qatar tourism

January 10 Qatar Today 31

straight talk

when the country won

the award for the

World’s Leading

Emerging Business

Destination at the

16th Annual World

Travel Awards at the Grosvenor House

in London on December 9, Doha had

made a mark on the tourism industry

as well.

Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA), Chair-

man, Ahmed Al Nuaimi has mapped out

a careful plan to sell Qatar as a tourist

spot but it is not numbers that he is look-

ing at.

"In Qatar, we do not seek to be a lo-

cation for mass tourism; rather we are

focused on presenting our country as a

world-class business destination, with

high-quality services," he says.

Qatar Today talks to Al Nuaimi to

know more about the plans.

Tourisim is a big market but onethat has not been capitalised inQatar as yet. How do you planto sell Qatar as a tourist spot?Qatar’s strategic location has attracted

visitors to the region for thousands of

years. Our country has as much natural

Ahmed Al NuaimiChairman, Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA)

The world might still be reeling but not Qatar, where the roomoccupany rates in hotelsare still encouraging.

A preview of what is in store in the tourism sector.

“QaTar:noT a mass-TourisT locaTion"

By Sindhu Nair

QT-January.indd 31 12/31/09 5:02:07 PM

32 Qatar Today January 10

straight talk

beauty as it has cultural richness and this

attracts tourists to our region.

Qatar is spearheading a surge in inter-

est in the Arabian Gulf. We see many

visitors coming to Qatar looking for

business opportunities, and extending

their stay to enjoy the leisure and cultur-

al activities that the country has to offer.

QTA participates in travel exhibitions

abroad that align with our strategy of

promoting Qatar as a business destina-

tion with upscale leisure activities. We

participate in key MICE travel exhibi-

tions as well as luxury exhibitions.

To further reach the international mar-

kets and to increase awareness of our

country, QTA has undertaken an intense

road show schedule to fve major Euro-

pean cities. We will meet with tourism

ministries as well as top travel organiz-

ers and MICE buyers to discuss opportu-

nities. We will plan a similar road show

to Asia in 2011.

Qatar is seen as the educationand research hub in the region.

How can this factor be used toattract tourists?Education City consists of six leading

American Universities that attract stu-

dents from all over the Gulf and MENA

regions. With leading research institu-

tions and ample resources, our univer-

sities are not only home to Qatari and

international students and faculty but

are also visited by distinguished pro-

fessors, researchers and collaborating

institutions.

The universities in Education City par-

ticipate in many outreach programmes

to students and corporations regionally

which result in an increase in visitors

to Qatar – from the ‘Doha Debates’ to

executive education programmes to stu-

dent competitions at both high school

and university levels.

Qatar recently launched and hosted the

World Innovation Summit for Education

– which is a global, groundbreaking col-

laborative initiative established by Qatar

Foundation, bringing international edu-

cation experts and world leaders to our

country, and which will also frmly place

Qatar on the map as a leader in education

initiatives.

The Qatar Science and Technology

Park is a world-class incubator for the

research, development and commer-

cialisation of new technologies that has

attracted signifcant R&D investment

from companies such as Shell, Qatar

Petroleum, ExxonMobil, EADS, Total

and GE. QSTP has been in the centre

of many recent research and technol-

ogy developments from Williams F1

establishing a technical centre to QSTP

to being a hub for research activities on

environmentally friendly fuels like GTL

and developments in healthcare technol-

ogy. QSTP brings research and business

tourism together.

Our education and research institu-

tions attract prospective students as well

as business partners driving tourism to

our country.

We have hotels that are a beaconof hospitality but how well is thehotel industry performing? And do they bring in tourists?Qatar is unique in that it offers a tradi-

tional Middle Eastern experience while

providing all the luxuries of home. We

have many 5- and 4-star hotels located

directly downtown, accessible from the

airport and major tourist centres and at-

tractions. The combination of a unique

cultural experience and a progressive at-

mosphere has been a staple to the success

of tourism in Qatar, providing a sense of

comfort to our guests.

The global economic recession has not

affected tourism-related activities in Qa-

tar, and hotels are still doing a good busi-

ness. With the opening of new hotels, the

occupancy has been spread. Hotels have

reported an increase in revenue this year,

and we believe the situation to improve

further in the coming year.

About half a dozen hotels have opened

in Qatar in 2009 offering 2,000 new

rooms to visitors. To meet forecasted

demand, hotel capacity will increase to

over 29,000 luxury rooms and apart-

ments by 2012.

Dubai has a shopping festivalto capitialise on. Oman has aCultural Festival. With traveland visa restrictions, how soonwill Qatar be seen as a tourist hotspot?We are not comparing what we offer to

visitors with what Dubai or Abu Dhabi

or Oman offer – we complement each

other by bringing tourism to the region

by emphasising the areas that we each

do best.

In Qatar, a simple 30-day visa cover-

ing both business and leisure travel is

available to passport holders from 33

countries including the UK and Ireland,

most of continental Europe, the USA and

“Qatar is also investing more intourism sites, likethe landmark $3billion Museum of

Islamic Art”


January 10 Qatar Today 33

straight talk

Canada, Australia and New Zealand and

select Asian nations. The visas are issued

without special conditions, and are con-

veniently issued upon arrival.

