When we found ourselves with a stopover in Qatar en route to Thailand, there was no question of whether or not we’d use that as an excuse to explore a new country. I’ve seen very little of the Middle East, and my husband had never been period, so 48 hours in Doha seemed a great way to introduce him to a region so rife in culture—and our flight on Qatar Airways made it a breeze to tack on a few days.
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Why go to Qatar?
Qatar is a fascinating melding of contrasts: an opulent country populated by humble people, a nation of extravagant art and architecture that is still affordable to visit. Doha is the capital city of Qatar and its commercial center, but that doesn’t make it a destination devoid of character. Rather, we were shocked how instantly in love we fell with the Pearl of the Persian Gulf—and immediately wish we’d had a couple extra days there to see even more.
Qatar is the fourth wealthiest nation in the world, something you might quickly figure out back on the glass skyscrapers and abundance of sculptural art, yet it wasn’t expensive to visit, not by any means. Qatari people speak Arabic, but many know English or at least enough to help you out in a cab or at a restaurant, especially with as big of a tourism hub as Qatar has become.
After all, it hosted the 2022 World Cup, and we happened to arrive right in the middle of Doha hosting the AFC Asia Cup, which brought tens of thousands of football fans to Qatar during the same time we were on the ground.
If you find yourselves flying Qatar Airways as we did en route to Thailand, it’s very possible you’ll also have a stopover in Qatar, and the airline allows you to do so over multiple days if you choose. We did so for just the price of airline taxes: We used 140,000 American Express Membership Rewards points to transfer to Avios and fly business class from Atlanta to Qatar, then spent three nights in Doha and continued on in QSuites from Doha to Bangkok. If you’re going to Dubai or any of the Emirates, you may also want to tack on 48 hours in Doha as this region is very small and easy to explore with limited time.
How long do you need in Doha?
Well, that entirely depends on what you want to see and how many days you can allot to a stopover. We planned three nights in Doha based on flight times, and after accounting for jetlag, that gave us roughly 48 hours in Doha; we easily could have doubled that and plan to return on our next stopover to see more. I recommend at least four days in Doha if you can spare it; however, if two days is all you can do, you’ll still get a great first taste at a very interesting country.
If you only have the afternoon, though, you can book a private tour of Doha and see the highlights. The airport is so close to the city center that if you have six hours or more, it’s worth hiring a guide to show you the sites.
Where to stay in Doha
Doha has every luxury hotel you could want: a Fairmont, Raffles, Kempinski, Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons, the W, the St. Regis, the list goes on and on. We visited the restaurants at several, and I honestly don’t think you can go wrong. However, if you’re an art lover like we are, I cannot more highly recommend the Mondrian Doha, which checked all the boxes of a great hotel: impeccable design, central locale, large comfortable rooms, A+ service, and a great selection of on-site bars and restaurants.
I always have decision paralysis when it comes to where we sleep, and I waffled back and forth for a bit on the best hotel in Doha for us. In the end, I chose the Mondrian Doha because it was the right price point and also in a great central location for seeing everything we wanted to see. We used Chase points to book our hotel, and it cost us 71,173 Ultimate Rewards points, or the equivalent of $890 for three nights. You can find current sign-up bonuses from the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Ink here that will help you pay for your trip to Qatar.
Before you decide where to stay in Qatar, you’ll want to take into account location and what you plan to see. These are three main areas in Doha where the majority of hotels are located:
The Pearl
A manmade island in the center of Doha, the Pearl is populated by luxury high-rises, both residential and hotels, as well as plenty of commercial development. It’s pretty central to the rest of Doha and has pretty much everything you could need: beaches, restaurants, cafes, shops, you name it, the Pearl has it. It’s also a bit secluded, so if you want to see more of Doha, you might want to stay in West Bay (below) or near Katara Beach instead.
West Bay
West Bay is perhaps the main district in Doha; it’s got all the skyscrapers, the modern buildings, the hustle and bustle of the city. If you want to feel like you’re in an urban environment, you can stay in the heart of West Bay. If you want a more beachfront-type of hotel, stay between West Bay and Katara at the St. Regis or Intercontinental.
Downtown Doha
Downtown Doha is worth a wander and houses some of Qatar’s best museums, but I personally wouldn’t stay here as you’ll likely be spending most of your time up in West Bay or between downtown and West Bay along the Corniche.
How to spend 48 hours in Doha
Once you’re situated in Qatar, here’s a breakdown of how I would plan 48 hours in Doha—or three nights, two full days—on your stopover.
