The Qatar Summer Festival (QSF) and Eid celebrations have started to attract an increasing number of visitors annually, Qatar Tourism Authority’s (QTA) has said.
Highlighting the success of the celebrations at an appreciation event yesterday, QTA noted a 2% increase in the number of visitors in August compared to the same month last year.
QTA also noted a continued rise in the number of GCC nationals who visit Qatar with a 7% increase in year-to-date (January-September) figures compared to the same period last year.
The hosting of these annual festivities in the country is part of what QTA described as a wider strategy in diversifying its year-round tourism offerings for both domestic and foreign visitors. Considered as three of the country’s most anticipated nationwide events, these festivities were held in succession between July and September.
The Eid al-Fitr celebration was held in July followed by the month-long QSF in August and the Eid al-Adha celebration kicked off in September.
At the recognition ceremony yesterday, QTA chief marketing and promotions officer Rashed al-Qurese thanked its partners, including representatives of government ministries and agencies, sponsors, participants and volunteers, for their continuous support and efforts in enriching Qatar’s annual calendar of events.
 “These tourism festivals serve to energise the retail and hospitality sectors in a typically off-peak period,” he said.
The official stressed that shopping promotions throughout QSF generated a positive impact on members of the retail sector.
The weekly raffle draws received 100,000 coupons by the end of the festival and reflects an estimated expenditure of more than QR21mn in participating malls.
The number of participating hotels also doubled in this year’s celebration with 56 establishments offering special packages to visitors. Occupancy rate reached 74%.
QTA records showed that QSF’s 29,000sqm Entertainment City at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre received some 150,000 visitors while 4,450 attended its live shows.
QSF’s Doha Comedy Festival featured 18 stand-up comedians who entertained a large number of spectators at the Qatar National Convention Centre.
The three major tourism events, held for a total of 43 days, received 4,950,000 views on YouTube, according to QTA.
Citing a 91% participants’ satisfaction rate, these events featured a wide range of family entertainment shows, cultural performances, stage shows, amusement games, art activities, among others across the country.
QTA is looking forward to exploring new additions to its annual events calendar, which drive footfall and attract visitors to venues across the country.