Qatar announces easier entry for cruise passengers as 32 ships head to Doha

Qatari officials have confirmed that cruise passengers will be able to disembark within minutes and begin enjoying their on-shore excursions.

This is all thanks to enhanced technology and close collaboration between cruise operators and security officials.

As part of the new operating procedure, a passenger manifest containing passport details of passengers and crew will be shared with immigration officials 48 hours in advance of the ship’s arrival in Qatar.

This will allow immigration officials to process all relevant information and clear passengers for entry before the ship berths.

In addition, QTA and the Ministry of Interior have confirmed that cruise passengers, due to the short duration of the stay, will be eligible for transit visas, which will further ease their entry into the country.

According to Hassan Al Ibrahim, Chief Tourism Development Officer at QTA, the new procedures have been introduced in anticipation of significant increases in the number of cruise passengers.

While Qatar has previously welcomed smaller ships carrying less than a thousand passengers, the coming season will be the first to witness the arrival of larger ships with over 1,500 passengers on board.

Thirty-two ships carrying over 50,000 passengers are expected to arrive in Qatar this cruise season, which continues until April 2017.

The first ship of the season is expected to dock on October 18th at the Doha Port in the heart of Qatar’s capital.

The MSC Fantasia will be the first "mega-ship" to arrive in Qatar.

It will dock in December with an expected 3,900 passengers and 1,500 crew-members on board.