An oasis of entertainment - Free

Gulf Times

QATAR’S largest open-air resort with a slew of family entertainment facilities will be open to the public near Mesaieed from today.
The 96,000 sq m resort named ‘The Qtel Oasis” has been built and fully funded by the telecom service provider. It will be thrown open to families in Qatar, absolutely free.
Located towards the coast, some 3km from Mesaieed City and close to Endurance Village, The Qtel Oasis has transformed a patch of desert area into an entertainment zone in the traditional Qatari style.
The entire resort was developed using an “environmentally-focused” technique, which aims to preserve the character and ecology of the surrounding area.
Steps have been taken to ensure that local plants and wildlife are not disturbed by the operations of The Qtel Oasis.
Khaled Remeithy, Qtel PR section head and The Qtel Oasis manager said: “The resort will be strictly for families in Qatar, offering a huge play area for children, equipped with a variety of inflatable slides and children’s rides. Children will also be provided with free kites. They will have access to a special kite-flying zone.”
The other facilities include beach soccer and volleyball fields and playgrounds and recreational space for children and families.
A giant inflatable cinema screen will play a mix of children’s films and educational and public awareness programmes for visitors.
Very expensive pure bred Arabian horses and camels will also be brought to the resort to delight visitors.
“The project is being launched to coincide with the peak of the camping season, when thousands of people take advantage of the temperate weather and spend time to enjoy Qatar’s nature. Visitors will be able to enjoy the same level of access to the natural surroundings at The Qtel Oasis that they would on a camping trip, but will have the safety and security of being in a controlled environment,” Remeithy said.
The area is fully equipped with key utilities such as electricity and water. Even wireless broadband Internet access will be available at the resort.
The Qtel Oasis will also be the site of a Qtel Shop, where visitors will be able to top-up their ‘Hala Pay As You Talk’ accounts and pay Shahry bills among other services.
The resort also has a fire safety and emergency prevention infrastructure in place.
This will be supported by a dedicated area for the Qatar Red Crescent, which will have full-time representatives at the resort. Training courses on cardiac pulmonary resuscitation will be given to the public every Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
During the week, The Qtel Oasis will be made available to schools, universities and local organisations on an invitation basis. It will be used to host a range of social and community events enabling people to learn more about Qatar’s fascinating natural history. The resort can also be used as an off-site location for team meetings and development sessions for government and corporate groups.
Qtel said it was confident the creation of a new resort could be used to support community initiatives.
The Qtel Oasis will be open for the public on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 2pm to 10pm.
Initially, the resort will be open for the first four months of 2009, but the project will continue if there is strong public interest and support for the initiative.
Qtel executive director (Group Communications) Adel al-Mutawa said: “Qtel is the first company to create a free public facility on this scale in Qatar and we are proud that this is the largest development of its kind in the country.
“Qtel offers the resort as a gift to the people of Qatar, as we continue to proudly celebrate the nation’s growth and development. It will provide space for relaxation in the desert for families and people of all ages to enjoy.”

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