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After months of turbulence across regional airspace, Qatar’s tourism sector says the Gulf state is now open for business once again. <\/p>\n
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In an interview with Euronews, Abdulaziz Ali Al-Mawlawi, CEO of Visit Qatar, said the country faced one of its most difficult periods in recent history, but worked closely with embassies, airlines and tourism partners to support stranded travellers and restore confidence in a destination that welcomed five million visitors in 2025. <\/p>\n
During the early stages of the regional conflict, more than 12,000 international visitors, including 8,000 transiting travellers, were in the country \u2013 all of whom needed to be repatriated.<\/p>\n
At Doha\u2019s cruise port, around 5,000 cruise passengers and crew were also impacted due to the Strait of Hormuz being closed. Celestyal Cruises\u2019 Celestyal Journey and TUI Cruises\u2019 Mein Schiff 5 both safely departed the Arabian Gulf<\/a> in mid-April.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’ve been through a difficult time,\u201d Al-Mawlawi told Euronews. \u201cI’ll be very honest with you, it was a difficult time that we had never been through before. But I always remind myself of the period of COVID where we passed through a very difficult time, but we passed it stronger than before, more resilience.\u201d <\/p>\n Repatriation efforts, hotels and visas<\/p>\n A 24-hour hotline was launched alongside WhatsApp updates and social media alerts as authorities coordinated repatriation efforts through Doha\u2019s Hamad International Airport.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, as many as 194 hotels were enlisted to accommodate the 12,000 visitors. For 15 days, Qatar Tourism, the country\u2019s tourism regulatory body, covered hotel room fees and meals as part of its wider initiative.<\/p>\n The government issued approximately 8,000 emergency visas for transit visitors stranded in the country, while also facilitating visa extensions<\/a> and overstay flexibility in the immediate aftermath of the conflict.<\/p>\n \u201cWe announced the visa extension as well as a free stay in the hotels with free meals for all of our travellers and guests by that time because we want to always ensure that our guests are a guest in our home,\u201d Al-Mawlawi said.<\/p>\n Now Qatar is pushing ahead with a tourism recovery campaign centred around summer festivals, beach activities and family entertainment, before shifting focus towards international visitors later in the year. <\/p>\n Al-Mawlawi says the country is hoping its mix of luxury tourism, cultural experiences and major international events will help drive momentum into a busy winter season. <\/p>\n \u201cQatar is back to normal, and we can always reassure that Qatar is always safe and secure,\u201d he said. \u201cQatar has always been known for the unique products where we bring together culture, heritage as well as modernity. <\/p>\n \u201cYou can enjoy diving with the whale sharks as well as going to the safari, having fine dining, shopping experience, hotel experience, beachfront, all at the same day. We always say that Qatar is the home of our guests from all over the world.\u201d<\/p>\n After recently announcing its \u201cHala Summer\u201d campaign and festival line-up, Visit Qatar<\/a> is now looking to strengthen its position as one of the region’s leading tourism destinations.<\/p>\n Despite the challenges, Qatar\u2019s tourism sector is ramping up campaigns, events, visitor experiences and adopting new digital solutions to build momentum for the remainder of the year and beyond.<\/p>\n Seasonal campaigns and events<\/p>\n