Essential information

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Arriving & leaving

By air
Doha Airport’s passenger facilities include 44 check-in desks, eight gates, three baggage-claim belts, 60 short-term parking spaces and 600 long-term parking spaces. Amenities include a bank, bureau de change, restaurants, cafeterias, VIP lounges, a duty-free shop, gift shop, travel agent, tourist help desk, car rental, taxi service/rank, first aid and disabled access/facilities.

Doha International Airport
General enquiries (465 6666), Flight enquiries (462 2999), Departures and arrivals (465 6391), Customs (462 1034), Immigration and passport control (462 1896), Airport security (462 1780), Visa office (465 6615).

Airlines
Doha International Airport has one passenger terminal and one cargo terminal. The following airlines serve the airport.

Aero Asia (443 0888), Air Arabia (432 2111), Air France (432 0802), Air India (432 4111), Bangladesh Biman (441 3422), British Airways (432 1434), Egyptair (445 8302), Emirates Airlnes (438 4477), Etihad Airways (493 3375), Gulf Air (445 5444), Indian Airlines (435 6020), Iran Air (441 5318), KLM (432 1208), Kuwait Airways (443 5340), MEA (551 8286), Oman Air (431 4471), Pakistan International Airlines (442 6290), Qatar Airways (449 6666), Royal Jordanian Airlines (443 1431), Saudi Arabian (432 2991), Sri Lankan Airlines (444 1217), Sudan Airways (432 0877), Syrian Airlines (441 2911), Yemen Airways (445 8309).

Travel agents
The agencies below have a bureau at the airport and in Doha.

Ali Bin Travel Bureau (463 3441), Cleopatra Travels (443 9333), Darwish Travel Bureau (441 8666), Qatar Travels (442 8001), Qatar Tours (441 3444), Regency Travel & Tourist (441 3444), Tourist Travel Bureau (444 7499).

Visa requirements
Unless you are a national of one of the other five GCC (Gulf Co-op Council) states, which groups Qatar with Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, you need a visa to visit Qatar and a residence permit to live in the country. Qatar and Oman currently issue joint visas, valid in each other’s countries – so check what’s been stamped in your passport if you’re visiting both places. There are 33 different nationalities entitled to visas on arrival; to make it swifter, the applications can be made in advance over the internet, so that you can print out your approval before you leave home. Tourist/travel visas on arrival cost QR100 and are valid for 21 days.

These can be renewed for a further seven days only, for another QR100, at the office behind the Airport Post Office or at the General Post Office in West Bay. Other nationalities staying at a hotel in Qatar can have a 14-day visa issued through their airline or hotel, which can be renewed for a further 14 days. If you want to stay in Qatar for more than a month, you’ve either got to leave the country and re-enter, or apply for a visit visa through a Qatari embassy overseas – entitling you to up to six months in Qatar. For more visa information and to make online applications, visit the Ministry of Interior website: www.moi.gov.qa. If you work for a broadcasting organisation/production company and wish to bring in professional video cameras/editing equipment, you need advanced approval in order to get through customs. The Foreign Information Agency (FIA) provides permission and press accreditation.