in the Heart of Sharjah. For what to do in Sharjah, the Tourist Office guide traces a single day on foot and by taxi, starting at the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization and Sharjah Fort (Al Hisn), moving through Souq Al Arsah and Central Souq, and ending by the water at Al Majaz Waterfront and the Al Qasba canal.
Beyond that route, the guide adds Bait Al Naboodah, a pearl merchant's house of 1845, and leaves a second day for Al Noor Island, Sharjah Aquarium or a trip into Dubai.
Public holidays in Sharjah to plan around
Offices, museums and shops in Sharjah can close or keep shorter hours on a public holiday. The Sharjah weekend takes in Friday as well as Saturday and Sunday, and the holiday dates come from the federal calendar of the United Arab Emirates, the same for government offices and private companies.
Five of the seven holidays are Islamic and move with the Hijri calendar. Each one waits on the sighting of the moon, and the announcement can come only weeks before: the 28 August 2026 holiday for the Prophet Mohammed's birthday was set on 7 August.
National holidays in the United Arab Emirates 2026
- 1 January Gregorian New Year
- 19 to 22 March Eid Al Fitr
- 26 May Arafah Day
- 27 to 29 May Eid Al Adha (Feast of Sacrifice)
- 15 June Hijri New Year (Islamic New Year)
- 28 August Prophet Mohammed's birthday
- 2 and 3 December National Day
Local holidays in Sharjah 2026
Sharjah has no public holiday of its own on top of the national list.
National holidays in the United Arab Emirates 2027
- 1 January Gregorian New Year
- 2 and 3 December National Day
The five moon-dependent holidays of 2027, the two Eids, Arafah Day, the Hijri New Year and Prophet Mohammed's birthday, still had no confirmed dates on 7 October 2026. The Gregorian New Year of 2027 falls on a Friday, inside the Sharjah weekend.
Local holidays in Sharjah 2027
No holiday limited to Sharjah has been announced for 2027 either.