Day 1 in Doha
To start your understanding of the local culture, it’s worth heading downtown and immediately visiting the National Museum of Qatar, one of the most Instagrammable spots in Doha. This multi-level fever dream of a museum implements audiovisuals to tell the story of Qatar from its natural history to its Bedouin culture. It’s by far one of the most impressive museums I’ve ever experienced, and the layout is cool, as well: You start at the top, and it continues to slope downward until you’re back on the ground floor.
If you’re just in Doha for a day or have limited time, you may want to hire a private guide who can maximize each experience and help you skip the lines at the trio of local museums if there are any.
After we sped through the museum in record time—we did so in an hour, but you would seriously need half a day to see it all in detail—we went up to the fourth floor for lunch at Jiwan, an Alain Ducasse restaurant with a contemporary Qatari menu and some of the best views of Doha.
That afternoon, we planned to visit Souq Waqif, which is open all day except for a break in mid-afternoon, and Fanar Mosque, but instead we hopped on scooters and explored much of the Doha Corniche. If scootering isn’t your thing, you can also take a dhow and see Doha from the waterfront aboard one of the traditional boats of the area. The dhow cruises are also the most popular way to see the sunset in Qatar each evening.
As the sun started to dip, we saw a commotion over in front of the Amiri Diwan palace of Qatar, so we scooted closer. Turns out it was a camel demonstration, and we paused to watch, then followed as they were led by to their stalls in Souq Waqif. Camel racing is a popular pastime in Qatar, and many of the admission options also include farm tours.
We had a few places on our to-eat list like Shawarma Station, but we were also in the mood for cocktails, and as alcohol is only allowed at hotels in Qatar, we found ourselves at the Ritz-Carlton, Doha’s B-Lounge for Asian-fusion and waterfront views.
Day 2 in Doha
On day two, you may want to take it a bit easier as jet lag is likely setting in. We had a leisurely morning at the hotel, then grabbed an Uber to West Bay where we had brunch at Twisted Olive, then walked around ogling the skyscrapers that housed such businesses as FIFA. If you love glass and architecture, you’ll be enraptured by the West Bay.
And if you’re into urban development, Msheireb Downtown Doha is a regeneration project spanning more than 100 buildings, many of them mixed-used concepts with hotels, restaurants and cafes galore, that is worth a visit. We drove through in an Uber and then continued onto Fire Station, which is billed as a creative arts hub with in-artist residencies and could be in the future as it’s got a few murals and some galleries but it’s not quite there yet.
One place you must see, however, is Katara Cultural Village. Brimming with venues, shops, small businesses and live demonstrations, it was, hands down, my favorite part of Doha, and if you only have a day in Qatar, make this a priority.
In addition to public art—murals, sculptures, the whole nine yards—Katara is home to Katara Mosque, an upscale supermarket and an indoor mall, which was fancy-pants. While we were there, it was also playing host to a massive Arabian horse festival and competition.
In the afternoon, if you have the energy, you should book a day trip to the Inland Desert. This is always a popular thing to do in Qatar, as it’s one of two places in the world where the desert meets the seas, the other being Namibia where we visited last year.
It’s also a draw for travelers who want to go dune racing, sandboarding, camel riding and more. Best of all? It’s just an hour outside of Doha.
On our second evening, we had to check out the Pearl, so we went to Marsa Malaz Kempinski, which would be a fabulous place to stay if you opt for that area of Doha. We had drinks at Toro Toro, then the best meal of our time in Qatar at Al Sufra, a Middle Eastern and Levant-inspired restaurant on the hotel’s grounds. I wanted a cocktail at the Secret Garden, but we ran out of daylight hours. Next visit!
If you have even longer, you’ll want to put these Doha attractions on your itinerary, too:
- Education City
- Al Safiyah island for the best view of Doha
- Private souk tour
- Qatar National Library
- Museum of Islamic Art and MIA Park
- Zubara Fort
- Fuwairit Kite Beach
- Purple Island
Some frequently asked questions about Qatar
If you’re planning a stopover in Qatar, you may very well have many questions still, as I did. Here’s everything I was wondering prior to my visit, as well as what I learned while there.
Do I need to take out local currency?
You could take out a small stash of local currency, the Qatari Riyal (QAR), at the airport upon arrival should you shop locally at any artisan stands, but we didn’t go that route. Pretty much everywhere in Qatar takes credit cards, even the taxis (which also are outfitted with WiFi). We didn’t take out Riyal during our three days in Doha and didn’t need it.
