HVS: Qatar - The Race for 2022

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In this article, we present a brief overview of the hotel market in Doha, Qatar.

We address key factors that impact the demand for transient accomodation, expected changes in supply, and specific challenges related to Qatar's successful bid to hos the 2022 World Cup.

Qatar remains a predominantly corporate destination, with leisure guests acccounting for only 10% of total demand. the remaining 90% consists of a mix of corporate and government demand that is difficult to tell apart, given the strong overlap between the public and private sectors in Qatar. A growing segment, meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition (MICE) demand averages about 15% of total demand for transient accomodation in Doha.

Similar to other markets in the region, Qatar suffered during the global economic downturn and experienced a soft recovery during 2010, particularly in the second half of the year. Portions of corporate demand exhibited a 'flight to value' trend, as price sensitive guests migrated to lower-priced properties in an attempt to cut costs. The main beneficiaries of this trend were high quality, four star hotels: in addition to capturing demand from thrifty five star guests, these properties continued to enjoy the patronage of guests that had migrated to three-star hotels only to discover these properties could not satisfy their food, beverage and meeting space demands.

Demand for transient accomodation in Qatar is expected to grow significantly in the coming decade. We identify some of the key demand drivers, per market segment.

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