The 10 best wedding venues in Sharjah

No. Sharjah prohibits alcohol across the emirate, and that applies to hotels, resorts and private halls without exception, so none of the venues here can serve it or allow it to be brought in. Couples who want a bar usually hold the reception in Dubai and keep Sharjah for a dry celebration, or build the evening around coffee, juice and a late dinner. Say so on the invitation, because the prohibition applies to guests as well as to the venue.

Muslim couples marry through the Sharia courts, which in Sharjah means documentation and, in most cases, residency or a local sponsor. Non-Muslim couples, visitors included, generally use the Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court, which performs civil marriages and issues a certificate recognised across the UAE — that is a separate appointment in a different emirate, not something a Sharjah venue arranges for you. If your own country will not recognise it, complete the civil formalities at home first and treat the Sharjah event purely as the celebration.

Plan on holding a large hall close to a year ahead for the October-to-April window; Al Jawaher and the golf-club rooms go first, and the crunch is worst around National Day in early December and in the weeks either side of Eid. Ramadan takes roughly a month out of the calendar altogether and shifts about eleven days earlier each year, so check exactly which dates it covers for your year before committing to anything. A courtyard wedding at somewhere like The Chedi Al Bait, or a mid-size room such as Dana Hall, is usually workable on six months.

Sharjah International Airport is served mainly by Air Arabia and regional carriers, so most long-haul guests will land at Dubai International, around 30 km away, and drive in. Sharjah's hotel stock clusters on Al Buhaira Corniche and along the city beaches, which means a guest list normally splits across two or three properties within a few minutes of one another — allow 15 to 20 minutes from there out to Al Jawaher, which sits by the airport rather than in town. If you are marrying at Khor Fakkan, budget an extra hour and a half of driving in each direction and book rooms on site instead.

Yes, and in Sharjah it is the normal arrangement rather than a special request. Al Jawaher's main hall divides into three with soundproof movable walls, so both sides run the same evening under one roof; the Nawras halls at the golf club set aside separate private suites for the bride's family and the groom's; Sharjah Ladies Club is women-only by membership, so couples book it for the women's side and place the men's elsewhere. Give venues the two head counts separately when you enquire — pricing is per person and the two sides are rarely the same size.