Qatar's tourism sector is witnessing an unprecedented surge, recording 5mn visitors and 10mn room nights in 2024, marking a significant 25% increase from the previous year, according to Qatar Tourism (QT) chairman HE Saad bin Ali al-Kharji.Speaking during the 'Tourism in Focus' session at Qatar Economic Forum 2025 Wednesday, he said this growth underscores Qatar's strategic shift from solely focusing on visitor numbers to prioritising the economic impact generated by extended stays.He announced that the tourism sector contributed QR55bn to the national GDP in 2024, representing 8% of total economic output — a 14% increase over 2023. He assured that Qatar is well on track to achieving its Tourism Strategy 2030 goal of contributing 12% to GDP, highlighting the sector’s increasing importance in the nation’s broader economic diversification strategy.HE al-Kharji underlined Qatar’s leading position in regional room night growth, with a 22% increase, surpassing other prominent Gulf destinations."I'm very happy to find Qatar ranking number one in the region with a growth around 22% in room nights,”, he added, noting that Abu Dhabi and Kuwait followed with 8-10% growth.The session, moderated by Joumanna Bercetche of Bloomberg Television, explored the evolving landscape of global tourism, touching upon luxury, sustainability, health tourism, and Gulf competition.Al-Kharji noted that Qatar is strategically building on the momentum from the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which HE the Prime Minister likened to an 'IPO moment' for the country." He said the nation continues to host various international events, utilising its state-of-the-art infrastructure."The big events are non-stop that we host in Doha, and to utilise the great infrastructure we have," he said, noting that this year alone, Qatar is set to host the FIFA World Cup Under 17, the Arab Cup for the second time, and Formula 1 in the last quarter. He added that Doha is currently hosting the World Cup for Table Tennis, and will host the 2027 Basketball World Cup, as well as the Asian Games for the second time in 2030.Joining al-Kharji on the panel was Accor Group Chairman and CEO Sébastien Bazin, who has visited Qatar more than 100 times in the past three decades and expressed his long-standing admiration for the country's development.Bazin expressed optimism for the global travel industry, predicting a "golden age” where demand will significantly outpace supply. "The tourism travel industry is a blessed industry," he said, adding that demand has consistently grown at 3-5% annually for the past 50 years against a supply growth of 1.5-2%. He forecasts this trend to intensify in the next two decades, with demand potentially increasing by 4-6% while supply remains at 1.5-2%.This unprecedented growth, according to Bazin, is fueled by three key factors: higher global demography, the rapid growth of the emerging middle class, and improved means of transport. Accor considers the GCC region to be the fastest-growing globally for its business, having increased by 32% since pre-Covid times.Bazin also cited the emotional aspect of travel, stating, "You always forget what people say, you always forget what people act but you don't forget what they make you feel.”He underscored Accor's focus on creating feelings, sentiments, memories, and souvenirs, particularly within the luxury segment, aligning with Qatar's efforts to diversify its offerings to ensure longer, more enriching "staycations” for visitors.
May 21, 2025 | 08:03 PM