Next phase of Qatar’s tourism strategy to be revealed on September 27

With so many new attractions and sporting events coming to Qatar in the next few years, the country has been pushing itself as one of the region’s premium tourist destinations.

Now, the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has announced the building of a road map, in consultations with members of tourism and other supporting sectors, to launch the next phase of the National Tourism Sector Strategy in September, reported Gulf Times.

The QTA is hoping to promote Qatar as a world-class tourist destination, characterised by its deep historical cultural roots. The updated strategy is set to be launched on September 27, the day that marks World Tourism Day.

Hassan Al Ibrahim, Chief of Tourism Development Sector at QTA, said several steps will be taken before launching the strategy.

“QTA will hold a wide range of direct meetings with key policymakers and decision-makers in Qatar, host two forums to bring together stakeholders of different sectors and conduct a series of public-opinion polls,” the top official was quoted as saying by The Peninsula.

The first of the cross-sectoral stakeholder forums will be held on May 15 and 16.

Qatar is the host of this year’s World Tourism Day function, which will witness a series of events celebrating tourism’s economic, social and cultural roles under the theme ‘Sustainable Tourism – a Tool for Development,’ reported Qatar Tribune.

“By September, we plan to complete a thorough and inclusive consultation and review process, to ensure that the tourism industry is on the right track to fulfil its role in the realisation of Qatar National Vision 2030, reflecting the needs of Qatar and its people,” Al Ibrahim said.

QTA has made significant achievements in cooperation with the concerned authorities, including the new free transit visa, the partnership with visa processing services provider VFS Global along entry procedures for cruise passengers.

Al Ibrahim said he expected the number of cruise ships visits to triple over the next three years, bringing the number of cruise tourists to nearly 300,000 during the 2019-2020 season.

QTA also hosted three editions of Qatar Summer Festival, which contributed to the Qatari economy by QR630m in 2016 in addition to the first edition of the Qatar Shopping Festival, contributing to the country's GDP by QR1.06bn.

Cover image: Shanavas Photography