Doha, (Business News Report)|| Qatari tourism recovered in the first two months of this year 2022, in light of the significant increase in the number of tourists since the beginning of last year.
A report issued by the Qatar Statistics and Planning Authority said that the total number of visitors during the month of February of this year amounted to 76.9 thousand, compared to 13.8 thousand in the same month last year, an increase of nearly six times.
While the number of visitors and arrivals to Qatar last January reached 86.1 thousand, bringing the total number of visitors during January and February of this year to 163,000.
During the month of February, the number of visitors from the GCC countries reached 18.61 thousand, which represents 24.2% of the total, compared to 1899 visitors in February 2021, and 19.97 thousand visitors during last January.
The number of visitors from other Arab countries amounted to 5,569 visitors, or 7.2% of the total visitors, compared to 801 visitors in February 2021, and 4,650 visitors last January.
While the number of visitors from other Asian countries and Oceania reached 26,591 visitors, or 34.6% of the total, compared to 7,131 visitors in February 2021, and about 38,000 visitors last January.
The number of visitors from the Americas reached 4,481 visitors, or 5.8% of the total visitors last February, compared to 425 visitors in February 2021, and 3,629 visitors last January.
The number of visitors to Qatari tourism from other African countries was 1,597, or 2.1%, compared to 80 visitors in February 2021 and 1,297 in January.
In a related context, Qatar is preparing for the World Cup by raising the capacity of Hamad International Airport and the railway project with Saudi Arabia, which will enhance Qatari tourism in the country.
Jassim bin Saif Al-Sulaiti, Qatar’s Minister of Transport, said that the transport network will be ready before the 2022 World Cup.
Al-Sulaiti also indicated that the first phase of the expansion of Hamad International Airport will be completed before hosting the tournament, to accommodate more than 58 million passengers annually, as well as the start of studying the works of the railway project with Saudi Arabia as a major part of the GCC railway project to transport passengers and goods.