Qatar is an emerging tourism destination

Minor Hotel Group has continued with its strategic expansion in the Middle East with the announcement of its first hotel in Qatar. 

Anantara Doha Island Resort & Spa is a 141 key five star resort in the Arabian Gulf, just off the coast of the country’s capital Doha, and will open early in 2014.

Minor Hotel Group is partnering with the Qatari owned company Al Rayyan Hospitality for its first property in the country.

Qatar is rich in oil and natural gas reserves, with the world’s highest GDP per capita and is currently experiencing a significant boom in the real estate and hospitality sectors.

The new property will be part of the internationally renowned Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas portfolio, known for its luxury experience and discovery-led hospitality, which is already well established in the UAE with three properties in Abu Dhabi.

Located on a 13 hectare island, the new resort will be accessible by speedboat from Doha’s downtown area and from The Pearl, both journeys taking between 20-30 minutes.

Anantara Doha Island will be the sole off-shore escape for both Doha residents and visitors alike, representing an exclusive getaway from the hectic business city.

The new island resort will offer a vast range of facilities and a selection of accommodation options for the variety of guests that it will attract.

With a total of 141 rooms, the 96 guest rooms, 34 pool villas and 11 two- and three-bedroom over-water pool villas will offer guests a wide choice of room types in which to spend their break.

There will be four restaurants and bars, including a contemporary Japanese restaurant and an Arabic beach club.

A total of four pools will be spread throughout the resort’s lush grounds, including a large lagoon pool, directly accessible from many of the family guest rooms, a surf pool with wave machine and hydro exercise pools.

For spa lovers, the resort will offer both an Anantara Spa and an extensive Wellness & Holistic Centre, plus a 24-hour fitness centre and tennis court will be available for those wishing to keep up their fitness regimes.

The island will also be home to a marina accommodating up to 50 boats.

An extensive selection of family activities will be available including a kids club, a dedicated family beach with access to beach volleyball and water sports, a nine-hole golf putting course, a ten-pin bowling alley and a cinema.

An off-shore reef is also being developed and the resort will be home to a reef conservation centre, giving guests the opportunity to plant their own coral and learn more about the underwater environment.

In addition there will be a fully equipped diving centre.

For business guests, the resort will offer a ballroom accommodating up to 250 people for a banquet. There will also be two meeting rooms for up to 50 delegates and an outdoor event space with a capacity to host up to 100 people.

When the new resort opens early next year, Qatar will be the second country of operation for Minor Hotel Group in the Middle East.

Dillip Rajakarier, chief executive, Minor Hotel Group, commented: “We are very excited to announce this new resort in Qatar in partnership with Al Rayyan Hospitality, who we are already successfully working with in the city of Doha with our Anantara Spa at the recently opened Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels.

“The Middle East is a key strategic area of development for Minor Hotel Group and we are actively looking at opportunities to grow not only Anantara but also our AVANI and Oaks brands in the region as well.”