Things to Do in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates: Walking Guide

The best things to do in Sharjah centre on the city’s museums, religious landmarks and historic neighbourhoods. As one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates, Sharjah offers a strong connection to Emirati culture, Islamic heritage, art and education. Neywo has a free audio guide for Sharjah with 15 narrated places, available in 11 languages.

Sharjah’s attractions make it a rewarding destination for travellers who want to explore beyond modern skylines. The city’s museums cover art, maritime life, archaeology and local traditions, while its mosques and churches reflect a varied religious landscape.

What to see in Sharjah

Barjeel Art Foundation

The Barjeel Art Foundation is devoted to modern and contemporary art from the Arab world. Its collection includes paintings, sculptures and installations by Arab artists from around the world.

Established in 2010 by Emirati commentator Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, the foundation manages and exhibits his personal collection. It now includes more than 1,000 works, making Barjeel a major publicly accessible collection of modern and contemporary Arab art in the Middle East. The foundation also lends works to international institutions, organises exhibitions and supports talks, student tours and research projects.

Sharjah Art Museum

The Sharjah Art Museum is one of the leading art institutions in the Persian Gulf region. Its galleries present modern and contemporary art from the United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern countries.

The museum stands on Sharjah Corniche in the Al Shuwaihean area. Its current building opened on April 7, 1997, during the third Sharjah International Arts Biennial. The galleries extend across two floors, offering a substantial setting for exploring the region’s artistic production.

Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization

The Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization brings together more than 5,000 objects connected with the cultures of the Islamic world. Its collections include calligraphy, ceramics, coins, glass, manuscripts, metalwork, carvings and scientific instruments.

The museum first opened in Sharjah’s Heritage Area in 1996 as the Islamic Museum. Its collections later moved to the Al Majara Souq building, where the displays were updated and expanded. It reopened under its current name on June 6, 2008.

Sharjah Heritage Museum

Sharjah Heritage Museum uses six galleries to present Emirati culture and tradition. Its objects and displays explore different aspects of everyday heritage and local customs.

The museum was first established in 2005 and reopened in 2012 in the restored home of Saeed Al Taweel Al Shamsi, a pearl merchant known as a tawash. Its location in Sharjah’s old town connects the exhibitions with the heritage buildings and restoration work of the Heart of Sharjah project.

Sharjah Maritime Museum

The Sharjah Maritime Museum explores the role of the sea in the city’s history and development. Its displays include models of wooden dhows, among them a pearl-fishing boat, as well as fishing equipment and diving tools.

The museum offers a direct way to understand the maritime activities that were central to Sharjah’s heritage. Its objects show the boats, techniques and equipment associated with life at sea.

Sharjah Archaeology Museum

The Sharjah Archaeology Museum traces the emirate’s history from the Stone Age to the beginning of the Islamic era. It was the first specialised archaeology museum in the United Arab Emirates and the first museum established in Sharjah.

More than 1,000 objects are displayed in its galleries, including pottery, tools, stone and metal artefacts, jewellery, coins and small figures of animals and people. Models of skeletons, burials and houses help explain discoveries from archaeological sites across the emirate. The collection covers an exceptionally long period, from more than 120,000 years ago to the seventh century of the Common Era.

Al-Islah School Museum and Bait Al Naboodah

Al-Islah School Museum tells the story of Sharjah’s first regular school and the development of education in the emirate. Its displays are designed for visitors of different ages, making it a useful stop for families and intergenerational visits.

Nearby, Bait Al Naboodah preserves the story of a pearl merchant’s home. The historic house is both a museum and a heritage building within the Heart of Sharjah, the restored old town area.

Al Noor Mosque

Al Noor Mosque stands beside Khaled Lagoon along the Buhaira Corniche. Its Ottoman-inspired design includes eight domes, two tall minarets and a large central dome surrounded by smaller half-domes.

The building was influenced by Istanbul’s Sultan Ahmed Mosque. Decorative patterns appear on the exterior, interior columns and around the central dome, where coloured glass windows add detail. In 2014, Al Noor Mosque entered the Guinness World Records for a Ramadan donation campaign featuring the world’s largest wooden charity box.

Sharjah Mosque

Sharjah Mosque is the largest mosque in the Emirate of Sharjah. Opened in May 2019, it was created as a place of worship, learning and welcome for visitors from around the world.

The complex can accommodate about 25,500 worshippers across its indoor and outdoor spaces. Its design includes 81 domes, two 75-metre minarets and a main dome that reaches 45 metres high and measures 27 metres across. Sculptural art, intricate woodwork and Arabic calligraphy contribute to the interior, while an Islamic garden with fountains and waterfalls forms part of the wider complex.

King Faisal Mosque

King Faisal Mosque, also known as Masjid Al Malik Faisal, is one of Sharjah’s notable mosques. It is named after King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, the country’s former ruler.

The mosque adds another important religious landmark to Sharjah’s cityscape and is included in the city’s cultural walking route.

Churches in Sharjah

Sharjah’s religious landscape also includes several Christian places of worship. St. Philip the Apostle Russian Orthodox Church is a Russian Orthodox church that opened on August 13, 2011. The church covers about 1,800 square metres and has a stated capacity of up to 20,000 worshippers.

Saint Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church is another Christian presence in the city. In the Halwan Suburb, within the Al Yarmook area, St. Michael’s Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic place of worship founded in 1971.

A self-guided walking tour of Sharjah

The Neywo route Heart of Sharjah: Museums, Mosque and Three Churches covers 4.96 km in 106 minutes and includes seven narrated stops. It connects the Sharjah Art Museum, Al-Islah School Museum, King Faisal Mosque, Saint Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church, St. Michael’s Catholic Church and St. Philip the Apostle Russian Orthodox Church, as well as the Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization.

This route is a practical way to combine museums, architecture and places of worship in one walk. It also gives context to the city’s cultural and religious diversity without requiring a scheduled group visit.

Explore Sharjah with Neywo

Download Neywo and discover Sharjah with one walking tour, covering 4.96 km in 106 minutes and featuring seven narrated stops. The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Narration is available in 11 languages.

If you are extending your trip, explore nearby destinations such as Dubai, Al Ain and Abu Dhabi.