I have been in the Doha airport twice and agree with your description, more or less.
Best example of what happens when a country has so much money it can't figure out how to spend it..... sadly though, not paying or housing many of the immigrant workers who make it run so smoothly. We saw all the abuses during the World Cup, how many died, etc etc.
However, to the point of your article, getting into Doha was absolutely not easy as you suggest. It was near impossible to find such hourly tour, and BTW you can only use Qatari money locally, so we had to find an ATM to change dollars to local currency. Even that was difficult, unlike every other airport in the world. We had to get our passports stamped for a temp visa at a special office that was at least half mile from the central shopping area (the airport is HUGE)
We got a taxi and went to the Qatari National Museum and again, a spectacular example of what unlimited funds can create. It is definitely worth a long layover, just saying plan ahead and be prepared. Women must dress quite conservatively, be aware. And leave time to go through passport control when you return.
I’ve never been to the Doha airport, but I feel like the Singapore airport is also a good contender
I have been in the Doha airport twice and agree with your description, more or less.
Best example of what happens when a country has so much money it can't figure out how to spend it..... sadly though, not paying or housing many of the immigrant workers who make it run so smoothly. We saw all the abuses during the World Cup, how many died, etc etc.
However, to the point of your article, getting into Doha was absolutely not easy as you suggest. It was near impossible to find such hourly tour, and BTW you can only use Qatari money locally, so we had to find an ATM to change dollars to local currency. Even that was difficult, unlike every other airport in the world. We had to get our passports stamped for a temp visa at a special office that was at least half mile from the central shopping area (the airport is HUGE)
We got a taxi and went to the Qatari National Museum and again, a spectacular example of what unlimited funds can create. It is definitely worth a long layover, just saying plan ahead and be prepared. Women must dress quite conservatively, be aware. And leave time to go through passport control when you return.
yep, you use qatari currency in ...qatar! lots of atms at arrivals.
More importantly, you cannot use dollars to pay a taxi or locally except through a credit card (not the taxi)