There is also a joint Qatari-Omani

tourist visa whereby visas issued to tour-

ists in Qatar are valid in Oman and vice-

versa. This is especially convenient for

our visitors arriving on cruise ships that

travel around the GCC. A similar dual

visa system is expected to be in place

between Qatar and Bahrain. We are in

discussions with our other GCC neigh-

bours on similar arrangements.

New visa procedures for visitors arriv-

ing by boat have been implemented this

year, making the process easier for tour-

ists stopping in Qatar on cruise ships.

What, according to you, re- stricts the country from being a preferred destination? And howdo we work around these con-

strictions?Qatar may not be as well known to many

people around the world as other desti-

nations in the Gulf region. QTA acts as

one of the main ambassadors for Qa-

tar worldwide, and is promoting Qatar

abroad through attendance at exhibitions

and road shows as well as through tra-

ditional and non-traditional advertising.

We may have started late to the game,

but we are taking measured steps to en-

sure that it is a pillar in the diversifying

economy. In ve years, tourism will be

a strong and active contributor to the

country’s GDP.

We have identied our audience and

have been working to build tourism in

those sectors: business, sport, education

and research. By combining exhibitions

and tourism under the unique control of

QTA, it has enabled us to create a unique

tourism strategy, offering business-ori-

ented destination, combined with leisure

activities.

Is QTA only banking on MICE? How have the volumes compared with before the recession set in?Tourism is a great tool for Qatar’s econ-

omy, as it is mainly a business-oriented

tourism model, with visitors coming for

exhibitions, conferences and events, and

extending their stay to enjoy our unique

hospitality and upscale leisure activi-

ties. We have invested domestically and

internationally to encourage cultural,

educational, sports and leisure tourism

to complement the business tourism in-

dustry in our country.

Aside from the tourism revenues from

the MICE industry, Qatar is a prime des-

tination in the region for sports tourism.

Fast becoming one of the world’s lead-

ing places in sporting events, Qatar has

invested $2.8 billion in infrastructure

over the last several years to support ath-

letic competition.

In addition to be the hosting venue for

many world sports championships al-

ready, Qatar will be the ofcial host of

the 2011 Asian Cup, and has recently an-

nounced its bid to host the 2022 World

Cup.

How healthy are the occupancyrates?Occupancy rates in Qatar did very well

in 2008 compared to the rest of the re-

gion. Though, in line with the global

trend, occupancy rates declined a bit this

past year.

The investment in infrastructure, en-

ergy and sports has led to an increase

in personnel coming to Qatar, as well as

corporate and government ofcials com-

ing from various countries. Addition-

ally, Qatar’s tourism industry has seen

a boost as the result of the rapid expan-

sion of Qatar Airways. Doha has become

a preferred transit point for passengers

from Europe and Asia.

Qatar is expecting a very promising

year in 2010 as we continue to invest in

the infrastructure of the country and the

tourism sector.

How is Qatar known around theworld?Qatar is known for our tradition of in-

dependence and our progressive orienta-

tion. We are a small country that has not

been on the global radar for very long in

comparison to other tourist destinations.

Fifteen years ago, Qatar was likely

unknown to most of the world’s inhab-

itants. However, over the course of the

past decade and a half, Qatar has gained

a reputation as a robust nation, aspiring

to be a voice of moderation in the region

with the goal of presenting sophisticated

culture both at home and abroad.

What are the new ventures that QTA is planning on? A brief pre-view of what the country will be(or should be) in 2020 accordingto your plans.We see Qatar being a multifaceted, high

quality tourist destination. Our invest-

ment in our cultural, educational, sports

and leisure activities to complement our

MICE tourism model has diversied the

tourism industry and the breadth of our

visitor demographics.

Over a ve-year period, Qatar will be

investing $17 billion into the tourism

infrastructure in our country; building a

new airport, port, expanding hotel capac-

ity. Qatar will be opening the Qatar Na-

tional Convention Center in 2011 and the

Doha Convention Center and Tower in

2012, setting new benchmarks in global

venue design and world-class facilities.

Qatar is also investing more in tourism

sites, like the landmark $3 billion Museum

of Islamic Art, opened just last year, the

long-term renovation of the widely appre-

ciated Souq Waqif area, the Doha National

Museum, which is currently undergoing

a fresh refurbishment, and other projects

like the Photography Museum, and the

National Library.

That is the unique Qatari appeal to cul-

ture and traditions: being proud of a rich

past and interconnecting that heritage with

modern creativity and innovation, and al-

ways planning for the future.

QTA has also recently launched its new

website www.qatartourism.gov.qa. It is a

hub of information for visitors and resi-

dents alike n

“Occupancy rates inQatar did very well in

2008 compared to the restof the region. Though,

in line with the globaltrend, occupancy ratesdeclined a bit this past

year.Ó


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