Qatar has registered a marked increase in the number of visitors to the country with a double digit growth in 2019, a top official of Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) has said.
“We are on an upward trajectory on the number of arrivals to the country. There has been a marked increase in the number of people visiting Qatar in all the months last year. As per the records, there has been a double digit percentage of increase in the number people visiting Qatar,” Rashed Saeed al-Qurese, chief marketing and promotion officer of QNTC told Gulf Times Saturday on the sidelines of a press conference to announce details of Shop Qatar 2020.
“We had a double digit increase of about 17% as per the initial records. The exact numbers and other data will be released very soon. We expect the trend in all other parameters compared to 2018,” al-Qurese said.
According to him, the hotel occupancy rate has also gone up and the revenue in the hospitality sector has been on an upward swing. The revenue and other parameters in the hospitality sector have gone up considerably, he said.
As for Shop Qatar 2020, al-Qurese said this year’s events will be more comprehensive with three weeks of very interesting and attractive activities as well as more additions.
“We will have a week of celebration for Chinese New Year. We also have a number of activities including entertainment programmes, fashion shows, raffle draws and many more,” he noted.
“China is one of our source markets for the last two years and they continue to be an important one for us. We have started many campaigns in the Chinese market and we have had a good number of Chinese visitors to Qatar and hopefully, we will continue to get an increased number of Chinese visitors in the coming years too. India, Oman, Kuwait, Russia and other West European countries such as the UK, France, Italy and Germany among others are also source markets for us,” highlighted the official.
Al-Qurese also pointed out that Doha Metro has helped in providing the visitors better access to the major attractions around the country.
“The connectivity between the places has increased and the Doha Metro lines have resulted in an increase in the number of people visiting various malls. Doha Metro has provided better connection and access to all the major attractions around the country including Hamad International Airport. This has also resulted in a very positive impact on road transport. All the major destinations are easily accessible now within a very short time and this has helped people reach such places quicker ,” he added.
“We had a double digit increase of about 17% as per the initial records. The exact numbers and other data will be released very soon. We expect the trend in all other parameters compared to 2018,” al-Qurese said.
According to him, the hotel occupancy rate has also gone up and the revenue in the hospitality sector has been on an upward swing. The revenue and other parameters in the hospitality sector have gone up considerably, he said.
As for Shop Qatar 2020, al-Qurese said this year’s events will be more comprehensive with three weeks of very interesting and attractive activities as well as more additions.
“We will have a week of celebration for Chinese New Year. We also have a number of activities including entertainment programmes, fashion shows, raffle draws and many more,” he noted.
“China is one of our source markets for the last two years and they continue to be an important one for us. We have started many campaigns in the Chinese market and we have had a good number of Chinese visitors to Qatar and hopefully, we will continue to get an increased number of Chinese visitors in the coming years too. India, Oman, Kuwait, Russia and other West European countries such as the UK, France, Italy and Germany among others are also source markets for us,” highlighted the official.
Al-Qurese also pointed out that Doha Metro has helped in providing the visitors better access to the major attractions around the country.
“The connectivity between the places has increased and the Doha Metro lines have resulted in an increase in the number of people visiting various malls. Doha Metro has provided better connection and access to all the major attractions around the country including Hamad International Airport. This has also resulted in a very positive impact on road transport. All the major destinations are easily accessible now within a very short time and this has helped people reach such places quicker ,” he added.
