We love flying with Qatar airways. It is the best airline in the world and for good reason. If you decide to fly with Qatar Airways we recommend you add a stopover in Doha to explore the city for a day or two. Not only will you get a good night’s sleep, but you’ll also get a glimpse of Doha and this vibrant part of the Middle East.
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Qatar Airways Stopover details
Booking your stopover in Doha is easy and you can do everything on your own. Passengers with a minimum transit time of 12 hours should absolutely make use of this great offer. With visa-free arrival for citizens of 80 countries, a Qatar airways stopover is convenient for most passengers to arrange. Nationalities not qualifying for visa-free entry into Qatar can apply for a free transit visa before arrival.
You can either use the multi-city booking option to book a stopover for longer than one day, or the regular booking if you are just looking for a connecting flight with a super long layover.
We used the regular booking function and got a flight from Lisbon to Hong Kong with a 14-hour stopover in Doha.
Once you have your ticket with a layover longer than 12 hours you can go ahead and book your stopover hotel and activities. Your e-ticket will have a link to the Discover Qatar page where you can choose your hotel to stay and book tours if you prefer. Pay and you are ready for your stopover in Qatar.
Qatar is an incredibly interesting country, and you’ll have to be really boring if you don’t want to make use of this incredible offer.
HOW TO GET FROM HAMAD AIRPORT TO DOHA
The Qatar Airways stopover only includes your pre-booked accommodation, so you are responsible for your own transfers and meals.
Hamad Airport is only 9km outside Doha and getting to the city by taxi is easy and cheap. There are currency exchanges and two ATMs inside the arrival area where you can get some Qatar Riyals (QAR) for your stay. Taxis only accept QAR for cash payments. After getting cash, follow the signs to the taxi stand to the left of the arrival hall.
A blue Karwa taxi from the airport to Souq Waqif will cost you about 30 QAR plus a 25 QAR airport fee. You won’t have to pay the airport fee when returning to the airport. We arrived at our hotel in Souq Waqif in about 20 minutes after leaving the airport.
WHERE WE STAYED ON OUR QATAR AIRWAYS STOPOVER
The Qatar stopover program has some excellent hotels to choose from. We decided that we wanted to see the traditional side rather than that of modern Doha. For this reason, we wanted to be as close as possible to Souq Waqif, the Arabic bazaar of Doha.
If you want to be close to Souq Waqif there is no better place to be than the 5* Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels. This collection of boutique hotels by Tivoli is actually located INSIDE the souq and is the perfect place to experience traditional Qatar.
Souq Waqif Boutique hotels consist of 9 separate buildings scattered throughout the souq. Your taxi will drop you off at the Arumaila where you will check-in. At check-in, we were met with warm smiles and true Qatari hospitality. Guests can enjoy a free, guided walking tour of the souq, and we were told that the next tour would be starting soon.
Reservation does not specify at which of the 9 hotels you’ll be staying at, and you will only find out when checking in. After completing check-in formalities at Arumaila we were whisked off on a golf cart to the Najd where we would be spending the night.
STAYING AT THE NAJD
Home for our one night in Doha is the Najd. Stepping inside is like entering the proverbial oasis in the desert. Calm, cool and spacious, the Najd combines exotic and traditional Qatari designs with modern amenities and luxury.
The concierge escorted us to our room and connected our phones to the WiFi for us. Our room on the second floor was perfect and met all our expectations of a five-star hotel. We really couldn’t find any fault with the Najd and wish we had booked a longer layover.
SOUQ WAQIF WALKING TOUR
A golf cart whisked us back to the Arumaila from where the complimentary walking tour would be leaving from. Our guide, Samir, introduced himself to the small group of guests before taking us to the souq for our walk.
Souq Waqif with its narrow alleys, shops, smells and sounds could very well be the set of Aladdin. Arab men from all over the Gulf in their white robes wander seemingly without a care in the world. The wives following are all covered in black. The tourists are in shorts or jeans. The hot night air is filled with the aroma of grilled meat, mint tea and sisha pipe.
Samir points out that none of the shopkeepers in the Souq is Qatari. They all come from elsewhere in the Arab world. He then explains that it’s easy to tell where they are from by looking at their headdress. For example, a Palestinian will wear a black and white headscarf while a Gulf Arab will be dressed in red and white. The size of the tassels on the headdress also tells about the man’s status and standing in society.
Between dishing out information about the souq and a few jokes, Samir took us to the falcon souq, gold souq, camel pen, falcon hospital and a stop to taste some Qatari sweets. Samir told us at the falcon souq that these birds can go for anything between $5 000 and $20 000 depending on their hunting skills. Apart from being a status symbol, falconry is an inseparable part of the Qatari cultural identity.
CARPET SHOPPING IN SOUQ WAQIF
Unfortunately, we had to leave the tour before the end, since we wanted to go carpet shopping before the carpet souq would close for the night. Samir directed us to the carpet souq, which is located just across the road from the main souq.
Our mission to the carpet souq was unsuccessful though. While the carpets in the main souq was mostly cheap bedouin styled, the shops at the real carpet souq had only big and expensive rugs from Iran. Perhaps because shops were almost closing for the night, dealers weren’t too eager to convince us to buy. Either that or we looked too poor to be taken seriously.
WHAT TO EAT IN SOUQ WAQIF
You are spoiled for choice when it comes to eating in Souq Waqif. You’ll find anything from fine dining to street food, from Korean fried chicken to pizza. The real highlight for us though was the Middle Eastern options. We just couldn’t decide between Iranian, Iraqi, Lebanese, Syrian, Moroccan or Kurdish.
While trying to make up our minds we passed Ottoman Turkish Restaurant. We accepted their invitation and started ordering like we were back in Istanbul. The lamb chops were indeed as good as anywhere in Turkey, the cheesy pide bread fantastic and the hospitality outstanding. We ended our meal with a kunefe, a Middle Eastern dessert of baked cheese, nuts and syrup. Just as we were getting ready to leave, the manager came out and insisted we must have a complimentary Turkish tea before we leave.
The souq shuts down around 23:00. So after dinner, we walked back to the Najd and had a short but very good sleep before our early morning flight back to Hong Kong.
SHOULD I USE QATAR AIRWAYS STOPOVER?
YES!!!! You would be a fool if you don’t make use of this amazing offer. Why would you not sleep in a 5-star hotel in Doha and get to see a bit of the Middle East before you reach your destination?
Qatar Airways’ stopover program offers exceptional value and is just another reason why we love flying with Qatar and will continue to do so in the future. We really wish we had booked a longer stopover. Doha’s mix of traditional and modern is fascinating.
The Qatar Airways stopover is excellent value for money, and we will definitely use it again, and stay over longer. Where else in the world do you get to sleep in a five-star hotel for $23?
Over to you: Have you stopped over in Qatar? Let us know in the comments below.