Four new innovative tourism projects have been announced at Dubai’s Gitex Technology Week 2019 by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA).
The SCTDA joined with a number of important private sector and local government entities that are participating in the event, which takes place over a five-day period.
A number of tech-driven projects were introduced to hundreds of thousands of worldwide visitors.
One of the projects was the ‘Al Tour Guide Chatbot’, which is a chatbot that is text and voice-based and available 24/7.
The interactive tour guide chatbot will offer tourists the latest information regarding Sharjah.
It can be accessed via Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and the website of the SCTDA.
The chatbot provides accurate information about the top tourist destinations in Sharjah as well as fun activities, leading restaurants and first-class accommodation.
Five languages are supported by the Al Tour Guide Chatbot: Arabic, German, Russian, Chinese and English.
A number of Arabic accents can also be recognised by the system.
The project was inspired by the SCTDA initiative, which is intended to include the newest technologies, such as AI, in tourism programmes.
The aim is to highlight the renowned hospitality and beauty of Sharjah while also enhancing the experience of visitors.
A ‘Smart Hotel Licensing and Classification’ system is also being launched.
The project sees the Tourism Standard Department’s business processes being completely automated.
This covers a number of different service modules, including the likes of the Hotel Establishment Registration and Online Application for all services related to licensing.
This includes inspection, the management of hotel establishment classification for the grading and classification system, and violation management.
It also includes assessment management, which enables all information pertaining to assessment to be supervised by the SCTDA.
A Partner Interface is also featured in the system, offering an interface to allow the hotel establishment to be able to review data pertaining to their company.
It also allows them to have their SCTDA applications initiated and tracked, offering a one-stop system for every imaginable function within the system’s boundaries.
All transactions associated with the services are automated and all types of workflows are supported.
External customers are able to register and customise their accounts and begin to make use of the services the moment their applications are approved.
The Smart Vehicle Permit System is another new project.
This is intended to cut down on time that is involved with the management of vehicle permit transactions in addition to other transactions for safari or desert tour vehicles.
The system will help to issue vehicle stickers and permits much faster while also including countermeasures to prevent them from being duplicated and forged.
The new projects are a reflection of the commitment to the introduction of tech-driven ideas to help with the promotion of Sharjah as a first-class tourist destination, according to the chairman Khalid Jasim Al Midfa.
Anyone interested in visiting Sharjah from overseas or elsewhere in the United Arab Emirates should take out travel insurance in order to ensure that they have financial protection from any misadventures that may occur while they are away from home.
