QIFF 2016 promises more variety with a range of food zones covering both gourmet treats and cheap eats. There are 130 participating restaurants, eateries and food entrepreneurs at Qatar food festival this year with more than 20 hotels taking part in the seven day culinary event.

This year's festival is the biggest to date with the inclusion of two new public locations - Katara Cultural Village and The Pearl-Qatar. The Qatar Airways Live Cooking Theatre will be at the mani site at MIA Park, but expect a variety of foodie offerings across the city as local and international F&B brands showcase their offerings.

The majority of hotel participants for QIFF 2016 are established brands who have exhibied at Qatar International Food Festival in previous years. However, for the seventh edition there is an increase by 20% of hotel establishements, with a few new hotels that are exhibiting for the first time including Shangri-La  Hotel Doha and City Centre Rotana Doha.

Mashal Shahbik, Director of Festivals and Tourism Events at QTA has suggested that this increase highlights "the growth in Qatar’s thriving hospitality sector, which welcomed an additional 20 establishments to its ranks in 2015 alone". She also confirmed that a wide range of gourmet food will be available for visitors to purchase whilst at QIFF. Prices for food offerings will range from QAR5 to QAR35.

Preparations are well underway at MIA Park with the new design stalls being built and prepared for the festival which begins on 22nd March 2016.

#QIFF2016 Food stalls are currently being built onsite #MIAPark More info at https://t.co/w4JuItYPj7 #Qatar #GCC pic.twitter.com/9DuWC3LL7O

— Qatar Eating (@qatareating) 15 March 2016

QIFF 2016 is an opportunity for brands to introduce their services and products to the public with instant feedback. This has encouraged many first-time exhibitors, and new food concepts, to step into the field in order to market their brand and showcase their foodie offerings. Crowne Plaza will be introducing Meesh Me – Time Café, a coffee shop concept for the first time at the food festival.

All the stalls for QIFF 2016 have been custom-built in order to provide a consistent image for the festival. The QTA has been working closely with particiapting F&B brands since February to conceptualise and confirm their QIFF booths and food offerings.

Prices have been capped by the QTA to reasonable prices so that food offerings are affordable. This also encourages participating F&B brands to be innovative in providing a product reflecting their food concept and ethos whilst still meeting the pricing cap. However the additional activities such as the Dinner in the Sky and High Tea will have their own pricings.

Public parking will not available at MIA Park, instead a range of transport services will be on offer including a shuttle bus. As the festival is in three venus this year there will also be a unique water shuttle service on offer.

QIFF 2016 - The Hotels

• Amari Doha

• Doha Marriott Hotel

• Shangri-La Hotel Doha

• The Torch Doha

• Grand Hyatt Doha

• Radisson Blu Hotel Doha

• Fraser suites & Royal Riviera

• La Cigale Hotel

• Warwick Hotel

• Oryx Rotana Doha

• Crowne Plaza Doha, The Business Park

• Kempinski Residences & Suites, Doha

• InterContinental Hotels

• Holiday Villa Hotel & Residence, Doha

• Wyndham Grand Regency Doha

• Marriott Marquis City Center Doha

• The St. Regis Doha

• Souq Waqif Boutique Hotel

• The Ritz-Carlton, Doha

• Sharq Village & Spa, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel

• Ezdan Hotel

• Banana Island Resort Doha by Anantara

• W Doha Hotel & Residences

• City Centre Rotana Doha

 Pic Credits: QE and QTA