Travel Guide to Doha, Qatar. The beauty of the Arabian world

Who can travel to Qatar ? Qatar issues a visa on arrival at Doha's airport to passengers who are citizens of Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, Malaysia, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, USA and Vatican City. The price is QR 105, payment by credit card is accepted, and grants a 30 day stay.
Citizens of GCC countries: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and United Arab Emirates do not need a visa to enter Qatar.
For other nationalities, visa procedures can be complicated, as you will need a guarantor on the Qatari side, either a company or a government entity. Also Qatari embassies, unlike those of most other countries, are not entitled to issue visas, so someone in Qatar will have to file the application for you. 4/5-star hotels offer full visa service, for a price, if you book a room with them for the duration of your stay. Qatar Airways can arrange the hotel and visa for you, tel. +974 44496980. In this case, there also seems to also be a new regulation in place (2008) to either present a credit card or QAR 5000 at the point of entry - which should generally not be a problem, if you can afford the room. When booking with other hotels, you'll need a guarantor in Qatar.
There are three different modes of public transportation that you can use in Qatar: buses, taxis and limousines, all of which are owned by Mowasalat (Karwa) apart from some limousine companies.
The bus service began in October 2005. Ticket prices start from just Qr4.00. You can travel as far north as Al Shamal/Al Ruwais, as far west as Dukhan, and as far south as Mesaieed (Umm Said). You will require a Karwa Smart Card to journey on buses - paying on the bus with cash stopped in 2010.
An alternative to taxis and buses would be to use a limousine service, which will send a car to your location (as will Karwa taxis if they are booked by telephone). Limousines are expensive, but they are the most comfortable form of transport.
You can hire a car with local Car Rental companies. You will find plenty of car rental company in cities, airports or via your hotel.
Walking and using bicycles is usually not a good idea in the hotter months of the year, as the heat can get very intense and tiring.

The weather doesn’t change much in Qatar. Every day is sunny and hot and rain is a very rare occurrence, happening in the winter only (although the average annual precipitation is only three inches). Summers are exceptionally hot with temperatures rising to 40°C and above on a regular basis. During the winter, temperatures in the daytime are slightly cooler but drop considerably at night time. The best time to visit is from November to March, when temperatures are the most reasonable. You’ll find that the humidity, however, is very high along the coast during this period. From July through September it’s uncomfortably hot, even if the humidity is a bit lower. Also, from March until August, the country experiences a dust-laden wind, called the shamal.
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