Anantara Doha Island Resort & Spa to open soon
A 141-room luxury island resort directly east of the new Hamad International Airport is expected to open soon, according to its operator.
Anantara Doha Island Resort and Spa is located on the 29.65-acre Banana Island. It will be operated by Anantara Hotels, Resorts and Spas, a Thailand-based company with more than 30 facilities in Asia, Africa and the UAE.
Approximately 20 job vacancies for administrative and front-line staff were posted on various job boards earlier this year.
The Banana Island facility is one of more than 120 hotels and serviced apartment blocks under construction in Qatar.
Many developers, including Anantara and its partners, are entering an increasingly crowded high-end luxury market, but tourism officials have said a resort-style facility fills a gap in Doha’s hospitality offerings.
They add that increasing the diversity of accommodations and activities makes Qatar a more attractive destination, especially as local officials compete against regional rivals such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The resort will feature a 96-room hotel, as well as 34 two and three-bedroom poolside villas. Additionally, there will be 11 Maldives-style villas, built above water on stilts.
Amenities include a nine-hole golf putting course, a luxury cinema, bowling alley and diving center, the latter of which will take advantage of a man-made offshore reef currently under construction.
There will be a handful of Anantara-operated Arabic and international restaurants. The resort will not be licensed to sell alcohol.
Afify said the resort is primarily targeted at GCC nationals – particularly Qatari citizens and tourists from Saudi Arabia – as well as visitors from Europe.
Saudi residents make up the overwhelming majority of visitors to Qatar, according to the Qatar Tourism Authority.
Local transportation operator Karwa previously said it planned to launch a water taxi service – connecting the new airport, Banana Island and the Pearl-Qatar – by the end of 2014. [Doha News]
Anantara Doha Island Resort & Spa is owned by Minor Hotel Group based in the Middle East.
