A Layover in Doha

Have you ever been to Qatar? 🙂  I know….but that’s OK!  I didn’t really know where it was before I planned a 48 hour layover either.  This country occupies the Qatar peninsula on the Arabian peninsula…does that help?  There are nearly 3 million people living here, 80% of whom are expats.   

It’s actually a great layover location – as long as you’re not travelling in June-August when temperatures routinely top 45 oC!  American citizens do not require a visa and Qatar Airways has a fantastic transit program that allows you to book a room in a 4* or 5* hotel for as little as $23USD/night.  Come on…..why choose two consecutive red eye flights instead of sleeping in a comfy bed for a bit?!

Although I knew little about this place, it took only a few internet searches to determine that Souq Waqif was the place to be.  It’s centrally located in the heart of the touristic area – perfect for wandering about in a jet lagged stupor.  I booked a room at the Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels – a conglomeration of 9 small hotels spread thoughout the Souq – and ended up in the Najd building.  It’s new, clean and can I mention has a super comfy bed? 🙂

In an attempt to stay up longer than 4pm, I headed out for some dinner and to get my bearings.  Souq Waqif is bustling at night with lots of people enjoying the evening – complete with street music!.  A delicious meal at Al Shurfa Arabic Lounge (try the Al Shurfa mocktail!) with amazing views of the Doha skyline was a perfect way to end the night.

In the morning, the Souq was (mostly) empty and I had time to check out one of Doha’s more unique sites.  Named “Le Pouce”, this is a statue of a….giant thumb.  Yes.  A giant thumb.  I’ve seen it, read about it, and still can’t explain it but it gets 2 thumbs up from me!

Next, it was time for a three hour tour booked through Discover Qatar.  Our guide took us all around the city to see the major sites.  At each stop we got “5 minutes to take pictures”.  Call it a “Doha Sampler”.  Perfect.

Our first stop was the National Museum of Qatar.  No time to go inside, haha, but it was definitely worth a stop for pictures!  The innovative design is meant to bring together the past, present and future and compliments the collections of the museum which focus on the culture, heritage and future of Qatar.  A longer stop will be on my list for “next time”.

Our next stop was the Museum of Islamic Art.  Another stunning building set right on the water.  You guessed it – snap snap snap and we were back in the van.

We cruised down the Corniche, a fabulous waterfront promenade…

…past the dhow harbor on our way to the Katara Cultural Village.  The Village was pretty deserted, so we made a short stop to view the new masjid and pigeon towers, which are typically used to house thousands of pigeons and collect droppings for fertilizer.

On the way out, we swung by one of Doha’s many high end malls.  No one was ready to open their wallets, but the interesting thing about this place is that it has air conditioning – outside!  Those grates on the sidewalk blow cold air when the temperatures rise.  Clever?  Seems like a good way to encourage spending.  I have no comment at this time about the waste….I mean, “utilization”(!)….of energy and resources.

We next crossed the bridge to visit the West Bay area of Doha.  This is where the business of life happens – in very tall skyscrapers!  People (and, thankfully, traffic) were scarce but we can assume they were upstairs chained to their desks while we were gallivanting about having fun…. 

We were on our way to our last stop of the tour – The Pearl.  This is an artificial island created in Doha, where foreigners can buy condos starting from the low low price of $6000USD/m2.  It reminded me very much of the gated communities in Florida.  Perhaps not surprising, since the project is a collaboration between a developer in the US and the people of Qatar. We got a sense of the project at the Welcome Center, where they have a model of the area, and then had a few minutes to enjoy the sunshine.

Throughout the day, I was intrigued by the signs I saw.  The next time you take your “normal” for granted, think about this! 🙂

After 3 hours I was more than ready to exit the vehicle, and took one more walk through the Souq before calling an end to the sightseeing.  I was particularly excited to visit the Falcon Souq!  Collecting falcons is a national pastime in Qatar.  Read more about this hobby (and sport) here.

I returned to what had become my favorite viewpoint in the city to enjoy a cold juice, take in the skyline views and people watch. 

What a pleasant surprise when we were treated to an impromptu airshow.  I do love a good flyover!  These jets are preparing for the celebration of Qatar National Day on December 18.  Maybe that’s a good time for a visit to Doha? 🙂