Fujairah is one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates or UAE and is a wonderful emirate to visit with many attractions and points of interest to keep visitors busy. Fujairah is steeped in history and there are many historical sites of interest as well as archaeological sites to visit in this emirate. Fujairah is also blessed with a beautiful and diverse natural environment which offers visitors everything from landscaped parks to mountainous rock climbing areas, beautiful natural waddies and waterfalls through to hot springs which people visit for their natural therapeutic properties. The marine environment of Fujairah is also pristine and varied and attracts visitors from all over the world who dive and fish in the waters off this emirate as well as partaking in every imaginable form of water sports.
Fujairah has three ancient castles or forts situated within fifteen kilometers of the city, the first Fujairah Fort is a massive mud brick castle that was built in 1670 and was fully restored to it's former glory in 2000. Al Heil Castle is a more modern structure that has been used as a castle by the rulers of Fujairah as well as being used for defence of the surrounding area and as a vantage point for surveillance in years gone by. Al Bithnah Fort was built in 1735 at a strategic location to guard the main passage across the Hajar Mountains through the Ham Wadi; it has long been considered the most important fort and castle in the eastern region of the UAE. Thirty kilometres north of the city of Fujairah is the 400 year old Al Bidya Mosque, this mud brick structure complete with several domes is an engineering marvel of its time and well worth a visit.
There are several beautiful waddies throughout Fujairah those of us in the West would think of them as oasis complete in many cases with waterfalls. The waddies are well worth a visit and many people choose to take four wheel drive adventure tours that take tourists on tours through the desserts of Fujairah and on to the waddies.
Ain Madhab Park is a resort and 50 hectare landscaped garden in Fujairah that is a popular attraction for families who enjoy the tranquillity of the beautiful gardens and resort. Ain Al Ghamour, twenty kilometres south of Fujairah city in the mountainous area of the emirate, has natural springs that reach sixty degrees Celsius and are often bathed in by people hoping to gain health benefits from the springs therapeutic properties, rheumatism, arthritis and back pain are all said to be relieved by the waters.
Fujairah's coastline is pristine and the climate in the emirate is perfectly suited to water sports and activities. There are numerous reefs off the coast of Fujairah that attract divers and recreational fishermen from all over the world. Water sports of all kinds are available in the emirate from sailing to jet skis and everything else imaginable. Fujairah also hosts the Power Boat Racing World Championship every October.
Fujairah is a sovereign state or emirate of the United Arab Emirates (the UAE); it has the second smallest population of any of the seven emirates - approximately 130,000 inhabitants. Fujairah is the only emirate with a seaport outside of the Persian Gulf; this port on the Arabian Sea is seen as a great strategic strong point for this emirate in the event of any naval or military action that may close the Straits of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf.
The geography of Fujairah is not what you would expect of one of the emirates of the UAE; it is rugged and mountainous with beautiful unspoilt beaches and numerous islands off the coast with coral reefs that attract divers from all over the world. This mountainous emirate has higher rainfall and lower average temperatures than the other emirates that are primarily desert, which makes it a prime tourist destination for both UAE nationals and overseas tourists.
Until 2002 freehold ownership of property in the UAE was limited to UAE and GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) citizens; at this time the emirate of Dubai was the first of the emirates of the UAE to allow freehold property ownership to foreigners. Unlike several of the other emirates that followed Dubai's lead and opened certain areas up to freehold foreign ownership, Fujairah has taken a more conservative approach and has concentrated on tourism and industrial development.
Fujairah is in the process of considering a law (similar to that of Dubai's) to allow foreign freehold ownership of residential property. At the moment however the government of Fujairah has only allowed one development, the 43 story Al Jabar tower to be available for foreign freehold ownership. This tower, which is being developed by Al Jabel Contracting, will house showrooms, commercial shops and 270 residential apartments. The more traditional UAE custom of allowing foreigners to hold property under a 99-year lease is still the main option open to expats who wish to invest in the Fujairah residential property market.
Industrial development is booming in Fujairah, with the Fujairah Free Zone operating in a similar manner to free zones in the other emirates of the UAE, which allows the opportunity of fully foreign owned businesses. Recently a major announcement was made concerning the building of an oil pipeline from Abu Dhabi and a liquefied natural gas storage hub on the coast of Fujairah. The building of this strategic natural resources hub and storage centre on the Arabian Sea coast will require over two square kilometres of land to be reclaimed from the Arabian Sea.
The government's main development focus, other than industrial development, is tourism. Plans are currently underway to triple the present 1500 properties available to tourists by 2012. Some of these new properties will be in the recently announced Al Fujairah Paradise resort; this resort will house hotels and an estimated 1000 five star villas. The resort is scheduled to be completed in the next two years. Several other tourist resorts and hotels are rumoured to be in the planning stages for this emirate, as national and international tourism is projected to continue its strong growth in this unique, unspoilt emirate.
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