Make Doha your goal
National Museum of Qatar, although the old heart did beat a little faster at the sight of this magnificent building, designed by Jean Nouvel to resemble the country’s desert rose.
The architect’s “technically crazy project” – his own words – has resulted in beautiful swirling curves outside and a mind-bending interior where no wall or floor is flat.
You almost feel seasick as you traverse the exhibitions that take you through the natural history of the desert, through the Bedouin culture and tribal wars, to the discovery of oil (£13, nmoq.org.qa/en).
The gawp factor is also very much in evidence when it comes to the Place Vendôme Mall. Talk about biggest and bestest!
Even if, like me, you’re not much of a shopper, it’s worth a visit for the stunning architecture, which includes 13 different skylight domes, and an internal canal directly connected to the sea.
A huge outdoor water area adds to the drama with dancing fountains and 3D laser shows.
But much more charming is the Souq Waqif. Take in the wafts of camel dung and incense as you browse stalls selling spices, clothing and souvenirs and check out the shisha lounges and restaurants.
There are bargains to be had with some bartering, but not everything comes cheap – we were told that falcons on sale there can fetch up to £200,000.
A rich man’s sport, as is the camel racing which takes place in the early morning to avoid the searing sun. Bizarrely, the jockeys are robots, and the winners’ owners compete for cars rather than money.
But you don’t need a camel to get around in
Doha – the new metro system is fast, efficient, clean and costs just 50p a journey. And a tram which runs in a circle around the city is completely free. We were told that Ubers are uber-cheap too.
What isn’t cheap is alcohol. The only places that serve it are the hotels. We paid £10 for a small bottle of beer and nearly £17 for a glass of wine.
A good way of visiting Doha is by cruise ship – a new cruise terminal is about to open – then you can make the most of the city and go back to your floating base for that G&T before dinner.
The powers that be are hoping the World Cup will put Doha and Qatar on the map and will kickstart – sorry – an influx of tourists. The plan is to increase visitor numbers, now two million annually, to six million by the end of the decade – and England and Wales supporters will be leading the charge.
There’s plenty to enjoy, I’ll say that.