Once the world flies home, Qatar must reform to entice tourists

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [The Independent]( [SUBSCRIBE]( November 22, 2022 [View in browser](   [The Independent]( [The Independent]( “Canada, I think.” My neighbour on the Qatar Airways flight was not entirely certain about which World Cup match she had a ticket for. But whether the opposition was Belgium, Morocco or Croatia mattered not one jot. Airside attraction: The centrepiece of Hamad International Airport outside Doha She had bought a seat at a random Group F match at the 2022 footballing tournament purely as an admission ticket. Her husband is working in Qatar during the World Cup. And only visitors who have a ticket for a match are allowed in. No other country has banned tourists during a global sporting event: plenty of normal visitors were in evidence at the last World Cup, in Russia in 2018, especially on cruise ships in St Petersburg. While several cruise ships are moored in the Qatari capital, Doha, to provide accommodation, all other cruises are banned – including, at late notice, one that was sold as a World Cup Cruise. Passengers who paid a small fortune for the voyage are now being flown in from nearby countries instead. But as we are learning as the football finally gets under way, much is unprecedented about the 2022 World Cup (besides the welcome decision to base the tournament in an Arabic country). Contrary to what you may have heard, Qatar’s 100,000 hotel rooms are by no means fully booked; during the four weeks of the world’s leading football fest, you can find room at the Premier Inn, for example, on all but a handful of nights. On the day of the final, 18 December, bookings are currently heavy and rates are high: £577. Yet within two days that has slumped by 90 per cent to £57. Prices show no sign of rising above that in the foreseeable future. Having built dozens of new hotels and achieved a bed stock to rival Dubai, Qatar now has to magic up a tourism industry to fill those rooms. Turning prospective visitors away – [as I was on Saturday]( – is not a great way to start. More seriously, the £200bn investment in the World Cup has put Qatar firmly on the map – but not necessarily in a way that will encourage travellers to put the tiny Gulf state at the top of their wishlists. Prospective visitors now know plenty about the nation’s attitude to migrant workers, LGBT people, women’s rights and – much less importantly – [beer](. Qatar has plenty to offer the tourist, from natural wonders to the architectural and cultural brilliance of the Museum of Islamic Art. To fill those rooms Qatar needs to do more than press on with [the most world’s baffling slogan](: the trademarked gem, “Now is All”. Once the world flies home, Qatar will have to contemplate reform. Tourism has achieved some important victories, especially environmentally – protecting wildlife and ecosystems such as coral. Let us hope the World Cup enlightens the host nation as much as the rest of us.   [Get inspired...]( All change]( How Eurostar embraced sustainability in its menus [I'm an image]( [Country house hotels]( The best rural retreats a stone's throw from London [I'm an image]( [Melbourne's coolest 'hood]( How to spend a day in Collingwood, from top brunch spots to street art tours   Enjoying this newsletter? Unlock unlimited, ad-free reading on the website and in The Independent app when you subscribe – plus, benefit from our [welcome offer when you join today](.   Tip of the week: Black Friday deals We are bringing you this special edition newsletter to celebrate Black Friday, which is happening this Friday (24 November). The annual event is known for offering some of the best deals around (and handily just in time for all that Christmas shopping). My colleagues on the IndyBest desk are keen I let you know about some of the best offers: shop top deals [here](; Apple Black Friday deals are [here](; and [this is the blog]( for all the latest bargains.   Deal of the week: Lapland for less [EasyJet]( has just launched a route from Bristol to Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland. Like almost all new links, fares are low to stimulate demand. Flying out next Monday, 28 November, and back a week later, the return fare for the round-trip of almost 3,000 miles is £100. [Everything you need to know about Finland before you go](   Question of the week: Gems of the Croatian coast Q Would you recommend a trip to Trogir and Sibernik in Croatia next September? A Yes. Both of these picturesque locations on the Adriatic coast are at their best in September, when the peak heat and crowds of summer will have eased. The town of Trogir occupies a small island that is separated from the mainland by a narrow channel, spanned by a bridge. It is just a couple of miles west of Split airport, so ridiculously easy to access. Trogir’s fine state of preservation was recognised in 1997 when Unesco added it to the World Heritage List as “a remarkable example of urban continuity … with the minimum of modern interventions”. The exquisite Venetian cathedral of St Lawrence presides over John Paul II Square, with some excellent bars and cafes. Sibernik, 40 miles northwest, is larger and arguably even more attractive thanks to its hillside setting. The cathedral here is dedicated to St James, and features many elaborate sculptures on its facade. To treat yourself fully, though, I urge you to build in a stay in Split itself – where the city centre occupies the site of the lavish palace of the fourth-century Roman emperor, Diocletian, complete with marble floors and crumbling walls. [Read our ultimate guide to Croatia]( STAT OF THE WEEK 150 The price in pounds for a double cabin aboard MSC Poesia, currently on the quayside in Doha, 10 days from now. [Our comprehensive guide to last-minute World Cup visits]( What you might have missed... - Sightsee for free: These three European cities have the most complimentary tourist attractions]( - Happy ending: [Disney has bought the world’s biggest cruise ship, saving it from the scrapheap]( - Runway row: Virgin Atlantic has withdrawn support for Heathrow expansion]( SIMON'S DIARY       Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](.         Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](.         I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. 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