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Have you seen this 700-year-old mosque, 500-year-old fort in UAE?

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Photo: Wam

Photo: Wam

Dubai - Fujairah promotes night hiking, bull-butting, adventure tourism at ATM

Published: Tue 18 May 2021, 3:25 PM

  • By
  • Waheed Abbas

The 700-year-old Al Bidiyah Mosque, 500-year-old Fujairah fort and the UAE’s only natural waterfall Wadi Al Wurayah are some of the must-visit tourist and heritage destinations for local and foreign tourists.

But now the emirate of Fujairah is looking to engage tourists opting for staycations with summer camps, adventure tourism as well as more heritage sites.

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“We are promoting a different kind of tourism itinerary. For example, we have a number of castles and the most popular is Fujairah Fort — which is around 500 years old — as well as Al Bidiyah mosque, the oldest mosque dating back to 700 years,” said Omar Hamour, head of marketing at Fujairah Tourism and Antiquities Authority.

"We have some other destinations like Wadi Al Wurayah, which is the only natural waterfall in the emirates. In Fujairah, visitors have also plenty of options for adventure tourism like mountain hiking, cycling, camping, scuba diving, and fishing among others."

“We opened Diba Fort three months ago and there are new night hiking spots introduced by Fujairah Adventure Centre and Fujairah Adventure Park. People have the option to enjoy a lot of adventure activities inside, like cycling, hiking, swimming etc,” Hamour told Khaleej Times on the sidelines of Arabian Travel Market on Tuesday.

Some of the other major natural sites that tourists can explore in the emirate are the Hajar Mountains that run through UAE and Oman; Wadi Ham which is the largest and longest wadi; Wadi Zikt that hosts a large man-made dam; and Wadi Siji which is home to the UAE’s oldest dam.

Interestingly, bull butting is also organised in Fujairah on Fridays for families. Many of the events are free for tourists to visit.

“People want to go out for adventure after spending months at home due to the Covid-19 restrictions in order to rejuvenate themselves,” Hamour explained.

More than a dozen hotels and tour operators from Fujairah are showcasing their facilities and activities at the four-day exhibition. Omar said two more high-end hotels will open their doors this year.

Fujairah received one million tourists in 2019 but the numbers halved last year due to the pandemic. Hamour expects numbers will go up again this year with more tourists visiting the emirate for adventure tourism.

waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com



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