The 2022-2023 cruise season in Qatar is about to be a serious success, with over 50 cruise ships and 200,000 guests anticipated from now till April 2023. Qatar Tourism introduced the return of the cruise season and forecasted a surge in guests to the nation.
This season, Qatar will welcome passengers on the Grand Cruise Terminal, a newly designed constructing that pays homage to traditional Arabian structure. The Doha Port just lately served as a house base for main worldwide cruise ships in the course of the World Cup soccer in Qatar, together with the MSC World Europa and MSC Poesia.
Recognition of Cruising within the Persian Gulf
Cruising has change into more and more widespread within the Persian Gulf lately. The area’s heat local weather, year-round sunshine, and wealthy cultural heritage make it a main vacationer vacation spot.
Qatar’s cruise sector, specifically, has grown tremendously during the last decade and now performs a vital position within the nation’s tourism technique. Qatar is seeing continued and rising desire as a vacation spot for each common cruise calls and cruises with turnaround calls, with no less than 50 cruise ships scheduled to go to the nation within the coming months, bringing greater than 200,000 cruise passengers to the gulf area.
Head of Tourism Product Assist at Qatar Tourism Maryam Saoud mentioned: “Qatar’s cruise sector has grown tremendously lately and now contributes an essential pillar to our tourism technique. We’re seeing continued, rising desire for Qatar as a vacation spot for each common cruise calls and cruises with turnaround calls.”
Qatar’s position within the improve in cruise tourism within the Persian Gulf is sgnificant. Along with Dubai, Doha has been steadily rising right into a must-visit vacation spot within the Gulf area.
The port is ideally located inside strolling distance of iconic landmarks, together with the Nationwide Museum of Qatar, Souq Waqif, Downtown Doha, and the Doha Corniche, the place guests can absorb beautiful views of the town’s skyline.
“Doha Port is being developed to change into one of many foremost vacationer points of interest within the area. We look ahead to one other profitable tourism season that may contribute to strengthening the cruise trade and sustaining Qatar’s place as a number one tourism hub within the area.”
Apart from Qatar, cruises within the Persian Gulf sometimes sail to locations corresponding to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, and Oman. Some cruises additionally go to ports in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Moreover, many voyages to the Persian Gulf additionally embody stops in different elements of the Center East, corresponding to Egypt and Jordan, in addition to persevering with to ports in India and Southeast Asia.
Cruise Ships as Resort Ships
Through the World Cup soccer match in Qatar in 2022, two MSC cruise ships, the MSC World Europa and the MSC Poesia, have been used as lodge ships to accommodate 1000’s of worldwide followers.
The MSC World Europa, MSC Cruises’ flagship, was significantly widespread amongst guests and offered MSC with appreciable free promoting amongst hundreds of thousands of viewers of the match. Utilizing these cruise ships as lodge ships was a novel and revolutionary method to accommodate the numerous worldwide guests who got here to Qatar for the match.
MSC Cruises has performed a pivotal position within the growth of cruising within the center east and is at the moment the market chief within the area. Nevertheless it’s extra than simply MSC that’s working within the space. AIDA, Costa Cruises, TUI Cruises, Silversea, and Azamara will all be crusing to Qatar within the coming months.
On January twelfth, the MSC World Europa made historical past as the primary cruise ship to dock at King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. This name, historically used for cargo on the Arabian Gulf, marks a major milestone for the cruise trade within the area.
