QATAR
Location: jutting like a thumb from the Saudi Arabian coast into the southern Arabian Gulf, Qatar covers 11,437sq km.
History: once part of the Ottoman Empire, it gained independence from Turkey in 1915. Oil was discovered in 1939, the revenue transforming the rural community into one of the world’s wealthiest countries. With prices falling, however, the government is diversifying into areas such as light industry and is building the infrastructure to support tourism and world-class sports events, among them the annual Qatar Open ATP Tennis tournament.
Accessibility: national carrier Qatar Airways serves 19 regional and international destinations from Doha International Airport, including Heathrow. Flying time from London is 7hrs and 30mins. Qatar Airways offers direct daily services, British Airways flies every day via Bahrain, and Gulf Air non-stop on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
Accommodation: although major groups will begin to arrive in Doha early in the new millennium, at present it has a limited range of international hotels, among them the 379-room, pyramid-shaped Sheraton Doha Hotel and Resort, noted for its elegance and prime beach-front location.
Its sister property, the Sheraton Gulf Hotel has 298 excellent guest rooms, a number of restaurants, a private marina, and a range of conference and function rooms, which are being upgraded.
Other hotels with good all-round amenities include the Sealine Beach resort, comprising 35 rooms and 40 beach villas and chalets; the 334-room Ramada; the 171-room Sofitel Doha; and the 217-room Oasis Hotel and Beach Club.
The Four Seasons Doha, a 335-room, five-star hotel with extensive sports facilities and a marina, is under construction for completion next year. Rotana Hotels plans to open within the next three years, and the Ritz-Carlton group is rumoured to have a luxury development in the pipeline.
Attractions: more than 95% of Qatar is desert. In the endless horizons, driving through the dunes in four-wheel-drive vehicles, camel racing, and dinner under the stars, visitors will find the genuine flavour of Arabia. It’s worth making the 1hr trip across the desert to Khor Al-Udeid Beach, the Inland Sea, fringed by white sand and illuminated at night by the flares of oil refineries across the water in Saudi Arabia; while Doha has souks selling everything from spices to hand-crafted silverware, and historic sites and modern attractions in the city and surrounding area. These include the Moorish-style Al-Kout Fort; the Falconry Souk; Al Shaqab Stud, which has a worldwide reputation for breeding champion horses; the city’s four-mile Corniche, one of the finest in the Middle East; the Oryx Farm, a sanctuary for the protected species at Shahaniya; and Qatar National Museum.