Millions to say aloha to Doha soon

Manama : Qatar is striving to attract about 1.1 million visitors this year, the chairman of Qatar Tourism Authority has said.

"Around one million tourists visited Qatar in 2009 and we expect this number to grow by 10 per cent this year," Ahmad Bin Abdullah Al Nuaimi told the Qatari daily The Peninsula.

"The rate of occupancy of hotel rooms was 70 per cent during the first quarter of 2010. The number of hotel rooms has jumped from only 2,700 to 8,500, and will reach 15,000 by 2011. The number of hotel rooms and furnished apartments is projected to reach 30,000 by 2013."

In 2004, the number of visitors to Qatar was only 500,000.

A new exhibition centre, to be completed by late 2012 with a total area of 80,000 square metres, is expected to attract up to 2.5 million tourists a year by 2015.

The $14.5 billion international airport, due open at the end of 2012, will cater to 25 million to 48 million passengers a year.

At least 2.5 million tourists are expected to visit Doha a year by 2015.