That said, if you plan to visit local markets, you might want to get some small bills in the local currency. All the restaurants and shops use a credit card tap system, and it’s quick and seamless.
Do I tip in Qatar?
Like many countries outside of the United States, tips are not assumed, but a nice bonus for quality service. At restaurants, there is a line to add a tip if you choose, but it’s not expected. We had great service everywhere, so I usually opted to add 10 to 15 percent, but again, this is up to each diner’s discretion. For Uber, I typically added on 5 QAR ($1 USD) to 10 QAR ($2.50), depending on how long the ride was. I use the XE app on my phone to convert currency in real time, though Qatar conversions were fairly simple at roughly 4 QAR to $1.
How do I get around Doha?
Doha is incredibly easy to get around, as you have taxis, a metro and plenty of ride-share services to choose from. When we landed at Hammad International Airport, we immediately logged on the airport WiFi and tried to call an Uber, but there were none available. (We’d later find we arrived in the middle of a huge soccer tournament, the Asian Cup, which was likely why.) Instead, we went into the airport taxi line, enclosed in a fancy glass vestibule, and took a Karwa—essentially Qatar’s go-to taxi service—to our hotel. The ride from Hammad International Airport to West Bay took around 30 minutes and cost us $12 USD.
The rest of the trip, we walked (plenty of wide, well-maintained sidewalks) or took Ubers everywhere. We found that almost every hotel, restaurant and public space had free WiFi, which made it easy to summon an Uber anytime we wanted one without needing to use data. There was always a driver within three minutes of where we were, and it cost us between $3 and $7 USD to get around town, very cheap.
There’s also the Doha Metro that we didn’t take, but several locals told us it’s extremely clean, modern, cheap and convenient. It’s well-connected to the airport, the soccer stadiums and all the main visitor areas.
What wasn’t cheap? Renting a scooter. We love exploring new cities by scooter, so when we saw no fewer than six scooter companies lined up along Al Corniche, we grabbed the ones we were familiar with: Bird. The city is extremely accessible by wide sidewalks, making it a perfect place for pedestrians and scooter riders like us. That said, we had total sticker shock when Bird charged us $100 (each!) for having the scooter for roughly an hour and a half. We’ve taken Bird in cities throughout the U.S. and paid roughly $20 an hour. Knowing that, in the future, I’d simply take Uber everywhere—or a dhow.
Is Doha safe?
Doha is incredibly safe. It felt like a relief as a woman to be in a place where no one was trying to catcall me or panhandle everywhere I went, which happens in many countries around the world but not in Qatar. Not once did I get a second glance from a man—even when I was walking alone with my husband out of sight—nor did anyone try to sell us anything ever. I cannot stress how safe Qatar felt. It’s a big international city whose tourism is one of its economic drivers, and I like that they are overly mindful to take care of their visitors.
Can you drink alcohol in Qatar?
Because Qatar is a Muslim country, alcohol is only available in licensed hotel restaurants and bars. You won’t see it anywhere on menus at local establishments, and it’s illegal to drink it in public or appear intoxicated. We had cocktails at several restaurant bars—at the Mondrian, the Kempinski, the Ritz Carlton—and liquor is subject to a “sin tax” but is pretty much standardized across the board. Expect to pay $20 per cocktail no matter where you go.
What do I wear in Qatar?
If you’ve never traveled to the Middle East, I understand that figuring out what to wear in a country like Qatar might stress you out. As an international tourist, you are not expected to wear what the locals do, which is usually long pants for men and clothing that covers the shoulders, knees and upper arms for women.
However, if you go inside a mosque, you’ll want to cover your shoulders and also your knees. We did not go in a mosque on this visit, but I did wear an ankle-length skirt and kept a shawl in my bag at all times just in case. The shawl doubled as a jacket at night, as it got a bit chilly during the night in January!
When is the best time to visit Qatar?
We visited Qatar in January and February, and our weather could not have been more ideal. It was a balmy mid-70s Fahrenheit during the day, perfect T-shirt weather, and dropped down to 68 F degrees at night when we needed light jackets. Winter is a great season to visit Qatar and be able to enjoy the vast outdoor seating at restaurants and bars across the city. The locals we met said come summer when it gets as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit, you don’t want to be anywhere outdoors!
I love the article you wrote on Doha. This will be great helpful for those who are going for holiday or stopover!