TOURIST arrivals to Qatar are forecast to reach 1.8 million in 2014, up from 1.1 million in 2009, according to a new report by Euromonitor International.
Qatar’s tourism strategy is to focus on niche tourism, particularly international business conferences and exhibitions, as a means of growth for the sector. As the majority of visitors to Qatar are members of the business community, the Government has emphasised this segment as a viable source of development, with two new convention centres scheduled to open in 2012. The Doha Convention Centre and Towers will accommodate the growing number of business tourists, which is forecast to jump from 0.9 million in 2009 to 1.6 million by 2014.
Also promising for Qatar’s tourism sector is the growing number of tourists coming from outside the Middle East. A Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) spokesman said the majority of visitors stay one-and-a-half days but this is being targeted with the organisation’s 48 Hours campaign, which was launched last year aiming to get travellers to spend an extra two days taking the time to get to know the country and visiting the many attractions.
These efforts showed results with hotel occupancies witnessing a two per cent rise, to 61 per cent, in the first half of 2010, despite a number of new properties having come online since the same period in 2009. This recovery in the hotel sector can also be attributed to the continuous expansion in Qatar Airways’ routes around the world.
Another major aspect of expansion plans is the New Doha International Airport, which will have the capacity to handle up to 24 million passengers upon the completion of the first phase in 2012, with the figure rising to 50 million on its completion.
The pressure is also on with all eyes on Qatar since it took home the winning bid for the 2022 World Cup. Some 400,000 fans plus 32 competing teams are expected to make their way into the country, when it becomes the first Arab country to host the world’s largest soccer competition.
Qatar plans to use a cruise ship for accommodation when it hosts the soccer World Cup in 2022 but will need more short-term alternatives to avoid adding to an already oversupplied hotel market. The country proposes to double the supply of rooms in hotels and guest apartments with over 240 properties mostly in the four-star category but also several in the three and five-star category and a few two-star properties, reported Emirates247.com.
Qatar currently has a room supply of 9,200 rooms and expects an additional 2,000 rooms in 2011 and another 3,000 in 2012.