By Sachin Kumar
DOHA: Tourists from GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries kept Qatar’s tourism sector buoyant last year. GCC tourists accounted 44 percent of total visitors in Qatar in 2016.
Last year close to 3 million (2,929,630) people visited Qatar out of which 1.3 million were from GCC countries. Total number of visitors to Qatar witnessed 3.7 percent increase in 2015 compared to previous year, according to the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics data.
Visitors from GCC have always been important factor in Qatar’s tourism sector. In 2014, GCC visitors constituted 40 percent of total visitors in Qatar in 2014.
Qatar attracted significant travelers from Asian and European countries. Last year, travelers from Asia accounted 25 percent of the total visitors while share of European travelers was around 15 percent last year. Total 735,841 visitors from Asia travelled to Qatar in 2015 while 437,122 visitors were from Europe. Travelers from other Arab countries constituted around 9 percent of total visitors. High number of travelers proved good for hotels in Qatar. Hotels witnessed average occupancy of around 67 percent in December last year.
A major chunk of travelers coming to Qatar are on business visit. Experts say that Doha is predominantly a business destination, with the corporate segment accounting for more than 60 percent of the hotel demand. The HVS ( a hospitality intelligence providing firm) report notes the addition of 11 new hotel properties with a total of 1,400 rooms to the market in 2015; as part of its commitment to reach 50,000 additional rooms by the 2022, when it will host the FIFA World Cup.
The number of visitors is bound to increase significantly in coming years with government agencies taking major steps to boost tourism. Qatar is hosting many international exhibitions, seminars and conferences attracting professionals from across the globe.
Going forward, more hotels are expected to open their operations in Qatar to meet the demand of increasing number of tourists. Qatar’s hospital sector is expected to see total count of room keys rising to 23,000 by the end of current year, reflecting a growth of 27 percent. At the moment there are close to 19,000 hotel and service apartment keys in Qatar.
The Peninsula
By Sachin Kumar
DOHA: Tourists from GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries kept Qatar’s tourism sector buoyant last year. GCC tourists accounted 44 percent of total visitors in Qatar in 2016.
Last year close to 3 million (2,929,630) people visited Qatar out of which 1.3 million were from GCC countries. Total number of visitors to Qatar witnessed 3.7 percent increase in 2015 compared to previous year, according to the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics data.
Visitors from GCC have always been important factor in Qatar’s tourism sector. In 2014, GCC visitors constituted 40 percent of total visitors in Qatar in 2014.
Qatar attracted significant travelers from Asian and European countries. Last year, travelers from Asia accounted 25 percent of the total visitors while share of European travelers was around 15 percent last year. Total 735,841 visitors from Asia travelled to Qatar in 2015 while 437,122 visitors were from Europe. Travelers from other Arab countries constituted around 9 percent of total visitors. High number of travelers proved good for hotels in Qatar. Hotels witnessed average occupancy of around 67 percent in December last year.
A major chunk of travelers coming to Qatar are on business visit. Experts say that Doha is predominantly a business destination, with the corporate segment accounting for more than 60 percent of the hotel demand. The HVS ( a hospitality intelligence providing firm) report notes the addition of 11 new hotel properties with a total of 1,400 rooms to the market in 2015; as part of its commitment to reach 50,000 additional rooms by the 2022, when it will host the FIFA World Cup.
The number of visitors is bound to increase significantly in coming years with government agencies taking major steps to boost tourism. Qatar is hosting many international exhibitions, seminars and conferences attracting professionals from across the globe.
Going forward, more hotels are expected to open their operations in Qatar to meet the demand of increasing number of tourists. Qatar’s hospital sector is expected to see total count of room keys rising to 23,000 by the end of current year, reflecting a growth of 27 percent. At the moment there are close to 19,000 hotel and service apartment keys in Qatar.
The Peninsula
