Transit passengers can now choose from a new selection of pre-bookable city and desert tours offered by Discover Qatar, the destination management subsidiary arm of Qatar Airways.
The tours allow passengers with a transit time at Hamad International Airport (HIA) of five to 12 hours to choose from a range of activities during their stopover. 
Some of these activities include visiting key landmarks such as The Pearl-Qatar for the finest quality shops and restaurants; Katara – the Cultural Village, a centre dedicated to celebrating arts and heritage; Souq Waqif for traditional jewellery, spices and handicrafts; and the Museum of Islamic Art for its stunning collection of art, architecture and beautiful seaside park. 
In addition, passengers can book a unique desert experience and visit Sealine Beach and the sand dunes of Mesaieed either in the exclusive off-road monster bus or a luxury 4X4 vehicle during their stopover. 
“As the national carrier of Qatar, we are very proud to be playing our part in the growth of Qatar’s tourism industry, in partnership with Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA),” Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar al-Baker said.
“With our new and enhanced pre-bookable Discover Qatar Transit Tours, Qatar now offers one of the finest transit packages globally to suit every traveller’s taste,” he noted.
Alongside city and desert tours, transit passengers can also book the ‘Stop & Shop’ tour which offers a chauffeur-driven car to the Mall of Qatar – home to luxury fashion brands and world-class restaurants.
The renowned city tours, initially launched in 2015, have been hugely popular with passengers transiting through HIA. 
Discover Qatar revamped and enhanced its transit tours to provide more options, offering a wide variety of new exciting excursions. 
“The city and desert tours will allow our passengers to enjoy every step of their journey with us,” al-Baker added. 
“We hope to see more of our passengers booking and taking part in these tours to experience Qatar’s renowned hospitality, culture and heritage, and the vibrant city of Doha before connecting to one of more than 150 destinations that we serve on our expanding global network,” he said.
Qatar Airways passengers who wish to take the advantage of the transit tours can pre-book on Discover Qatar’s website: http://discoverqatar.qatarairways.com/transit-tours or visit its desk at HIA with their valid passports and boarding passes for their onward travel.
“Our partnership with Qatar Airways to introduce these transit tours, as well as the 96-hour free transit visa which was brought into effect last year, all come as part of our efforts to diversify and grow Qatar’s visitor source markets,” QTA’s acting chairman Hassan al-Ibrahim said.
“New developments such as these are guided by the next chapter of the Qatar National Tourism Sector Strategy 2017-2023, which is focused on enhancing the end-to-end experience for travellers who are either en route to another country or have chosen Qatar as their destination,” he noted.
The latest offers make Discover Qatar one of the world’s leading inbound tourism providers for transit passengers, Qatar Airways noted.
In addition to the transit tours, the company offers a range of other services for passengers by bringing together the best stopover packages, hotels and ground arrangements.
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