Nationals of the Russia, Italy, Czech Republic and Ukraine can take advantage of visa-free entry into Qatar
Discover Qatar, the destination management company arm of Qatar Airways, has signed exclusive partnership agreements with four of the world’s major tour operators in Russia, Italy, Czech Republic and Ukraine, in order to promote Qatar as a major tourist destination. The agreement with outbound tour operators is expected to significantly boost tourism in Qatar, as nationals of the four countries can now take advantage of visa-free entry into Qatar.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker, said:
We are thrilled to sign agreements with these major four tour operators. We currently serve the people of Russia, Italy, Czech Republic and Ukraine by flying to these destinations through our global network. Through this initiative, we will provide further opportunity to welcome more people to the State of Qatar, our beautiful, welcoming and historic country, and are committed to presenting the very best of Arabian hospitality to our visitors, giving them a positive and lasting impression of Qatar.’
The four tour operators that Discover Qatar has partnered with are Viaggidea, Alpitour S.p.A. from Italy, Fischer Group from the Czech Republic, Space Travel from Russia and JoinUp from Ukraine.
Qatar Airways currently operates 42 flights from Italy, 14 flights from Russia, seven flights from the Czech Republic and seven flights from Ukraine per week. The award-winning airline will also launch direct flights to Russia’s St. Petersburg in December. The number of flights to Kyiv, Ukraine, and Prague, Czech Republic will be doubled by mid-December due to passenger demand, just a few months after the launch of services to these popular destinations.
Owner Aleksandr Alba of the Ukrainian tour operator JoinUp, Chief Executive Artur Muradyan of Russian tour operator Space Travel, Chief Executive Jiri Jelinek of Czech tour operator Fischer Group, and Brand Manager Palolo Guariento of Italian tour operator Viaggidea, Alpitour S.p.A. are all excited to bring their guests to Qatar, especially with the new visa regulations.
In August, Qatar’s Ministry of Interior (MoI), Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) and Qatar Airways announced that nationals from more than 80 countries can take advantage of visa-free entry into Qatar, thanks to Qatar’s new visa waiver upon arrival. Depending on the nationality of the visitor, the waiver will either be valid for 180 days, from the date of issue, and allow the visitor to spend a total of 90 days in Qatar (multiple-entry waiver); or it will be valid for 30 days from the date of issue and entitle the visitor to spend up to 30 days in Qatar with the possibility of applying for an extension of the waiver for an additional 30 days (multiple-entry waiver).
Qatar is a perfect winter sun destination for many travelers across Europe, Ukraine and Russia. Russia and Ukraine, in particular, are the largest winter outbound markets in Europe as many travellers seek to escape to warmer climates during the cold winter months.
Kyiv, Prague and Moscow routes are operated by Airbus A320s and Airbus A330s, while Italy routes are served by Dreamliner 787s, Airbus A330s, A340s and A320s. Passengers flying in Business and First Class can enjoy the recently launched pre-select dining service which allows customers to pre-select their meals in advance of travel as well as the luxury amenity kits created exclusively for Qatar Airways by stylish Italian luggage brand BRIC’S.
Named 2017 Airline of the Year, as awarded by Skytrax, Qatar Airways also has a host of exciting new destinations planned for the remainder of this year and 2018, including Canberra, Australia; Chiang Mai, Thailand and Cardiff, UK, to name just a few.
Log on to VisitQatar.qa for more information.
