Qatar Tourism Authority Convenes Tourism Marketing Workshop to Enhance Tourism in 2014

Qatar Tourism Authority convened its international representation offices and local tourism and hospitality sector stakeholders last week for a Framework Workshop on Strategic Tourism Marketing Initiatives for 2014 and beyond. The two-day workshop, held at The Ritz-Carlton Doha aims to update source market representation and provide the opportunity to share the Tourism Marketing plan for 2014.

Rashed Al-Qurese, QTA Director of Marketing and Promotions commented: “This workshop is an opportunity to convene Qatar Tourism Authority’s international and local tourism sector stakeholders and prepare for the year ahead in a strategic and coordinated way. As Qatar’s tourism sector is developing rapidly it is critical that the people representing Qatar abroad are aware of the developments and plans for the year ahead, as well as hear first-hand from the local stakeholders on their new products, services and plans for 2014. In this way we enter the New Year with everyone aligned and pushing in the same direction to support the promotion of the tourism industry in Qatar, at home and abroad”.

QTA is expanding its network of representation offices, opening its second location in Europe earlier this year in Paris. Other offices are scheduled to launch in 2014 and beyond in line with the Qatar National Tourism Sector Strategy 2030 (NTS-2030). The representative offices are essential conduits to the national markets as they are charged with revealing the rich cultural heritage of Qatar, its culture and traditions, tourism products, hotels and reception facilities.

Participants have applauded Qatar Tourism Authority’s collaborative approach in working together with the local tourism and hospitality industry stakeholders to give them visibility to future plans through the workshop which allowed them the opportunity to hear and see first-hand the tourism marketing strategy and plan for 2014.

Promotion of Qatar as a tourism destination saw increased efforts in 2013, with QTA and stakeholder delegations present at regional and global MICE and leisure tourism exhibitions and conferences around the world, including EIBTM in Barcelona, Arabian Travel Market in Dubai, World Travel Market in London, and ITB Asia in Singapore, among others.

Tourism is on the upswing in Qatar. The latest figures released for 3rd quarter 2013 showed that all key indicators of the tourism sector demonstrated improvement and growth from the previous year comparable period. The largest source of tourism is from the GCC, with regional visitors increasing by 20% in Q3 2013 compared to Q3 2012. This is reflective of the draw of Qatar’s offerings that appeal to regional visitors. International arrivals are also increasing, thanks to the strong performance of the MICE industry, in particular. Tourists coming from other continents rose by 13.36%, with arrivals from Asia showing the biggest increases at 18.27%.